Treasuring our wild creatures and wild spaces <3
When you’re standing stone still focused on filming a territorial Big Fight between Red-bellied Woodpeckers and a Great Blue Heron in gorgeous full breeding plumage swoops across the water, landing mere feet from where you are perched. Treasuring our wild creatures and wild spaces <3
Dear Friends,
On Wednesday, April 15, the State Senate will vote on whether to adopt a proposal to phase out the use of anticoagulant rodenticides that are harming wildlife and pets.
Adding the bill as an amendment to the Mass Ready Act will help ensure that our state phases out the use of rodenticides that are poisoning thousands of wildlife and pets in Massachusetts every year.
We need them to hear from as many supporters as possible before they vote this Wednesday. Let’s get this amendment passed to protect our wildlife and pets! Please sign the form at the link provided below.
What a difference a few weeks makes compared to the balmy 70 degrees temps today! This sleepy pair of Long-eared Owls seen in the video are hunkered in, weathering snow and wind during a late season snowstorm. LEOs roost in dense stands of vegetation and are seen in Massachusetts primarily during the winter months. Their diet consists mostly of small rodents including mice, rats, shrews, and voles. LEO’s, along with all birds of prey, are at extreme risk of being poisoned by rat poison. As the rodent ingests the poison, so does the bird, and the consequences are often deadly to the predator.
A Bluenoser at Good Harbor Beach – the fascinating world of shorebirds!
At this time of year, we Gloucester Plover Ambassadors are at Good Harbor Beach (trying) to keep track of the comings and goings of the Plovers. Some birds are arriving to set up house while others are passing through on their way to their summer nesting homes. Last week while out on Plover patrol, Super Dad was spotted, along with a sweet pair that we’re fairly certain is a mated pair from last summer, and a new little friend. It wasn’t until I returned home and began looking at the footage that I noticed that this unfamiliar one was banded!
Finding a banded bird at Good Harbor Beach is pretty exciting because instead of wondering where the bird came from, you can learn from just looking at the tag . Several years ago Good Harbor Beach was a stopover for a Plover with a green tag and white letters, which indicated that it was banded by Virginia Tech. He had flown from the southern coast of Georgia to Gloucester in just under five days!
As you can see in the photo, N5’s band is white with a black alphanumeric code, which indicates he was banded in Canada. A quick Google search led to several contacts where to report Canadian banded birds and we sure hit the jackpot of information from these kind wildlife biologists, Dr. Cheri Gratto-Trevor and Hilary Mann.
People are always asking us Ambassadors, where do the birds go after departing GHB in August? The following is not a complete picture, but does provide a tiny widow into the flight pattern of one of these remarkable little travelers.
Cheri writes, “White flag N5 was banded as an adult in June 2024 at Sandy Bay, in southern Nova Scotia. The bird was seen in Fall (Aug) 2024 at Sunset Beach, Tubbs Inlet, NC.”
Hilary writes the following, ” In 2024, we put a nanotag on N5. This is a small radio transmitter that helps us track birds, when they fly close to a station that is part of the motus wildlife tracking network. We got a track of N5, which you can see below. The dashed lines show the ‘direct flight’, and if this is no line connecting dots as the plover moved south, it just shows that they may have stopped somewhere along the way. N5 crossed from southern Nova Scotia to Cape Cod in about 10 hours, on the night of August 6, 2024. By August 10, it was down in North Carolina. We do not have any detections past August 10, but there are fewer stations to detect the tags south of North Carolina. The tag is glued on, so it falls off in the winter when the battery dies, and we do not have tracks of its Northbound movements.”
Think about that – In 2024, N5 flew from Nova Scotia to North Carolina in four and half days! After first departing Sandy Bay, N5 flew nonstop to Cape Cod, when it appears he was next tracked at either a Rhode Island or Connecticut beach, across the sound on to Montauk, at the eastern end of Long Island, then a non-stop flight to Cape May, which is also an important holdover location for Monarchs waiting for the ideal wind to carry them over the mouth of the Delaware Bay. He is next hitting locations at Virginia beaches and North Carolina’s Outer Banks before arriving at Sunset Beach, which is just south of Ocean Isle at the southern point of North Carolina.
And in 2025, N5 returned to Sandy Bay, Nova Scotia and successfully fledged two chicks!
