Prehistoric Creatures
2026-08-12 14:00 - 15:00 (America/New_York) | NY
Travel back in time to meet the animals and plants that lived long before humans—and discover which ones are still here today. Unearth the story of ancient wildlife and meet their modern relatives.
WHEN: Wednesday, August 12, 2026
TIME: 2 to 3 p.m.
LOCATION: In person at the Museum
Denison Pequotsepos Nature Center (DPNC) family program for ages five and up.
Suggested donation $10.

All Wednesday children’s programs are in person at the Museum.
Attendance is limited to 15 children so advance registration is recommended.
Please phone: 631-788-7239 or email info@fergusonmuseum.org
(note the name and date of the specific program and the name and age of the attendee/s).
PHOTO CREDIT: Snapping turtle. Courtesy of Justine Kibbe

From Glaciers to Gardens: How Earthworms Shaped Northeastern Forest Soils
2026-08-16 16:00 - 17:00
Join us at the Museum for an illustrated talk by Annise Dobson, Associate Research Scientist at Yale University, who will share how the history of earthworms in North America has been shaped by ancient glaciation, centuries of human-mediated introductions and spread, and multiple waves of biological invasion.
This talk traces that history from the post-glacial forest assembly absent of earthworms and spread of European earthworms through agriculture, logging, road building, horticulture, and fishing bait. We then examine contemporary invasion of jumping worms, and how different earthworm groups reshape habitats by accelerating leaf-litter breakdown, altering soil structure and nutrient cycling, and changing conditions for seeds, seedlings, and fungal communities. Finally, we consider how earthworm impacts interact with other stressors such as invasive plants, overabundant deer, and climate-driven shifts in temperature and moisture, and we outline practical steps for reducing spread and supporting conservation and management goals.
WHEN: Sunday, August 16, 2026
TIME: 4-5 p.m.
PLACE: In person at the Museum and virtual via zoom
Annise Dobson is the Director of Research Programs, Associate Research Scientist, and Lecturer in the Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology and the School of the Environment at Yale University. She grew up on a farm in the Ottawa Valley in Ontario, Canada, and completed her PhD at Cornell University. Her research focuses on plant-soil interactions and the ecosystem-level impacts of invasive species. Her work investigates the cascading effects of jumping worms on forest health, from the soil food web, up to the seedling layer, and beyond. Dr. Dobson is passionate about translating scientific discovery into practical land management guidance and is actively involved in outreach to help land managers and the public understand and respond to this pressing ecological threat.
PHOTO CREDITS: Grant Dobson

FIND 2026 (MORNING PROGRAM)
2026-08-17 09:00 - 2026-08-21 12:00
FISHERS ISLAND NATURE DISCOVERY
2026 – The 7th Year of FIND
A Week (5 DAYS from 9 AM to NOON) of Learning Programs for Young Island Naturalists Ages 5 to 10.
FIND offers a week of learning programs for young Island naturalists on a variety of environmental topics relating to the natural history and stewardship of our Island.
Using the Ferguson Museum as a base, the programs provide an indoor/outdoor learning experience that introduces our children to the Island’s natural resources and some of the challenges faced in maintaining its fragile ecology. Led by educators, the children discover the Island’s natural history through a combination of hands-on exploration, observation, and interpretation.
WHEN: The 2026 FIND program will run for one week from August 17 to August 21; Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to noon. To promote group cohesion and learning, we encourage all participants to attend all five sessions.
WHO: 20 children max, all between the ages of 5 to 10. Depending on numbers, attendees will either be in one group, or split into two groups by age.
Each group will be led by educator/s from the Denison Pequotsepos Nature Center (DPNC) or the Niantic Children’s Museum, assisted at times by Museum staff and guest naturalists.
WHERE: Outdoor locations will vary based on the daily plan, but will include Fishers Island’s beaches, woods, and ponds. Indoor learning will take place at the Museum and will include art and science projects related to the daily subject matter.
COST: The cost per participant is $425 for the week. (Current FI School students can attend at no cost.)
REGISTRATION: Please call the Museum (631-788-7239) or e-mail info@fergusonmuseum.org to reserve a spot for your child/children (and note the FIND program and the name and age of the attendee/s). The registration and payment form will then be sent to you.
This is a wonderful opportunity for young children to develop a love of nature and ecology through participatory learning both at the Museum and in the field.

