AUDUBON SOCIETY PROGRAM

Aug. 1. Audubon Society of Rhode Island Program: Summer Twilight Cruise., Cruise aboard the Blackstone Valley Explorer with an Audubon naturalist and watch for birds and other wildlife in the Valley Falls wilderness area. Bring sunscreen, insect repellent. 6:30-7:30 pm. Boat is covered so trip runs rain or shine. Trip leaves from Explorer dock, Madeira Avenue, Central Falls. $20, children $10; members $15, $8. Ages 3+. Ages 5+. Advance registration.

CHILDREN’S PROGRAMS

ASRI Environmental Education Center Programs, 1401 Hope St. (Route 114), Bristol. 245-7500; www.asri.org. $6; $5 ages 65+; $4 children 4-12; children under 4 and ASRI members free. Programs are free with admission unless noted otherwise and are for ages 3+.

•July 27. Eco-Art: Art Miles Mural Project’s Environmental Mile. Help create a community mural expressing your connection with and support of our environment. To be exhibited with the Art Miles Mural Project’s 12 mural miles in Egypt. Ages 3+. Free. 11 am-1:30 pm.

•July 31. Discovery Stations. Children get to take a closer look at nature. Weekly themes include birds, insects, tidepool, whales, mammals and more. 10 am-2 pm.

•Aug. 1. Outdoor Nature Story Reading, 10 am. Nature Craft Table, 10 am-noon.

•Aug. 1-2. Nature Craft Table. 10 am-2 pm. Ages 3+.

•Aug. 2. Promoting Environmental Awareness in Kids. Hands-on interactive program teaches children how to have fun outside while practicing responsible outdoor recreation. Hands-on activities and interactive games to engage children with important environmental messages in a fun and entertaining way. 10:30 am-12:30 pm. All ages. Free with admission.

•Aug. 3. Nature Tales: A House for Hermit Crab by Eric Carle. Interactive story followed by an up-close and personal interview with live hermit crabs. 11:30 am-noon.

July 30. Flutter and Fly, Roger Williams Park Zoo, 1000 Elmwood Ave., Providence. 785-3510; www.rogerwilliamsparkzoo.org. Activities and performances including an interactive butterfly education station, butterfly-themed story times with the Zoo’s “Wild Bunch” Zookeeper, interactive bubble station. 11 am-3 pm. In conjunction with the zoo’s exhibit, Flutterby: Butterflies in Bloom. Free with regular zoo admission. $12, seniors $8, children 3-12 $6.

Denison Pequotsepos Nature Center Programs, 109 Pequotsepos Rd., Mystic, Conn. (860) 536-1216; www.dpnc.org. Advance registration.

•July 31. Summertime Cottontails, 109 Pequotsepos Rd., Mystic, Conn. (860) 536-1216; www.dpnc.org. Manatuck Preserve, Stonington. Look for animals, unique plants and other sights. Ages 1 (walking)-4 with caregiver. 10 am. $10, members $7. Advance registration.

•Aug. 2. Botanize the Manatuck Preserve, a guided tour with the Connecticut Botanical Society. Tour of varied woodland, wetland and meadow habitats in search of invasive or mundane plants hidden among the rocky ledges and historic or current farmlands. 10 am. Free.

•Aug. 2. Insect Afternoon. Discover the insects that live in the fields of Manatuck Preserve. Participants will use nets, bug jars and field guides. 1-3 pm. Bring hat, sunscreen, water bottle. $7, members $5. Rain will cancel.

•Aug. 2. Mystic River Paddle Tour (Old Mystic to Williams Beach). Meet at DPNC, 10 am; put-in at 10:15 am. Bring your own kayak or canoe and lunch. Trip follows the tide down river; float past the Peace Sanctuary, Mystic Seaport, under the Mystic River Bridge and past other historic and scenic places. 10 am-3 pm. $18, members $15.

South Kingstown Parks and Recreation Programs, Tri-Pond Park Nature Center, Asapond Road (off Curtis Corner Road), South Kingstown. 789-9301; www.southkinstownri.com/parksrec. Advance registration.

•July 28. Birds of a Feather. Birdwatching walk through the center’s woods. Ages 7-11 learn to visually and vocally identify common and not so common birds in our backyards. After walk, participants learn how to use recycled materials to make their backyards more bird friendly. 4-5:30 pm. $15, South Kingstown residents $12.

•July 29. Sketch-And-Press. Ages 9-12 learn to identify native plants and other wildlife and invasive species. Program ends with a visit to the nature center to make their own plant presses. Wear good walking shoes and insect repellent. Materials provided. $20, South Kingstown residents $15.

•July 30. Calamari 101: Squid Dissection. Program takes a look inside a squid to learn about these slippery critters without have to touch one. Staff from Biomes Marine Biology Center displays a large frozen squid and dissects it. Specimens their own “Giant Squid” dissection will be on display. 7-9 pm. Ages 6-12. $15, South Kingstown residents $12. Part of the Marine Animals Studies series.

•July 31. Life in a Bottle. Children ages 8-11 learn how to turn recycling into a living treasure chest. Bring water shoes/sneakers that can get wet and two empty two-liter bottles. Be prepared to get wet and dirty. 3:30-6 pm. $23, South Kingstown residents $18.

•Aug. 1. River Exploration for Families. Full day of kayaking and aquatic exploration along the banks of the Wood River. Participants learn kayaking basics (appropriate for beginners) and about what creatures live in the area. Ages 10 and older. All children must be accompanied by an adult. $40, South Kingstown residents $30. Rain date Aug. 4.

