BEAT to Host Sixth Annual Berkshire Biodiversity Day

08:00AM / Thursday, September 11, 2025Print Story | Email Story

ADAMS, Mass. — The 16th annual Berkshire Biodiversity Day, also known as Berkshire BioBlitz, invites nature lovers of all ages to join scientists, naturalists, and environmental educators in identifying as many species as possible—plants, animals, fungi, and more—over the course of 24 hours.

The Berkshire Environmental Action Team (BEAT) hosted event will take place from noon on Saturday, Sept. 13 to noon on Sunday, Sept. 14 at the Greylock Glen Outdoor Center in Adams. Participation is free and open to everyone, regardless of age or experience.

Attendees are invited to drop in at any point during the event to join scheduled guided walks, attend hands-on demonstrations, and learn from expert-led presentations.

This year's lineup includes two nature walks led by well-known naturalist Tom Tyning, one focusing on amphibians and reptiles and the other on butterflies. Rene Wendell from the Hoffmann Bird Club and The Nature Conservancy will lead a nighttime owl prowl, as well as an early morning bird walk with Jonathan Pierce, also from the Hoffmann Bird Club.

Matthew Rymkiewicz will demonstrate how to attract and observe moths using lightsheeting techniques, and Ben Nickley of Berkshire Bird Observatory will conduct a live bird banding session. Laura Hancock from Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts will give a presentation on bats and surveying techniques, as well as lead a demonstration in plant preservation and specimen mounting. Nicaela Haig of Mass Audubon will lead a hawk watch, and Sonia Szala-Krotkov will lead a bee walk.

Visit thebeatnews.org to find a detailed schedule of the 24-hour program.

All activities and presentations will be based at the Greylock Glen Outdoor Center at 135 Gould Road, Adams, where attendees must register upon arrival. Participants may stop by anytime to take part in the scheduled guided walks, live demonstrations of surveying techniques, and educational presentations, or contribute their own observations to the species survey across the Glen's diverse landscape.

Berkshire Biodiversity Day is organized by Berkshire Environmental Action Team (BEAT). This year's program is co-sponsored by Greylock Glen Outdoor Center, Greylock Federal Credit Union, Mass Audubon, and BEAT.

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Adams Zoning Board Talks Signage Bylaw

By Sabrina DammsiBerkshires Staff
02:47PM / Saturday, August 29, 2026

ADAMS, Mass. — For more than a decade, the Zoning Board has deliberated over several matters involving its "restrictive" sign bylaw.

Now, the board is developing a proposed amendment that would make the bylaw less constraining for businesses while preserving the town’s character and protecting neighboring properties.

The current bylaw has been in effect since around 1986, and for the past 10 to 15 years, it has sparked controversy nearly every year when a new sign is proposed for installation in town, said board member David Rhinemiller.

When it was developed in the 1980s, the goal was to preserve the town’s 1950s and 1960s-era character, he said.

As part of the process, the town surveyed residents about their vision for the community, and the overall feedback favored maintaining that aesthetic, which was then reflected in the zoning bylaws, including restrictions on internally illuminated signs, Rhinemiller said.

The board hopes to make the baseline of the bylaw more realistic and acceptable to modern businesses while ensuring it protects the safety and comfort of the surrounding area, board members said.

"The way our current bylaws are written, virtually anything that somebody might want to do to change the sign regulations to accommodate their business is subject to meeting the requirements of a variance, which we all know is very difficult to do," board member Raymond Gargan Jr. said.

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