Wildlife Encounters
The ways in which you can explore New England’s wildlife are as rich and varied as the species that make their home in this region, from black bears and eagles to whales and great white sharks. Nature centers, wildlife sanctuaries, and guided tours all help bring visitors closer to these animals while also offering education about how to protect them and their habitat. And the best thing? You can’t go wrong with whatever adventure you choose, because you’ll almost certainly see something extraordinary, and learn things that will stay with you long after you’ve returned home.
MASSACHUSETTS
Massachusetts is ranked as one of the top 10 whale-watching spots in the world for good reason: Just 25 nautical miles from Boston is the Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary, an 842-square-mile (2,180km²) refuge that provides a home for many kinds of marine life but most notably humpback, pilot, and North Atlantic right whales, which come here to feed from spring through fall. And getting out to see these majestic animals couldn’t be easier, since whale-watching tours operate all along the state’s coast, from the North Shore to Cape Cod.
One of the best-known whale-watching tours can be found at the New England Aquarium in Boston, which partners with Boston Harbor Cruises on excursions that feature onboard naturalists trained by aquarium experts. Cape Cod visitors, meanwhile, often set out to sea with Dolphin Fleet in Provincetown, which is considered to be the first whale tour operator on the East Coast. Since 1975, it has brought thousands of wildlife lovers within easy distance of photo opportunities of a lifetime, as naturalists help teach passengers more about the environment they’re visiting.
Massachusetts waters are also the seasonal home of another famous resident of the deep, the great white shark. The Atlantic White Shark Conservancy (AWSC) on Cape Cod operates two educational centers, in Chatham and in Provincetown, with exhibits designed to engage visitors and teach them about shark research, conservation, and natural history. AWSC also leads private on-the-water tours for those hoping to glimpse great white sharks in their natural environment. Not only do passengers get an up-close view of the group’s groundbreaking work, but they’ll even get a chance to help out with vital research.
For a close-up look at a different kind of apex predator, head to Wolf Hollow in Ipswich, on the Massachusetts North Shore. For more than 30 years this nonprofit wolf sanctuary has worked for the preservation of gray wolves in the wild through education, inviting the public to see and learn about the animals in its care. The wolves here live in as natural a setting as possible, but visitors can observe them at close range during both seated presentations and guided walking tours; there is also a special guided photo tour that allows participants to photograph the wolves from the closest possible vantage point.
NEW HAMPSHIRE
The haunting call of the loon is a signature summer sound in New England, and in New Hampshire’s Lakes District these eye-catching black-and-white water birds have given the region an identity all its own. Squam Lakes Natural Science Center in Holderness offers the ideal introduction to the loon, which was driven to near extinction in parts of New England in the late 19th century and is still considered a threatened species in New Hampshire. On tours that span the breadth of beautiful Squam Lake, one of the center’s naturalists and a Loon Preservation Committee biologist teach passengers about the birds and their habitat, as they keep an eye out for loons and even the occasional bald eagle.
New Hampshire’s largest mammal is the moose, and it’s a sight to behold, measuring up to seven feet (2.1m) at the shoulder and weighing as much as 1,500 pounds (630kg). While New England’s moose populations were nearly wiped out by hunting in the 1880s, they began rebounding in the 1970s; however, loss of habitat and a warming climate continue to challenge their future. One of the best way to see moose in the wild and learn more about this key species is by booking a guided bus tour in the White Mountains region, which is home base for a number of veteran operators. Running mainly from May to October, these excursions offer the chance to safely observe the animals as they move into open wetlands to feed, while also providing informative, unique tours of the region.
MAINE
As a vast, forested state with New England’s longest coastline—as well as nearly 6,000 lakes, ponds, and rivers—Maine is truly a wildlife paradise. And while two of its biggest draws for animal lovers may be moose tours and whale watching expeditions, there are many other species to discover and ways to connect with the natural world. Just a short drive from Portland, for instance, you can explore the Maine Wildlife Park, in Gray. Operated by the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, this 200-acre (81ha) refuge serves as a second home to wild animals that have been injured or orphaned, from skunks and porcupines to coyotes and black bears—30 species in all. Forty of the park’s acres (16.2ha) are open to the public for guided tours, while the visitor center hosts exhibits and special educational presentations.
