Spotlight on Friends of Assabet River National Wildlife Refuge

First Friends Group Featured for Posting Refuge Photos on the CORFA Facebook Page

By Nicole Souza, Friends of Assabet River NWR, MA

Editor’s Note: In November, with help from Aimee Arent, Friends of Ottawa NWR, and Joan Van Gorp, Friends of Neal Smith NWR, CORFA began asking Friends to post photos of their refuge/hatchery on the CORFA Facebook page. Said Joan, “We love seeing and learning about refuges/hatcheries across the country, and what a great way to meet Friends and interact more with each other. Of the many amazing photos posted, Nicole Souza’s stunning photos of fungi at Assabet River National Wildlife Refuge caught our attention, so Assabet River NWR was featured for the month of December.”

Assabet River National Wildlife Refuge encompasses 3.5 square miles located within the Massachusetts towns of Hudson, Maynard, Stow, and Sudbury. The refuge is on the original homelands of the Nipmuc People. The name “Assabet” is likely from the Nipmuc dialect, but the exact meaning is uncertain. It seems to refer to the marshy nature of the area, described as meaning “the place where materials for making fishnet grows,” “a mire-y place,” and “at the place where the river turns back.” Indeed, the refuge features a large wetland complex, several smaller wetlands and vernal pools, and large forested portions, which are important feeding and breeding areas for migratory birds and other wildlife.

Assabet River NWR was established in 2000 when the U.S. Army transferred 2,230 acres to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to be part of the National Wildlife Refuge System. The national wildlife refuge opened in 2005. The property had been a training annex and was placed off-limits by the Army in 1942, when they acquired it for an ammunition storage facility. Before World War II, the area consisted of small family farms and wood lots, some dating back to colonial times. Like the refuge, the Friends of Assabet River NWR was established in 2000.

Would you like your refuge/hatchery to be recognized on the CORFA Facebook page? Post your photos often in the Coalition of Refuge Friends and Advocates Facebook group and “challenge” Friends from other refuges/hatcheries to do the same!