News & Events

The Berkshire forests are buzzing, blooming, twining, gurgling, decaying, and regenerating with the unstoppable forces of nature. In the Pleasant Valley Wildlife Sanctuary’s majestic barn, six Berkshires artists share their visions of the complexity and grandeur of the natural world: Carolyn Newberger, Theresa Terry, Pat Hogan, Scott Taylor, Nina Lipkowitz, and Carol Daynard.

Mass Audubon’s Action Agenda addresses three critical challenges of our time: the rapid loss of wildlife habitat, inequitable access to nature, and the threat of climate change. 

On July 27, 2021 Pleasant Valley was hit by a devastating storm. The microburst it produced uprooted or snapped hundreds of mature trees in a swath across the entrance and trail-laden section of the sanctuary. The boardwalk reopened in July 2022 following repairs.

"I love being the friendly face they see upon arrival and helping them map the perfect route to hike. It’s very rewarding to help someone find their "nature-legs", so-to-speak."

In July 2021, damaging winds from a severe thunderstorm blew down approximately 10 acres of trees on Lenox Mountain. The regeneration of the forest at Pleasant Valley will take decades.

Libby Herland joined the Berkshire Sanctuaries Advisory Committee in January 2018 just a few months after retiring from a career dedicated to conservation.

The benefits of nature offered at Mass Audubon's wildlife sanctuaries will now be directly available to patients of three Berkshire health care providers: MACONY Pediatrics of Pittsfield, Volunteers in Medicine Berkshires, and Community Health Programs.

Old Baldy Mountain gets its name from the open summit. But without active habitat management, trees would overtake the summit's field and thicket within just 20 years.

If you've enjoyed a Mass Audubon naturalist-led hike, school field trip, library program, or summer camp in the Berkshires and Connecticut River Valley area this year, then you've benefited from the work of Dale Abrams.