BOSTON — The Baker-Polito Administration announced today it has awarded $483,922 in state grant funds to thirteen organizations and municipalities to improve wildlife habitat on 514 acres of land within the Commonwealth. Now in its ninth year, the MassWildlife Habitat Management Grant Program (MHMGP), which is overseen by the Department of Fish and Game’s (DFG) Division of Fisheries and Wildlife (MassWildlife), provides financial assistance to private and municipal landowners of conserved lands to improve and manage habitat for wildlife.

“The MassWildlife Habitat Management Grant Program is critical to the success of ongoing habitat management projects on state-managed lands and ensures a multipronged strategy to improve a variety of Massachusetts’ habitats,” said Energy and Environmental Affairs Secretary Beth Card. “Public and private investment in habitat management is critical for promoting ecological resiliency and diversity, and we are thrilled to work with this year’s grant recipients as they commit to improving wildlife habitat.”

While MassWildlife and other conservation organizations have made unprecedented investments in land acquisition within Massachusetts, land protection alone is not enough to guarantee the persistence of the Commonwealth’s diverse wildlife. Investment in habitat restoration and management is needed on public and private lands across the state. To address this need, the Baker-Polito Administration has substantially increased investment in habitat management on state wildlife lands and is committed to working with partners to promote these efforts on other conserved lands across the state. The MHMGP program encourages landowners to engage in active habitat management on their properties to benefit wildlife.

“Most forests and other wildlife habitats in Massachusetts are not state-owned, and we rely on conservation organizations, cities and towns, private landowners, and other partners to help us manage habitat to benefit all wildlife,” said Department of Fish and Game Commissioner Ron Amidon. “This program provides us with the opportunity to expand our habitat management footprint, directly benefiting wildlife, the sporting community, and other people who enjoy outdoor recreation.”

“MassWildlife restores and manages habitats to help conserve the great diversity of wildlife and plants found in the Commonwealth,” said Mark Tisa, MassWildlife Director. “In addition to MassWildlife’s habitat management activities, these funded projects will improve declining habitats that provide homes for our most vulnerable wildlife, while also enhancing everyone’s ability to connect with nature.”

The following thirteen projects will receive MassWildlife Habitat Management Grants:

• Dartmouth – Mass Audubon has been awarded $72,688 to restore coastal shrubland habitat at Allens Pond Wildlife Sanctuary.
• Edgartown – The Nature Conservancy has been awarded $75,000 to conduct prescribed burns on Katama Plains to improve sandplain grassland habitat.
• Edgartown / Chilmark – Sherriff’s Meadow Foundation has been awarded $17,980 to improve scrub oak shrubland habitats at Pocketapaces and Quansoo Farm.
• Edgartown / West Tisbury – The Trustees of Reservations has been awarded $75,000 to conduct prescribed burning at Wasque Reservation and Long Point Refuge to promote coastal sandplain heathland habitat.
• Falmouth – The Town of Falmouth has been awarded $7,067 to improve the sandplain grassland habitat at Coonamessett Reservation.
• Great Barrington – The Berkshire Natural Resources Council has been awarded $33,875 to control invasive species in the Housatonic River watershed.
• Marlborough / Sudbury – The City of Marlborough, in conjunction with the Sudbury Valley Trustees, has been awarded $49,182 to conduct pitch pine–scrub oak habitat improvements at Desert Natural Area and Memorial Forest.
• Monson / Wales – Norcross Wildlife Foundation has been awarded $21,185 to control invasive species at Chapin Meadow.
• Nantucket – The Linda Loring Nature Foundation has been awarded $75,000 to improve sandplain grassland habitats by removing non-native tree species.
• Stockbridge – Stockbridge Bowl Association has been awarded $11,885 to conduct hardy kiwi invasive species control at Bullard’s Woods.
• Templeton – North County Land Trust has been awarded $12,299 to control invasive species on the Dwelly Farm Conservation Area.
• Westport – The Westport Land Conservation Trust has been awarded $16,341 to convert an abandoned corn field to native grassland and shrubland habitat.
• West Tisbury – BioDiversityWorks has been awarded $16,428 to create artificial reptile hibernacula and a wildlife crossing on The Trustees of Reservation’s Long Point Wildlife Refuge.

“Our natural resources are one of the most prized possessions we have here in the Berkshires,” said State Representative Smitty Pignatelli (D-Lenox). “I am grateful to the Baker-Polito administration's continued investment in our outdoor spaces, and I look forward to seeing the great work that the Berkshire Natural Resources Council and Stockbridge Bowl Association do with this round of MHMGP funding.”

“That former corn field is nearly impossible to get into,” said State Representative Paul A. Schmid III (D-Westport). “Converting it back to native grasses will attract a diversity of wildlife. Many thanks to Commissioner Amidon. Lieutenant Governor Polito and Governor Baker. Great stewards of our environment.”

For more information regarding MassWildlife Habitat Management Grants, please visit the program’s webpage.

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