Our deepest thanks and appreciation to Dr. Cheri Gratto-Trevor, research scientist emeritus with Environment and Climate Change Canada and to Hilary Mann, wildlife biologist with Canadian Wildlife Service.
I pulled this map off Google to show what a direct flight it is for Plovers flying from Cape Ann to southern Nova Scotia.
Nova Scotia Piping Plover N5 in the foreground. The film clip is in 10 times slow motion so you can see the band placed on the upper right tibia.
Read more about banded Piping Plovers seen at Cape Ann beaches here –
FUN 411 UPDATE ON ETM, THE CUMBERLAND ISLAND BANDED PLOVER
Many, many thanks to Gloucester Daily Times reporter Bobby Grady and editor-in-chief Andrea Holbrook for the Times‘s continued coverage of our Gloucester Plovers. The story appeared in Thursday’s Times with a gentle reminder to give the Plovers lots of space as they are establishing their nesting territories.
The coverage the Times has provided since the Plovers first arrived back in 2016 has been invaluable in helping to create an awareness about these very vulnerable, yet valiant, threatened shorebirds. Thank you again Andrea, Bobby, and the GDTimes!
Happy Spring,
xxKim
PiPl N5 at time of banding provided by Hilary Mann
Dear Friends,
I hope so much you are doing well. Spring weather hasn’t quite sprung here in our region, nonetheless we know warmer days are just around the bend. I haven’t been writing lately, managing health hurdles but they are manageable and things are looking better.
The wonderful good news is that Piping Plovers have been returning to their breeding grounds all along the Great Lakes and Atlantic Coast nesting locations and ours are no exception. The first PiPl arrived on March 26th, one of our females from last year, and Super Original Dad has returned for the ELEVENTH year to nest at Good Harbor Beach. He only landed several days ago and is wiped out from the migration. Super Dad is staying close to his territory and seems to be waiting patiently. Waiting I think for the return of his love, handicapped Super Mom. It will be nothing short of a miracle if she returns, too, as maneuvering with a missing foot takes a great deal more energy. The average lifespan of a Piping Plover is 3 to 5 years. Our Original pair is at least 12 years old and has far exceeded that statistic. Despite the fact that Plover pairs may winter over in two entirely different locations, last year Mom and Dad returned on exactly the same day, March 19th.
Super Dad March 2026
Plovers typically arrive at their northern breeding grounds needing plenty of R and R so if you see them on the beach, please give them lots and lots of space. If they pipe in your direction, you know you are too close. A gentle reminder to all our beach friends – the earlier Plovers can court and mate undisturbed on the beach, the earlier they begin laying eggs, and the sooner the chicks will have fledged. Although Good Harbor Beach is now closed to pets for the season, Wingaersheek is open until May 1st, and Crab Beach, which is downtown adjacent to the dog park, is open all year round
Hats off to our incredibly hard working DPW Crew. Thank you to this great group of guys for placing the symbolic roping and threatened species signs up prior to April 1st. And thank you to the DPW Crew for taking such care and pride of our City beaches.
More good news for Plovers is that we are again partnering with Mass Audubon to watch over the Plovers. The Audubon team of young biologists are some of the most conscientious and caring individuals you will meet and we are so delighted to learn from, and work with, Mass Audubon. If you would like to be a Piping Plover ambassador this summer, please contact me. We would love to have you!
Happy Easter, Happy Spring!
xxKim
A short video of our newly arrived and very loveable, sleepy Super Dad –
Each year Nina and Franco Groppo open their hearts and home to the community to honor Saint Joseph, the patron Saint of workers, fathers, and families. The house is full of family and friends coming together to attend the nine day Novena and prepare for the feast to celebrate Saint Joseph, which is always on March 19th, a Thursday this year.
Felicia Sciortino and Nina dedicated the altar to honor the crew of the Fishing Vessel Lily Jean that sank on January 30th. Captain Gus Sanfilippo and six crew members were lost at sea. There is a beautiful model of the ship, made by Felicia’s brother Domenic Di Maio, and the altar is decorated with lovely symbols and handmade artifacts (made by Felicia) representing the hardworking men and women who fish the sea.
It is such a joyous day making pasta with these wonderful friends and I so love photographing and filming the event. A video is coming and in the meantime, here are a few snapshots. It’s baby Julian’s first Saint Joseph and Nina and Franco’s first great-grandchild so there are tons of photos of this adorable little nugget. Julian is the son of Steve and Mikaela LeBlanc, the grandson of Maria Groppo, and Steve and Melanie LeBlanc, and the great-grandson of Nina and Franco.