One of the most remarkable conservation efforts in New England was the restoration of Atlantic puffins to their historic island nesting sites off the coast of Maine. These migratory sea birds, known for their brightly striped beaks, had nearly vanished from these islands by the time Audubon’s Project Puffin began transplanting young birds here from Canada in the 1970s; today, Maine hosts about 250 nesting pairs each year from May to August. At the Project Puffin Visitor Center in Rockland, guests can learn about these fascinating birds, then sign up for an Audubon-led tour to the puffin colony at Eastern Egg Rock in Muscongus Bay. Farther north, in Cutler, Bold Coast Charter Company is the only U.S. tour operator permitted to actually land passengers on Machias Seal Island, the largest puffin colony in the Gulf of Maine, where you can survey the spectacular residents from behind blinds.
VERMONT
Bordered by Vermont, New York, and Quebec, Lake Champlain—the largest lake in New England—teems with all manner of aquatic life. At the ECHO, Leahy Center for Lake Champlain in Burlington, the spotlight is put on some of the most vulnerable of these: spiny softshell turtles and map turtles, which often struggle to survive their first year in the wild. The science and nature center is home to some 70 different species of fish, amphibians, invertebrates, and reptiles, but the turtles are the stars—and each June, ECHO hosts a release party in which the public can help return the strongest and biggest of the youngsters it has raised back into nature.
Not far from Burlington, you can learn all about the winged residents of the Green Mountain State at the Birds of Vermont Museum in Huntington, a 100-acre (40.5ha) preserve, sanctuary, and education center that features nearly 500 bird carvings by Bob Spear, a Vermont naturalist and master woodcarver. For real-life bird sightings, sign up for the museum’s bird walks, in which expert spotters lead visitors on strolls throughout the property.
In the southern Vermont town of Quechee, meanwhile, the Vermont Institute of Natural Science (VINS) invites wonder with its state-of-the-art raptor habitats, home to more than 40 eagles, hawks, owls, vultures, and more. There are also nature trails to hike, and a range of exhibits and educational programming on offer. VINS operates a wild bird rehabilitation program that treats some 1,000 injured or orphaned birds from Vermont and New Hampshire each year, and guests are invited to see its rescue efforts in action.
RHODE ISLAND
Among the leading advocates for the environment in Rhode Island is Save the Bay, a nonprofit dedicated to protecting and improving Narragansett Bay and all the waters that flow into it. The learning experience begins at Save the Bay’s Exploration Center and Aquarium in Newport, an interactive marine science center that features about 40 species from Narragansett Bay, including turtles, jellyfish, eels, and lobsters. Nature lovers can continue their exploration of the bay by heading out onto the ocean itself from October to April, when Save the Bay offers nature and seal watching tours. Binoculars are provided, and expert guides offer an educational view of winter wildlife and their critical habitat.
At the nearby Norman Bird Sanctuary in Middletown, the focus shifts from the sea to the skies. Spread across more than 325 acres (132ha), this wildlife oasis is considered to be a critical stopping point for migrating warblers, raptors, shorebirds, and other species on the Atlantic Flyway. The property features seven miles of hiking trails through forest, meadow, ledge, and beach habitats, as well as an environmental education center and regular guided bird walks.
CONNECTICUT
Delve into the world of marine science with Project Oceanology, a year-round research and learning center, based in Groton. Every summer, it offers a series of 2½-hour oceanographic cruises aboard its research vessel that invite passengers to explore the sea life in Long Island Sound and learn how to use a wide range of research equipment—and even set a trawl net with the help of staffers. And in spring, Project Oceanology’s seal watch cruise gives guests an up-close view of migrating harbor seals, which use the local waters as a stopover on their way to their summertime home off the coast of Maine.
On the western Connecticut coast, more ocean-life adventures await at the Maritime Aquarium in Norwalk, the nation’s only aquarium focused on Long Island Sound. Dedicated to inspiring visitors to preserve and protect this key habitat and its inhabitants, the aquarium is a worthy visit in and of itself. But don’t miss a chance to book an educational cruise on its revolutionary R/V Spirit of the Sound, the first research vessel in North America with hybrid-electric propulsion. Throughout the year it invites visitors aboard for seal spotting and birding excursions, marine life encounters, Norwalk Island cruises, and more.
In 2017, Mystic Aquarium became the first New England institution to be certified by the American Humane Conservation program. That honor won’t surprise anyone who’s been to this rigorously education-and-conservation-focused facility, home to Steller sea lions, beluga whales, penguins, sharks, sting rays—more than 300 species in all, many of them found in New England’s own waters.
To meet wildlife of the land-dwelling sort, on the other hand, head to Earthplace in Westport, a science and nature center that doubles as a home for rescued owls, turtles, bats, bald eagles, and hawks, among other species. The property’s 62 acres (25ha) encompass a variety of habitats and includes walking trails that let visitors discover the center’s wilder side.
