“Wildlife on Tap” Lecture Series

The Fund for Animals Cape Wildlife Center is proud to present its “Wildlife on Tap” lecture series, sponsored by Cape Cod Beer. The monthly lectures will be held on Wednesday evenings, from 6 to 8 p.m., at Cape Cod Beer, 1336 Phinney’s Lane, Hyannis. 

A donation of $10 per person will include admission, free popcorn and other goodies. All proceeds will help Cape Wildlife Center care for about 2,000 patients in 2014. The brewery’s award-winning beer will be available for $5 a pint.

All lectures are expected to sell out in advance; to avoid disappointment, guests are asked to purchase tickets as soon as possible, either online atwww.capecodbeer.com (select the “shop” tab, then “event tickets”), at the brewery, or at Cape Wildlife Center, 4011 Main St. Barnstable. 
The speakers, all preeminent experts in their field, include:

January 15 – Jonathan Way, Ph.D – “Coywolves and Bobcats and Bears – Oh, My!”
Dr. Way, the author of My Yellowstone Experience and Suburban Howls: Tracking the Eastern Coyote in Urban Massachusetts, will discuss his groundbreaking research on eastern coyote/coywolf ecology and behavior and the impact of coywolves on the Cape. Jon is a research scientist at Clark University, works seasonally for Cape Cod National Seashore and is a part time post-doctoral researcher with the Yellowstone Ecological Research Center. In addition to coywolves, he will discuss the emergence of bears, bobcats and other predators and what it all means for residents. 

February 12 – Mike O’Connor – “Why Do Bluebirds Hate Me?” 
Mike O’Connor, owner of The Birdwatcher’s General Store, Cape Cod’s mainstay for birdwatchers since 1982, author of Why Do Bluebirds Hate Me? and Why Don’t Woodpeckers Get Headaches? and writer of The Cape Codder newspaper’s popular column, “Ask the Bird Folks,” will answer common and not-so-common questions about birds and bird watching. Come prepared to be entertained and enthralled – and bring your questions!

March 12 – Dr. Thomas French – “Bat-astrophe: The Unexpected and Sudden Decline of Massachusetts Bats”
Dr. Thomas French, assistant director of the Division of Fisheries and Wildlife and a leading expert on threatened and endangered species, will discuss the massive loss of bats on Cape Cod and throughout the Northeast due to a fungal infection called White-Nose Syndrome. Bats affect us much more than you know! Come find out more about these fascinating creatures, their disturbing decline, and the far-reaching effect their loss will have on people, plants and our ecosystem. 

April 9 – Vern Laux – “Bird Life of the Cape and Islands, The Common, The Not So Common and the Megas!”
Come learn why the Cape and Islands are so good for birds and why so many vagrants (birds spotted well outside their normal locales) have been and continue to be detected here. It is all about the real estate - location, location, location! No one knows more about our community’s feathered residents than Vern Laux, bird expert, international bird tour leader, educator, radio commentator, columnist, host of NPR’s “Bird News” and author of Bird News-Vagrants And Visitors On A Peculiar Island. Vern’s many commitments prevent frequent speaking engagements – don’t miss this fun and fact-filled opportunity!