Lightening in a Bottle x 2 – A second unforeseen and wildly magical encounter with a Fisher!
On a recent evening at dusk, I was walking back to my parked car when a swiftly moving dark shape crossed my path. We had an eye to eye moment before he went bounding off across the snowy landscape.
Note how the Fisher leaps with great power, yet appears to stay on top of the snowpack. Fishers have highly specialized feet that are well adapted to snow. Their five-toed feet are large, distributing the weight evenly, and the soles of the feet are covered in fur; both adaptions creating a “snowshoe effect.” Anther very cool fact about Fishers is that their ankle joints can rotate nearly 180 degrees, which allows them to descend trees head first, a very rare trait among mammals.
I believe he is a male because he was so large and his fur appears somewhat coarse. The females are smaller, with glossier fur.
Here is another video of a Fisher that I filmed several years ago, where you can see him descending the trees head first:
This morning while at a local shop I was greeted in the most lovely manner, with ¡Feliz San Valentin! So here is my annual Plover Valentines but this year in English, Spanish, and French. Thank you Elizabeth for the Spanish Valentine’s wishes!
Piping Plovers (like a great many shorebirds) are a link that binds the Americas, especially in our shared goals of protecting this very vulnerable species. Piping Plovers winter over in the Caribbean and along both the Gulf of Mexico and lower Atlantic United States. They breed in the mid- and northern Atlantic states and maritime provinces of Canada, as well as the Great Plains and Great Lakes regions.
The photos are of the sweetest Plover family that miraculously hatched from a nest smack dab midway in the sand of a popular urban beach, with absolutely no camouflaging vegetation, stones, shells, no nothing! This very vulnerable nest of three made it through to hatch day and all three chicks went on to thrive and eventually fledge. Miracles do happen <3
Plover chicks begin walking within hours after hatching but they are adorably klutzy for the first day or so, with many face plants, tumbles, and stumbles as they are learning to navigate the varied terrain. The chicks hatched on a boiling hot day and the very excellent Dad you see here was protectively trying to help the chick up on its feet and push back under his wing to shield from the midday sun.
What an uplifting few moments to catch sight of this beautiful young Mute Swan. I believe he is a male because of the good-sized blackberry, or black protuberance, on his upper bill.
It’s been many years since Gloucester and Rockport have had a pair of Swans breeding at our local ponds and frequenting the waterways. Our dear Mr. Swan, a beautiful and rare blue-eyed Swan, passed away in 2019. He had survived two mates and was at least 29 years old at the time of his passing, a simply extraordinary age for a Mute Swan not held in captivity
Let’s everyone keep an eye out for the well being of our visitor. Winter is very tough on young Mute Swans. At this time of year, their parents are often pushing them out of their home territory as they prepare to nest and raise the next generation. Mute Swans don’t migrate however, they do move around from body of water to body of water within a region, especially during the winter.
The Swan has a deformed left foot but that did not prevent him from using his foot to preen and to take off on the ice, which is not easy for any large-bodied bird, injured or not. With his distinct foot we may be able to track him if he is still in the area. I saw him in the morning and my friend Carlos later in the day but he was not at Nile’s by nightfall. Please email or leave a comment in the comment section and let us know if you see him. Thank you! kimsmithdesigns@hotmail.com
Dear Friends,
Taking a break from thinking about the heart-rending reality of our national politics to talk about a native plant that you may want to encourage to grow in your wildflower garden. Pokeberry is a large, gangly native plant that goes by many names: American Pokeweed, Dragonberry, Pigeonberry, and Inkberry, to name but a few. Although all parts of the plant can be toxic to livestock, the berries are much beloved by a variety of songbirds including Mockingbirds, Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers, Cardinals, Brown Thrashers, Cedar Waxwings, Bluebirds, and many more.
Pokeberry was one of several fruiting plants favored by the exquisite (and rarely seen in the Northeast) Scissor-tailed Flycatcher that was visiting the Spencer-Pierce-Little Farm. The Pokeberry was growing in the pigpen and around the edges of the farm fields. If you plan to grow it in your garden, know that Pokeberry can reach five to six feet and is a good candidate for the back of a border or along property edges.