Inspect an Insect
2026-08-19 14:00 - 15:00
Gain an appreciation for the diversity of insects as we examine insect specimens, meet a live insect, and use nets to see what insects are living outside of the museum!
WHEN: Wednesday, August 19, 2026
TIME: 2 to 3 p.m.
LOCATION: In person at the Museum
Denison Pequotsepos Nature Center (DPNC) family program for ages five and up.
Suggested donation $10.

All Wednesday children’s programs are in person at the Museum.
Attendance is limited to 15 children so advance registration is recommended.
Please phone: 631-788-7239 or email info@fergusonmuseum.org
(note the name and date of the specific program and the name and age of the attendee/s).

Tour of Olmsted Brothers’ Landscape Design Being Restored at East End
2026-08-22 16:00 - 17:00
Join RoAnn Costin and William (Ned) Friedman, Director of Harvard’s Arnold Arboretum, for a tour of her property, Rose Nest, which she is restoring to the original Olmsted Brothers landscape design.
In the late 1920s, the legendary Olmsted Brothers Firm of Brookline, MA. created an elaborate landscape design for the George E. Hardy property overlooking Island Pond (later owned by the Mallory and O’Keefe families).
RoAnn invites you to tour the grounds!
When: Saturday, August 22, 2026
Time: 4 pm
Place: Costin house at the East End
Reception to follow.
Please register to secure a spot by contacting the Ferguson Museum by phone (631-788-7239) or by e-mail (info@fergusonmuseum.org).
ABOVE PHOTO: Lot design for Hardy property, originally named Winkath.
Please note related talk “Evolving Landscapes: Olmsted, Design, and the Arnold Arboretum” on Sunday, August 23 by William (Ned) Friedman, Director of the Arnold Arboretum of Harvard University, who will take us on an exploration of Frederick Law Olmsted’s design legacy embodied at one of his most renowned and best-preserved landscapes: the Arnold Arboretum.

Evolving Landscapes: Olmsted, Design, and the Arnold Arboretum
2026-08-23 16:00 - 17:00
Join us at the Museum for a richly illustrated talk by William (Ned) Friedman, Director of the Arnold Arboretum of Harvard University, who will take us on an exploration of Frederick Law Olmsted’s design legacy embodied at one of his most renowned and best-preserved landscapes: the Arnold Arboretum.
When: Sunday, August 23, 2026
Time: 4-5 pm
Place: At the Museum, 2nd floor and virtual, via zoom
Space is limited, registration is required.
We will learn about the design history of the Arboretum, from its origins under Frederick Law Olmsted to decades of evolution that involved contributions by the Olmsted Brothers, including lessons learned in modern times about how to manifest their visions in our contemporary world.
Ned will also share how a groundbreaking, 19th-century collaboration between the City of Boston and Harvard University gave birth to the Arnold Arboretum, which is today a world-leading scientific research enterprise dedicated to the study of woody plants, and a crown jewel in Boston’s Emerald Necklace – a public park that is free and open 365 days a year, fulfilling Olmsted’s vision of making the natural world accessible to every person, no matter their background. This talk will connect past to present, culminating in a reminder that we can learn from legendary designs and also make them relevant for our times.
Please note related event, “Tour of Olmsted Brothers’ landscape design being restored at East End” – all are invited to join RoAnn Costin and William (Ned) Friedman, Director of Harvard’s Arnold Arboretum, Saturday, August 22, 2026 for a tour of her property, “Rose Nest”, which she is restoring to the original Olmsted Brothers landscape design. Registration required.
William (Ned) Friedman, an evolutionary biologist who has done extensive research on the origin and early evolution of flowering plants, has served since 2011 as the eighth director of the Arnold Arboretum. He is also a tenured professor of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences at Harvard University.
As leader of the nation’s first public arboretum, Ned has positioned the Arnold Arboretum to confront current world challenges by redoubling the institution’s commitments to public health, free access to programming and the beauty of the landscape for all citizens, and global change mitigation projects. His vision for what a twenty-first century arboretum can and should be is fueling the largest redesign of horticultural and visitor infrastructure in the landscape since the Arboretum’s founding, as well as forging a significant commitment to advancing environmental equity and climate change scholarship.
Friedman’s academic research has focused on patterns of plant morphology, anatomy, and cell biology. He has been acclaimed for his discovery of a new type of reproductive structure in an ancient flowering plant that may represent a critical link between flowering plants and their ancestors. Friedman also has a keen interest in the history of science, particularly the intellectual history of evolutionism. He has designed and taught courses on the life and work of Charles Darwin and other historical figures and lectured on the subject at natural history museums and other venues.
As a botanist who has devoted his entire career to studying the evolutionary diversification of plants, he feels privileged to have the opportunity to steward, promote, and share the extraordinary botanical and horticultural resources of the Arnold Arboretum with students, scholars, and millions of annual visitors.
He is a graduate of Oberlin College and the University of California, Berkeley, and taught at the University of Georgia and the University of Colorado before joining Harvard University and the Arnold Arboretum.

