2019 OysterFest Educational Programs

Meet at Mayo Beach, 35 Kendrick Ave
Join Wellfleet Shellfisherman and SPAT Board member, Jake Puffer, and Assistant Wellfleet Shellfish Constable Johnny “Clam” Mankevetch for a tour of a multigenerational shellfish farm.  Learn about “grants” (the land the farms are on) and how they came into existence as well as Wellfleet’s wild fishery. Learn about the entire process – from seed, harvest to sale. Free, no registration required.

Wellfleet Public Library, 55 Main Street
Change is one of the constants in nature. Storms happen, habitats change and the ecosystem and its species adapt. A number of species are responding to climate change and they have something in common. They once lived south of us in warmer climates and they now live here with us. Migrations are often driven by day length and changing temperature. Who’s here now, who used to need warmer conditions?  What are these indicator species telling us? These and other questions will be explored during this presentation.
Robert Prescott, recently retired Wellfleet Audubon Sanctuary Director, will discuss how climate change is shifting the range of common species.   Free, no registration required.

Wellfleet Public Library, 55 Main Street
Wellfleet, which has a year-round population of 3,500, is well known for its plentiful supply of shellfish, including the famous “Wellfleet Oyster” which is cultivated by a tight-knit community of families working together, frequently across generations—on carefully delineated and lovingly cared for shellfish grants. Photographer Julia Cumes, and shellfisherman, Jake Puffer, will take viewers on a journey into this unique community and their work producing some of the most famous oysters in the world. Julia Cumes is a South African-born photographer based on Cape Cod since 2001. She’s passionate about story telling and capturing real moments of human connection. Her work has appeared in publications such as the New York Times, Boston Globe, The Chicago Tribune, National Geographic as well as a variety of local publications. She recently spent time delving into the lives of Wellfleet’s shellfishing community. Free, no registration required.

Wellfleet Public Library, 55 Main Street
Stormy Mayo and Amy James, both of the Center for Coastal Studies, will present on some of the changes occurring in our marine environment, the adaptations right whales are making in response to those changes and what that means for the conservation and management of this species. This program is free and advance registration is not required.
Amy James is Flight Coordinator in the Right Whale Ecology Program at the Center for Coastal Studies, where she spends the fall, winter, and early spring months surveying Cape Cod Bay and adjacent waters looking for our winter visitors, the North Atlantic Right Whale. She holds a Master of Conservation Biology degree from the University of Queensland.
Dr. Charles ‘Stormy’ Mayo is a senior scientist and co-founder at the Center for Coastal Studies. His current work focuses the foraging habits of right whales. He serves on several federal conservation teams, including the Atlantic Large Whale Take Reduction team, charged with the development of strategies to reduce the mortality of whales tangled in fishing gear.

Wellfleet Public Library, 55 Main Street
Test your spelling skills at the annual OysterFest Spelling Bee, with children’s and adult rounds, prizes, and fun! Beekeeper Ed Miller returns with a new list of words this year. Registration form for both Littlenecks (12 and under) and Quahogs (13 and up) can be downloaded here and are also available at the Wellfleet Public Library, 55 Main Street. Please register by 2:30 pm. Littlenecks round begins at 3:00 pm and the Quahogs round follows immediately at 4:00 pm.

Meet at Mayo Beach, 35 Kendrick Ave
Join Wellfleet Shellfisherman and SPAT Board member, Jake Puffer, and Assistant Wellfleet Shellfish Constable Johnny “Clam” Mankevetch for a tour of a multigenerational shellfish farm.  Learn about “grants” (the land the farms are on) and how they came into existence as well as Wellfleet’s wild fishery. Learn about the entire process – from seed, harvest to sale. Free, no registration required.

Wellfleet Public Library, 55 Main Street
Photographer Ryan Casson will share a black-and-white digital “photo essay” about our very own Wellfleet shellfishermen and women.  It’s a story about a hard-working, warm people and their intimate relationship with the sea.  Jake Puffer, a local Wellfleet oysterman, will co-narrate and answer technical questions. Ryan Casson lives and works on Cape Cod and although photography is not his “job,” it is his passion in life.  His past and present projects can be found at www.ryancasson.com. Free, no registration required.

Wellfleet Public Library, 55 Main Street
Cape Cod has become a white shark hot spot in the Northwest Atlantic, presenting a rare opportunity to study the species and unique challenges related to public safety.  White sharks are apex predators that play a critical role in maintaining a healthy and balanced marine ecosystem. They are also considered a keystone species, meaning they are integral to the ecology they inhabit.
Cynthia Wigren established the Atlantic White Shark Conservancy in 2012 to provide sustainable funding and resources for research, improve public understanding of sharks, and inspire conservation.  Come hear her talk about their findings, ongoing work and perspective on this evolving phenomenon. Cynthia holds a BS in Wildlife Management from University of New Hampshire and MBA from Southern New Hampshire University. She spent twelve years working for online trading companies in the energy industry, with a focus on project management and strategic planning. Cynthia is an avid traveler and a scuba diver with a deep appreciation for wildlife on land and sea. Her underwater experiences with whale sharks, great hammerheads, nurse sharks, and great white sharks, inspired her to leave the corporate world and establish Atlantic White Shark Conservancy to support shark research and conservation. Free, no registration required.

Wellfleet Public Library, 55 Main Street
Learn about the populations of gray and harbor seals in New England and their role as ocean sentinels.  Lisa Sette and Andrea Bogomolni of the Northwest Atlantic Seal Research Consortium (NASRC) will lead this informative discussion.
Lisa Sette has been at the Center for Coastal Studies since 2007. She currently directs the seal research program and is a founding member of the Northwest Atlantic Seal Research Consortium (NASRC).
Dr. Andrea Bogomolni Andrea (Dre) obtained a B.A. (Studio Art) and B.S. (Wildlife Fisheries and Conservation Biology) from UC DAVIS, M.A. (Biology) from Boston University and Ph.D (Pathobiology) as well as a Certificate in Public Health from UCONN. She was a Postdoctoral Fellow and Guest Investigator at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. She currently chairs the Northwest Atlantic Seal Research Consortium. The goals of her work are to be able to provide the knowledge needed to mitigate human impact on marine species, understand risks of these impacts, facilitate effective collaborations, and raise awareness of ocean health and the connection to human health. Free, no registration required.