Community Biodiversity Initiative

Help us protect and promote biodiversity on Falmouth's conservation lands.

What is the Community Biodiversity Initaitve

Started by the Dennis Conservation Land Trust, the Community Biodiversity Initiative (CBI) is an effort to bring together land trusts and other conservation-focused organizations from across Cape Cod to monitor, document, and protect biodiversity in their communities. Partner organizations can participate in the CBI by reporting potential vernal pools and state-listed species to the state's database, as well as by hosting bio blitzes and other public events that involve community members. After signing a "Partner Pledge" in 2025, the 300 Committee has been taking part in the initiative by reporting potential vernal pools, starting a Biodiversity Ambassadors program, and hosting bio blitzes.

Ways to Get Invovled in Falmouth

As a partner of the Dennis Conservation Land Trust, the 300 Committee has taken on several initiatives to monitor biodiversity in Falmouth, which include vernal pool monitoring/certification, bio blitzes, citizen science, and documenting "Heritage Trees." Read more about the following programs and how to get involved.

Falmouth Bio Blitz

In September of 2026, the 300 Committee will host a town-wide Bio Blitz at the Upper Coonamessett River (170 Hatchville Road). See details about the event under "Upcoming Programs and Events." A Bio Blitz is a concentrated effort to identify as many living things within a specific geographic area over a short period of time (usually 24 hours). It is usually attended both by community members and scientists or other professionals. The Harwich Conservation Trust will also host a Bio Blitz at Cold Brooke Preserve on September 19th.

We are looking for taxa experts to get involved. This includes experts on plants, insects, spiders, mammals, fungi, reptiles, amphibians, and birds. Please contact Will Poirier at wpoirier@300committee.org if interested.

Vernal Pools

State Certification Guidelines

Vernal pools are temporary or "ephemeral" wetlands that provide important breeding habitat for amphibians like salamanders and frogs. Due to their role as essential breeding habitat, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts affords special protections to vernal pools to protect them from development. To receive these protections, vernal pools must be certified by the Natural Heritage and Endangered Species Program (NHESP). The process of certification involves collecting and submitting photo or video evidence of "obligate species," including egg masses, mated pairs, and chorusing frogs. Obligate species require vernal pools for all or a portion of their life cycle, and these include fairy shrimp, spotted salamanders, and wood frogs.

We have been monitoring potential or uncertified vernal pools in Falmouth for the last two years, and since we started we have documented 12 (3 in 2025 and 9 in 2026) potential vernal pools across town, collecting photos and videos of amphibian egg masses and fairy shrimp for submission to NHESP. 2026 was the first year that we recruited volunteers to help with these efforts, and this past spring we involved 25 volunteers from both inside and outside the organization. The 300 Committee is going to continue to certify in Falmouth, so stay tuned for more information on how you can get involved with these efforts.

State-Listed Species

Report State-Listed Species

List of Endangered, Threatened, and Special Concern Species

In addition to observations of potential vernal pools, citizen scientists can also report sightings of endangered or state-listed species to NHESP. See the link above for a complete list of endangered, threatened, and special concern species in Massachusetts. Observations are reported using a database called Heritage Hub, and once NHESP approves an observation, the area where the organism was documented can be designated as priority habitat. Priority habitat can then be expanded or preserved to protect vulnerable organisms.

Biodiversity Ambassadors

iNaturalist Project Page

Biodiversity Ambassadors is an initiative led by the 300 Committee Land Trust to learn more about biodiversity on Falmouth's conservation lands. Members of the public can use the popular wildlife and plant identification app, iNaturalist, to catalog biodiversity on the following conservation areas in Falmouth:

Getting involved is easy. All you need is an iNaturalist account and mobile device. Visit one of the above conservation areas, take a picture of an organism, share the observation to your iNaturalist profile, and your observation should automatically upload to the Biodiversity Ambassadors project on iNaturalist. You do not have to manually join the project. Each parcel has its own project page on the Biodiversity Ambassadors landing page. Look for your observations there. The landing page is linked above. The project is set up to collect observations in perpetuity. There are no time limits or constraints. Never visited any of our conservation lands? Visit our "Land and Trails" tad for access instructions and to learn more about each parcel. Also, see the links and resources below for overviews of the iNaturalist mobile app and webpage, including how to set up your iNaturalist account.