Olmsted Arboretum Design

Arboretum Bussey Hill, Lilac Collection photo by Jon Hetman

Arboretum Kent Field, Conifer Collection, Autumn photo by Ned Friedman

Innovative Animal Adaptations
2026-08-26 14:00 - 15:00
Discover the world of biomicry and learn about human inventions that were inspired by animals and plants in the wild. Explore hands-on activities to replicate some of the incredible adaptations that animals have perfected over millions of years. Meet DPNC ambassador animals and observe their innovative adaptations!
WHEN: Wednesday, August 26, 2026
TIME: 2 to 3 p.m.
LOCATION: In person at the Museum
Denison Pequotsepos Nature Center (DPNC) family program for ages five and up.
Suggested donation $10.

All Wednesday children’s programs are in person at the Museum.
Attendance is limited to 15 children so advance registration is recommended.
Please phone: 631-788-7239 or email info@fergusonmuseum.org
(note the name and date of the specific program and the name and age of the attendee/s).

The Blue Humanities: Reimagining America’s Maritime History
2026-08-30 16:00 - 17:00
Join us at the Museum for an illustrated talk by Associate Professor of History at the University at Albany, State University of New York, Christopher L. Pastore, who will give a fast-paced tour through America’s maritime history and explore how and why sea stories have changed over time.
During the early twentieth centuries maritime topics drew considerable interest, but by the second half the ocean’s past had fallen from favor. More recently, historians, geographers, and literary scholars have breathed new life into salty subjects, filling shelves with books organized around the idea of the “blue humanities.” Intended for fishermen, sailors, and beach combers alike, this lecture explores why the field has faced this ebb and flood—and provides a winter reading list in the process.
WHEN: Sunday, August 30, 2026
TIME: 4 p.m.
PLACE: In person at the Museum and virtual via zoom
Christopher L. Pastore
Christopher L. Pastore is Associate Professor of History at the University at Albany, State University of New York, where he teaches courses in environmental history, early America, and the Atlantic world. He holds a Ph.D. in American History and M.S. in college teaching from the University of New Hampshire, an M.F.A. in nonfiction Creative Writing from New School University, and a B.A. in Biology from Bowdoin College. He is the author of Temple to the Wind: The Story of America’s Greatest Naval Architect and His Masterpiece, Reliance (Lyons Press, 2005) and Between Land and Sea: The Atlantic Coast and the Transformation of New England (Harvard University Press, 2014). He is currently writing an environmental history of the Atlantic world with working title of A Thousand Thousand Slimy Things: A Natural History of the Sea from the Bottom Up.
PHOTO CREDIT: Winslow Homer, Boys in a Dory, 1873, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
