July 2026 Advisory Committee Meeting Minutes

Minutes from the July 2026 meeting of the Natural Heritage and Endangered Species Advisory Committee

Location: In-person in Westborough and virtually via a Zoom webinar

Date: July 9, 2026

Chair Mello opened the January meeting at 1:29 p.m.  

Attendees

MEMBERS:
Present: Dave Small, Mark Mello, Matthew Sisk, Bill Brumback, Wayne Petersen, Kevin Powers
Absent: N/A

ASSOCIATE MEMBERS:
Present: Russ Hopping, Andy Finton
Absent: N/A

AGENCY STAFF:
Present: Jesse Leddick, Emily Myron, Nicole Keleher

OTHERS:
Present: John Hitt, Deborah Rocque

Acceptance of the Minutes of the April Quarterly Meeting

Dave Small motioned that the April minutes be accepted, Bill Brumback seconded, and members voted unanimously to approve. 

Committee Chair Mark Mello's comments

Mark thanked MassWildlife and staff for the Muddy Brook Barrens field trip earlier in the year.

Mark noted a potential new member list for the NHESP Advisory Committee is being developed and will be presented to the Commissioner for consideration (reported by Matt Sisk).

Finally, Mark noted that he surveyed for moths at the Sudbury Memorial Forest as part of early successional and barrens habitat restoration. One of two historical species was resampled. 

Board Member Matthew Sisk's comments

Matt introduced Deborah Rocque and John Hitt as two new Division of Fisheries and Wildlife (MassWildlife) Board Members recently appointed, and each introduced themselves and provided the following background:

• Deborah: Previously worked for U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (USFWS) and currently is a Town Select Board member and farmer in Worthington MA. She represents the Western District for MassWildlife’s Board. Her career was in avian biology, she worked in Alaska for many years then moved to Washington DC, and finally to Hadley, MA as Deputy Director for the Region. Her final position with the USFWS was as the Science Program Director. She enjoys hunting and fishing. 
• John: Currently lives in Scituate, MA and represents the Southeast Cape and Islands District for MassWildlife’s Board. John grew up in the Berkshires. He has lived in Scituate for 25 years and has had a career in the legal field including Fidelity. He has a background in conservation and hunted and fished his whole life and owns forestry land in Western MA.

Matt reported that he was reappointed to the MassWildlife Board for five more years and provided a legislative update on the proposed regulatory changes to deer hunting. The proposed changes have moved beyond the House of Representatives and to the Senate. The search for a new Director is underway and there have been three rounds of interviews. The goal is to hire a new director in August. Twenty applications were submitted for consideration. 

NHESP & Assistant Director Jesse Leddick's Report

Personal and Operations: The hiring freeze is still in effect.

Heritage Projects and Activities: A new version of the annual report was handed out that focused on the highlights over the past year and making the information more accessible.  The new version is considerably lighter than the old version.

Bird safe decals were installed at the Westboro Field Headquarters (not all windows). Mark asked how it worked. Answer, the small black dots are spread 2 inches apart and this is enough to prevent birds from flying into the glass. Andy asked if Drew Vitz was involved in a similar effort at UMass Amherst. Jesse responded that he was not sure but added that the City of Boston was working on a city biodiversity plan, and that MassWildlife had suggested developing a bird collision reduction program as part of this. Bill asked if there was any effort to market the use of these decals in conjunction with the Dark Sky movement. Answer, none at this time that Jesse is aware of, but that Dark Sky principles are often incorporated into bird collision reduction programs because nighttime lighting during fall/spring migrations can attract birds.

Jesse provided a synopsis on the recent field trip to Muddy Brook WMA. The trip was scheduled to share efforts with staff from NY Department of Environmental Conservation who are interested in cryptic barrens and revitalizing barrens management in NY. Chris Buelow provided a comprehensive site and project review and discussed rare species benefits. Wayne indicated he thought the visit was terrific and thought the stages of restoration were very helpful to see and the trip was “five-star”. Kevin agreed that the trip was excellent and that seeing the management was helpful to understanding barrens management goals. Russ commented that he appreciated the interstate collaboration. 

Updates: 

• Great Meadows NWR in conjunction with MassWildlife and Zoo New England celebrated the first documentation of second-generation reproduction of headstart Blanding’s Turtles at the refuge in the wild.
• NHESP is very competitive when securing grants from USFWS, including a Wood Turtle Competitive State Wildlife Grant (C-SWG) that just closed at the end of June. Milestones include the completion of a final report for the 2020 grant for Wood Turtle research and management by Mike Jones. Results from the research have been included in a book published by Northeast Association of Fisheries & Wildlife Agencies (NEAFWA), included in a full regional report, led to the development of assessment protocol, PhD with protocol, two symposia, an article in Conservation Genetics, and a special issue of NE Naturalist issue dedicated to Emydine (Emydinae) turtles.
• At-Risk turtle conservation C-SWG ending next year.
• Finally, Jesse asked the Committee for feedback regarding having an additional, separate remote meeting in August. Thursday, August 6^th  (1:30-4:30) was scheduled.

Presentation: “Goals for Upland Habitat on MassWildlife Lands” Emily Myron (Assistant Director for Land and Habitat Conservation) and Nicole Keleher (Habitat Restoration & Management Program Manager)

A presentation was shared with the Committee that was first presented to the MassWildlife Board on June 17, 2026. This presentation can be viewed here:
Goals for upland habitat on MassWildlife lands 

Committee members were encouraged to submit comments for the goals by July 31, 2026.

Discussion and Comments:

• Russ asked for clarifications on “Forest Reserves” as they are depicted as being 20% of the 78% for late successional forest goals.
• Matt suggested other state agencies, specifically DOT, might have land that could assist with achieving goals.
• 3:30 P.M. – Mark Mello left meeting and Dave Small assumed chair responsibility.
• Bill indicated there will likely be public pushback for early successional goals when they see trees being cut.
• John added that public pushback may depend upon where the cutting occurs in the state.
• Wayne suggested story telling was going to be important for the public to understand and appreciate the goals.
• Andy complemented Nicole and Emily for the presentation and expressed appreciation for the inclusion of an urban biodiversity component.

Member’s Comments:

• Kevin Powers: None
• Wayne Petersen: None
• Bill Brumback: None
• Dave Small: None

Associate Member’s Comments:

• Andy Finton: None
• Russ Hopping: None

Set next meeting date and time

The Committee members confirmed the next meeting date as Thursday, October 8, 2026, at 1:30 p.m. 

Adjourn

The meeting adjourned at 4:09 p.m. Dave Small motioned and Bill Brumback seconded.

Drafted and submitted by Russ Hopping.