September 10-13--Visit the Fish & Game Building at the Franklin County Fair, Greenfield.Visit the Fish and Game building and see what MassWildlife is doing for wildlife and for people in the region. Find out about fall trout stocking, places to fish, hunt, birdwatch, hike and paddle. Learn a little bit about your wild neighbors! More information about the Fair and a Virtual Tour of the Fish and Game Building.
September 11 -- Deadline for Registering for Shooting Sports Day for Outdoorswomen to be held September 19 in Hanson. This is day designed for adult women (age 18 and older) to learn how to use different kinds of guns, from shotguns and rifles to handguns. Try your hand at target shooting with expert instructors at the Hanson Rod & Gun Club. Attend the day long workshop plus an optional session from 4-5 pm on Mass. Gun laws and you will receive a certificate which will assist you in applying for a gun license (FID or LTC) with your local police department. Registration Deadline is September 11, 2009--limited to 40 participants. You must include your registration form and medical form 
along with your check in order to enroll. This is a popular workshop that fills up fast!
Mid-September is hawk migration time! Take up a watching post on a high hill or some of the popular hawk watching peaks such as Mt. Tom, Mt Wachusett, the Blue Hills or Monument Montain or high dunes on Cape Cod. Check with local bird clubs for hawk counting locations at www.massbird.org
September 14 --Gray squirrel season opens in Wildlife Managment Zones 1-9.
September 14 -- Bird Habitat Protection and Restoration, Amherst. The Hampshire Bird Club is kicking off its 2009-2010 meeting schedule with a presentation from the Mass. Division of Fisheries & Wildlife (Mass. DFW) titled: “Habitat Protection and Restoration in Massachusetts: It’s for [More Than Just] the Birds!” The public is invited to this free program at 7:30 P.M. at the Immanuel Lutheran Church, 867 North Pleasant St., Amherst, MA. (Directions) Join Susan Benoit (Promotion) and Chris Buelow (Restoration Ecology Assistant) as they briefly review Mass. DFW history and funding, then outline Mass. DFW’s current monitoring and restoration work on a variety of species of birds across the state, with additional updates on turtles, snakes, dragonflies, and more. Find out what the Mass. Division of Fisheries & Wildlife is doing, and what individual naturalists and conservationists are doing to enhance, contribute to, and enjoy the results. For more details, contact Geoff LeBaron at programs@hampshirebirdclub.org.
September 15--CANOEING? KAYAKING? YOU MUST WEAR A LIFE JACKET Between September 15 of this year and May 15 of next year, ALL persons in canoes and kayaks must be WEARING lifejackets. This includes waterfowl hunters. Most boating fatalities in Massachusetts are due to accidents in small craft such as this in cold water/cold weather situations. More Boating Safety Information.
September 16 -- September Black bear hunting season closes.
September 20--MassWildlife at Tower Hill Botanic Garden Celebration, Boylston. This is a celebration honoring the 25 years John Trexler has served as Director of Tower Hill Botanic Garden. MassWildlife, the Department of Conservation and Recreation Watershed Supply Protection Division will be hosting display tables. See Live Birds of Prey with Larry Keating and look at fantastic wildlife and nature photographs by Worcester County photographers Bill Byrne, Roger Leo and Sheila Carrol. Information about the American Chesnut orchard, talks and presentations on the history of the Garden and the immediate environs, hawk watching and historic photos are also in the mix.
September 25--Early Canada goose season closes.
September 27--13th Annual Mass. Outdoor Exposition, Sturbridge. We look forward to seeing you at this terrific event for families and friends! Held at the Hamilton Rod and Gun Club off New Boston Road.
September 30-- Bullfrog and green frog season closes.
