News & Events

The Beach Preserve is Closed to the public until further notice, due to hazardous ash tree conditions on the property near the trails.

***Check out the Photo Contest Section for Submission Requirements and Entry Form***

2023 Winner Announcements and a collage of amazing entries!

Upcoming events

Please Note New Date: April 20 (rain date April 21)

Birder extraordinaire Fran Zygmont will again be leading us on a Migratory Bird Expedition on HLT's Mill District Nature Preserve. Those who attended last year were impressed not only by Fran's identification abilities but also by his amazing bird call imitations.

 Past Events

Hartland Land Trust thanks all who attended the Invasive Managment workshop! Peter Picone was a fantastic and charismatic speaker with a wealth of knowledge and experience about invasive plants shrubs and trees.

Min Huang is a wildlife biologist for the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection and heads the Migratory Bird Program for the State. Min received a Bachelor of Science in Natural Resource Conservation and a Bachelor of Art in English from the University of Connecticut and received his Master of Science in Wildlife Management from Frostburg State University. He received his Ph. D from the University of Connecticut, researching sub-population structure and survival of resident Canada geese. He has worked as a wildlife biologist for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission where he managed a wildlife management area, working primarily with deer and various endangered species such as the Florida grasshopper sparrow, red-cockaded woodpecker, Florida scrub jay, and whooping crane. He also spent 5 years working for the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife as a District Biologist, where he primarily worked with ungulates and endangered species such as the spotted owl and marbled murrelet. Current projects he is involved with include migration and survival of North Atlantic Population Canada geese, nesting success of mallards in an exurban landscape, American kestrel survival, dispersal and migratory stopover habitat use, American bittern habitat use and migratory patterns, eastern whippoorwill status and use of managed forestry cuts, and multi-stock harvest management of waterfowl.

Ladybeetle Release

Fred Jones and Susan Pearson, Co-Presidents of Hartland Land Trust, had the pleasure of participating in the predator ladybeetle release at the MDNP with Dr. Cheah yesterday afternoon. We checked 3 areas -- the area by the kiosk, the area for the future bench at the beaver pond and the "finger" farther downhill on route 20, near the road. The latter two areas were deemed by Carole to have too few live adelgids to warrant a beetle release but Fred and I got to hang some 50 ladybeetles at the kiosk. In the photo below you can see the difference between live (still with a puffy woolly covering) and dead (smaller, dried-out-looking) adelgids. Carole says the beetles get right to work and said they were mad and hungry from being cooped up in their containers.

CT Trails Day

Our Trails Day hike was a great success. Trail leader Steve Emmons, brought hikers, including Laurie Guptill (photo) on a nice leisurely stroll, taking in all the sites, including loads of teeny newts on the move, as well as enduring some silly pranks along the way.

Bird Walk with Fran Zygmont

The event was guided by Fran Zygmont, whose extensive knowledge of birds guaranteed our enjoyment and education. He is a bird call imitator & “talked” to the birds as we strolled through the forest on the Mill District Nature Preserve Trail. We heard and spotted many birds and learned new and interesting facts about our feathered friends. As with any walk in the woods, there were plenty of other flora and fauna to enjoy.

Congratulations to Hartland School’s Salmon-in-Schools program on the receipt of a $2,300 grant from the Lower Farmington River and Salmon Brook Wild and Scenic Committee!  HLT has been happy to partner with the school for ten years in this exciting program and in 2022 to help the school apply for these funds.  The grant will bring water biologists from the Farmington River Watershed Association into the school and along on the sixth grade Salmon Release Day field trip as well as purchasing important equipment for the program.  This year’s batch of salmon fry are already happy in their foster home in the tank in middle school science teacher Deb Costolnick’s classroom.  Good luck to the fish and the students for lots of growing and learning and a successful release into Salmon Brook in early May!

Thank you to all who came out to support us at this event. We received a total of $398.00.

 CT Trails Day June 4, 2022

Edith Leopold — Hartland’s Connection to Aldo Leopold

 Diana Evans (Hartland Lions Club), Susan Pearson (Hartland Land Trust) and Joanne Groth (Hartland Historical Society) are busy packing and delivering Welcome Bags to our newer Hartland residents. These three Hartland non-profit organizations would like to also acknowledge the support of the Hartland Public Library which supplied the bags as well as town employees Magi, Jen and Trish. We hope all our new residents love our beautiful town!

Photo Fred Jones

Jason Hawley, DEEP Furbearer Biologist, gave a great talk on November 15 on preliminary results from his research on bobcats in CT. Thanks to Jason and to his two assistants!

Congratulations to the slate of officers the HLT board elected at the Annual Meeting:

Co-Presidents: Fred Jones and Susan Pearson

Vice President: John Harrity

Secretary: Amanda Lukingbeal

Treasurer: Jane Jones

Thanks to those Board members who are serving an additional term:

Fred Caputo, Susan Pearson, Brandon Pizzoferrato

Jay Kaplan of Roaring Brook Nature Center speaks to HLT audience on September 27, 2021

Jay Kaplan of Roaring Brook Nature Center speaks to HLT audience on September 27, 2021

Annual Meeting 9-27-2021 Poster-Revised.JPG

We had fun marching in the parade 7/31. Happy 75th anniversary, East Hartland Volunteer Fire Department! 

If you’re lucky you might find this in your change!

If you’re lucky you might find this in your change!

Check this out: HLT’s Mill District Preserve (Stoeke and Bosco parcels) deemed Success Stories by Audubon CT!