***MA NFC Chair Shane Johnson with wild native pumpkinseed sunfish trapped in Newton Cemetery and Arboretum as part of one of two NFC hosted “fish tours”…***

Massachusetts NFC has undertaken two Holistic Stream Assessment/Restoration projects on Cold Spring Brook in Newton, MA. The first was in Cold Spring Park, a heavily altered and badly degraded section of stream in undeveloped public land. The second was in Newton Cemetery and Arboretum, an equally altered but notably less degraded section of stream on private property.

Impressed by the aquatic biodiversity and biomass in Newton Cemetery and Arboretum, especially considering what the land is used for, as well as the resource stewardship and public interest in the flora and fauna, NFC worked with Newton Cemetery and Arboretum to conduct a couple of public “fish tours” to expose people to a part of the property’s landscape they would otherwise not be aware of.

Two tours were scheduled for Friday May 8, a morning session and an afternoon session. Both of the tours were sold out with roughly 40 people in attendance for each, plus 3-4 NFC volunteers and 2-3 employees of Newton Cemetery and Arboretum who guided the group, answered questions, tended minnow traps, and helped pass around fish captured and released as part of the tour.

Below is a handout guests were provided with ahead of the tours. The maps were explained up front and referenced throughout the tours so that participants had a point of reference. They show the evolution of the property over a period of 150 years in regard to Cold Spring Brook

The Newton Cemetery and Arboretum fish tours were a huge success. As things progressed, they became more about the aquatic habitats and what lives there than simply fish. In addition to viewing wild native pumpkinseed sunfish, golden shiners, and yellow perch that had been trapped, the group also got to view native bullfrog tadpoles that were caught in the traps and painted turtles that seemed almost tame.

The day before the event, NFC National Chair Emily Bastian and Executive Director Bob Mallard stopped in to take a look around to see how things were shaping up after a somewhat delayed spring that had hampered earlier attempts to trap fish for display during the tours. In addition to seeing some fish, they saw the largest crayfish either had ever seen. Another nod to the biodiversity found on the property.

Folks were also shown how the 4 manmade ponds and a small irrigation lagoon are tied together by a section of daylighted stream, buried stream, pipes, and pumps that send water from the stream to the lagoon as well as the most downstream pond which unlike the other 3 is not part of Cold Spring Brook.

While moving downstream from where the stream enters the cemetery at an underground pumphouse to where it exits the property at the edge of a neighborhood, guests were shown things that could be done to improve fish passage and habitat, and ongoing maintenance that could be performed to benefit aquatic lifeforms, all of which are being considered by Newton Cemetery and Arboretum.

We also discussed why, and at NFC’s recommendation, nonnative koi were removed from the lagoon. NFC explained what koi are, why they are considered invasive, and illegal to possess in Maine, and why their presence in the lagoon posed a threat to the ponds, stream, and water downstream of the property due to the interconnected nature of everything.

While heavily altered over a period of more than 150 years, and designed for use as an active cemetery, it is amazing how rich the native biodiversity and biomass are at Newton Cemetery and Arboretum. This is a testament to the efforts and focus of cemetery management and those involved in keeping the property open to the public as a place to see nature in an otherwise heavily developed urban-suburban setting.