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services Program: Awesome Big Puddle Nature Hike, Kettle Pond Visitor Center, 50 Bend Rd., Charlestown. 364-9124. Slide show about the world of wood frogs, spotted salamanders and aquatic bugs and a guided hike to see the center’s vernal pool where the creatures live. Dress for the outdoors, bring water. July 31, 2-4 pm. Ages 6-12. Free. Call to register.

EXHIBITS

Through Aug. 22. Tiverton Town Hall, 343 Highland Rd., Tiverton. Home and Away, exhibition of nature photographs by Harry Glaser. Mon-Fri 8:30 am-4 pm.

Through August. Patriot’s Pride Daylily Show, Tower Hill Botanic Garden, Worcester County Horticultural Society, 11 French Drive, Boylston, Mass. (508) 869-6111; www.towerhillbg.org. Display of thousands of daylilies with more than 100 distinct varieties. Continues through August. Tue-Sat 10 am-5 pm. $8, 65+/youth 6-18, $5, children 5 and younger free. Tours every Sunday, 2 pm.

Through Sept. 1. Biomes Marine Biology Center, 221 Shady Lea Rd., North Kingstown. 295-4690. Marine exhibits, hands-on activities for children ages 3+ with adult accompaniment. Daily noon-4 pm. $5, children 2 and younger free.

Through Sept. 1. Flutterby: Butterflies in Bloom, Roger Williams Park Zoo, 1000 Elmwood Ave., Providence. 785-3510; www.rogerwilliamsparkzoo.org. New walk-through exhibit is set inside a 2,100-square-foot greenhouse landscaped with butterfly-friendly flowers and nectar plants and featuring about 500 butterflies (North American species), offering visitors a close encounter. Daily 9:30 am-4:30 pm. $3, children 3-12 $2 in addition to zoo admission ($12, seniors $8, children 3-12 $6).

Through Oct. 13. Green Animals Topiary Garden, 380 Cory’s Lane (off Route 114), Portsmouth. 847-1000. 80 pieces of topiary, including geometric figures, ornamental design, 21 animals, birds; fruit and vegetable gardens, plant shop, picnic tables. Victorian toy museum in main residence. Self-guided garden tours daily 10 am-5 pm. $11, children 6-17 $4.

Through Oct. 31. Big Bugs Sculpture Exhibit and Web-of-Life Extravaganza, New England Wild Flower Society’s Garden in the Woods, 180 Hemenway Rd., Framingham, Mass. (508) 877-7630; www.newenglandwild.org. David Rogers’ dino-sized sculptures on 45 acres with 1,500 varieties of native plants. Daily 9 am-7 pm. $8, seniors/students $6, youth 3-18 $4; members/children 2 and younger free. Special programs: Dragonfly Weekend, July 27. Stop at Lily Pond and view a giant dragonfly, then do dragonfly crafts at the Bugmobile. Cattail Nature Kids Nature Programs. Ages 5-6, 7-9, 10-11 dip the pond’s edge for frogs and turtles, create nature crafts, visit forest floor creatures. July 29-Aug. 1, Aug. 5-8. Advance registration. Bee Weekend, Aug. 2-3. Meet beekeepers, learn about the importance of bees and their pollination and enjoy bee crafts.

GARDEN PROGRAMS

July 27. Rhode Island Wild Plant Society Program: Ferns for Your Landscape, Tiverton. 789-7497 or e-mail office@riwps.org. Program on how to identify and grow common native ferns. Learn about fern species, life cycle and propagation techniques. Tour an area where a variety of native ferns add to its natural diversity and aesthetic quality. With naturalist Garry Plunkett. 10 am. $7, members $5. 789-7497 or e-mail office@riwps.org.

July 29. University of Rhode Summer Gardening School: Healthy Vegetables, URI Island Botanical Gardens, 3 East Alumnae Ave.), and URI’s East Farm Research Facility, Route 108, both in Kingston. (800) 448-1011 or e-mail gardener@etal.uri.edu. Learn about healthy vegetable gardening from a panel of certified URI Master Gardeners using the Master Gardener demonstration garden as a classroom. 6-7:30 pm. $15. Advance registration.

LECTURE

July 30. Sharks Off Southern New England, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service’s Kettle Pond Visitors’ Center, 50 Bend Rd., Charlestown. 364-9124. Kathy Duffy, who works with the Apex Predators Program at the National Marine Fisheries Service laboratory in Narragansett, introduces participants to some of the different kinds of sharks that can be found right off our own coastline. 7-9 pm. Free; donations accepted to benefit the Friends of the National Wildlife Refuges of Rhode Island. Part of the Wildlife Wednesday Lecture Series.

NATURE PROGRAMS

July 30. Blackstone Valley Explorer Bring Your Own Lunch Cruise. 724-2200, (800) 454-2882; www.tourblackstone.com. Explore the wetland bird habitat of the Valley Falls Marsh and surrounding historic landscape. Leaves from the Central Falls Landing, Madeira and Broad Streets, Central Falls. Every Wednesday at 12:30 pm, through Aug. 13. $10, children/seniors $8.

Whale Watching. Aboard Frances Fleet vessel The Lady Frances. Trips sail from the Port of Galilee in front of Port O Call Restaurant, Great Road, Narragansett. Tue, Thu-Sun 1 pm. Reservations recommended. 783-4988.