The coastal sandplain ecosystem found on Martha's Vineyard, Nantucket, and the surrounding Massachusetts Islands is one of the most beautiful and threatened natural systems in the world, with only a tiny fraction of its original global acreage remaining. Found in only a few other locations in the northeastern United States, the coastal sandplains include rare natural communities such as coastal grasslands and heathlands.

One third of The Nature Conservancy's country programs are islands, and many state programs in the The Nature Conservancy include threats to islands. We have been working on island conservation for decades.

The Chapter has conducted innovative research into methods for restoring oak woodlands to a mosaic of grassland, heathland and oak. The work will help determine the best techniques to use for future restoration projects. A project begun in 2007, in cooperation with the Ecosystems Center of the Marine Biological Laboratory in Woods Hole, will develop techniques to restore native sandplain soil chemistry to land that has been altered by agricultural uses.

The Threat of Habitat Fragmentation

Fragmentation of habitat by residential development and road construction is a major threat on Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket.  It is especially damaging to animals that require large spaces to forage and reproduce.

A study conducted by the Vineyard Conservation Partnership suggests that land on the Vineyard is being developed at twice the rate at which it is being protected. Alterations in land use and management also pose a threat: overgrowth of sensitive habitats due to suppression of an age-old fire regime reduces the variety of vegetation and infringes on grassland habitat

Plants

Habitats on the Massachusetts Islands include high-quality examples of pitch pine/scrub oak barrens and oak savannahs, sandplain grasslands and heathlands, saltmarshes, beaches and dunes. Rare plants include Bushy Rockrose, Sandplain Gerardia, and Nantucket Shadbush.

Endangered Species

Populations of many regionally rare animals, including the Northern Harrier hawk and the Short-eared Owl, are found in this unique ecosystem. More than a dozen moth species listed under the Massachusetts Endangered Species Act depend on sandplain scrub oak barrens on the islands.

Our Conservation Strategy for Massachusetts Island

• Protecting the sandplains, barrier beaches, the great ponds, and their watersheds through purchase, option, or restriction.
• Utilizing cost-effective techniques like the conservation buyer initiative to maximize the conservation impact of each dollar we spend.
• Restoring native habitat to support species that have declined or disappeared from the Islands.
• Helping partners develop successful prescribed fire programs to increase the number of acres burned every year. Fire management is integral to maintaining certain natural communities and helps to burn up excess fuel, reducing the risk of wildfire.
• Working with local conservation partners to enhance their ability to protect and restore ecologically significant land.
• Educating islands residents and visitors about our unique natural communities, and promoting methods like native-plant landscaping that can help minimize human impacts.
• Continuing to develop and test innovative strategies for land protection and habitat restoration.

What TNC Has Done/Is Doing

• A highlight in 2003 was the completion of a comprehensive vegetation map for Martha's Vineyard, created through the use of aerial photographs as well as Geographic Information Systems (GIS). This important planning tool will help the Conservancy and partners determine the size and location of protected areas needed to maintain and restore the island's natural communities.
• At the Hoft Farm research station, the Chapter is continuing its native plant propagation activities. The seeds from the plants at the nursery are being used in restoration projects around the islands. So far, in cooperation with the Massachusetts Natural Heritage program, we have transplanted more than 600 individuals of two threatened species two conservation sites in Edgartown.
• The Chapter’s fire crew spend several weeks on the islands each year, conducting prescribed burns on TNC, partner, state and private lands. The results of these efforts became evident in July of 2003, when grasshopper sparrows – a bird not found on Martha’s Vineyard since 1999 – returned to Katama Airfield. The management technique of spring burns coupled with fall mowing helped restore the vegetation to its natural, less dense condition, encouraging the birds to return and nest.

Nature picture credits (top to bottom, left to right): © Harold E. Malde (Massachusetts Islands/Sandplains in Massachusetts); © Janet Haas (Short-eared owl (Asio Flammeus)); © Mark Godfrey/TNC (White blooms of a Shadbush).