No red herring on this trip, just learning

May 23, 2019

On May 16 and 17 the Mattapoisett Land Trust sponsored a junior high school science field trip to the Cape Cod Canal Visitor Center and the Herring Run Recreational Center. 

The trip lasted two days, and over 210 seventh and eighth grade students attended. Participants learned about science, history, bridge building and navigation with the Army Corps of Engineers.

At the visiting center, students were met by Samantha Gray, US Corps of Engineers Park Ranger and her staff. Three scientists (University of Massachusetts Dartmouth’s Chris Rillahan, a fish behavioralist, Hillary Sullivan, a biogeochemist from the Woods Hole Research Center, and Helen Fredericks, a research specialist from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute) also spoke to the students. 

They also learned about herring life and oceanography at the visiting center, including how to analyze and tag herring, with chances to observe and touch the fish. They also learned about the history of the fish in Mattapoisett and other topics, like million-dollar research on krill in Antarctica.

The Mattapoisett Land Trust sponsored the field trip as part of its mission to “improve the quality of life for students through environmental excellence.”