Broad Meadow Brook Conservation Center, Wildlife Sanctuary
By Carol Anne Geary Contributing Writer

Region - On a beautiful summer day, my sons and I headed over to Broad Meadow Brook Conservation Center and Wildlife Sanctuary in Worcester. We were planning on attending a family educational workshop about dragonflies.

The workshop more than met our expectations as we learned a lot about these insects and the types that are located at the sanctuary. We then took a group hike along some of the trails to see them in their habitat. The dragonflies proved somewhat elusive to find but the afternoon was very enjoyable.

Broad Meadow Brook Wildlife Sanctuary encompasses over 400 acres off Massasoit Street in Worcester and the land is maintained by the Massachusetts Audubon Society. It is the largest urban wildlife sanctuary in New England, with numerous trails open to hiking. The Audubon Society holds many educational programs there year-round.

There are free family hikes on Sundays and upcoming ones will be held Aug. 12 and Sept. 23. Other programs are offered for a small fee, including preschool story hours that will be held Saturday Aug. 11 and Saturday Aug. 25. Educational programs about butterflies and snakes will be off ered in August as well. On Thursday Sept. 6, there will be a free open house for home-schooled students.

Admission to Broad Meadow Brook Conservation Center and Wildlife Sanctuary is $4 for adults, $3 for seniors and children 3 to 12 years old, and free for children 2 and under. Admission is also free for Worcester residents, Massachusetts Audubon Society members and Greater Worcester Land Trust members. Individual and family memberships to the Massachusetts Audubon Society can be purchased and allows free admission to the 44 Massachusetts Audubon wildlife sanctuaries statewide.

For more information about Broad Meadow Brook and its programs, contact 508-753- 6087 or visit www.massaudubon. org and search for Broad Meadow Brook's homepage.