In our own garden, we never had Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers until I let a volunteer Pokeberry grow where a bird had deposited a seed. Now we have a tribe of YBS stopping over during spring and autumn migration, a male, a female, and even a juvenile. This past autumn, our “pet” Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, as Charlotte likes to call the male who comes daily, was with us from October through December. He was mostly focused on procuring sap from our tree garden but I don’t think it would be here unless it had been initially attracted to the beautiful deep purple berries of the Pokeberry plant.
Grow Native and They Will Come!
P.S. Ruby-throated Hummingbirds drink nectar from the tiny white Pokeberry flowers.
City Hall was packed this afternoon with well-wishers for the newly elected Mayor Paul Lundberg, City Council, and School Committee members. Emcee Bob Gillis did an excellent job conducting the ceremony while Alessandro Schoc gave a pitch perfect and stunning rendition of the national anthem. In between the administration of oaths of office, Chris Langathianos and Joe Wilkins provided musical interludes. Gloucester’s co-poet laureates, Jay Featherstone and Heidi Wakeman, along with Anne Babson Carter, read original poems. Governor Maura Healey addressed the audience via video and Senator Bruce Tarr gave an uplifting key note address.
Mayor Lundberg’s inaugural address was inspiring and I thought also very unifying. It was a great day for our fair City, welcoming all these newly minted, and incumbent, public servants who so generously give of their time. Thank you!
Alessandro Schoc sang the national anthem – truly a magnificent voice!
Heidi Wakeman’s inauguration poem “Abecedarium: 26 Lines for 2026” was so on point and the audience loved it!
Mayor Lundberg, Jack Clarke, Jim Cantwell from Senator Markey’s office, and former Mayor Sefatia Romeo Theken
Last photos of 2025 – Just as i was readying to return home after a twilight walk, the local turkeys began migrating up into the trees for their nightly rest.
Gloucester’s beautiful Lobster Trap Tree and FV Ramblin’ Rose
Walking through a semi-wooded area I came upon a buck that seemed wholly unbothered by my presence. So much so, that he stopped at various points to snuffle through the fallen leaves, reach for branches, and relieve himself. As I crossed the road, so did he, and when I paused to film, he wasn’t spooked. We came to a clearing where another person was approaching. All too soon the enchanted spell was broken and he picked up his gait. I didn’t hurry after him as I didn’t want to break his trust and just watched in wonderment as he loped away.
I wonder if he’s the same buck that I filmed in early spring and then again in summer? Here he is with new antler nublets, and later with velvety fuzzy antlers growing in. I read no two deer antlers are alike, similar to human fingerprints. In the photo below, the buck’s first set of tines are similar to the buck’s tines in the film; the right tine is straighter than the left tine.
Composition by Reynaldo Hahn • “Danse pour une déesse, pour flûte et piano.” Recorded by Jean-Pierre Rampal and Francoise Bonnet form the Internet Archive of Royalty Free Music.
Several thousand people were in attendance at Ann’s funeral mass this afternoon. Friends and colleagues, including Governor Maura Healy, State Senator Bruce Tarr, and Ann’s chief of staff Dru Tarr, spoke in loving memory, with Reverend Jim leading the mass. Ann’s profoundly positive impact on the life of so many in our community will be felt for generations to come The service was live streamed by Streamography and you can watch here. The mass starts at about 21 minutes into the video.
Bruce Tarr ended his tribute to Ann with these transcendent words from Emily Dickinson –
Unable are the Loved to die
For Love is Immortality,
Nay, it is Deity—
Unable they that love—to die
For Love reforms Vitality
Into Divinity.
The photo of the Snow Moon setting behind Saint Ann’s steeple is for Ann. Despite her wonderfully full life, every now and then she would write to say how much she liked a photo I had shared, usually a harbor scene with a fishing boat or some beautiful Cape Ann building. She loved this photo, and another Moon one with Our Lady of Good Voyage, and I will try to locate that one too.
On the back of Ann’s program was the poem “On Children,” written by Kahlil Gibran –
“When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.
“Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’
“Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’
“The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’
“Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’
“They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’
“He will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’
“Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.”
I am delighted to share that The Piping Plovers of Moonlight Bay is playing at the City Cinema of Charlottetown, PEI, on Thursday evening. This is a very special screening to me, brought to you by the Island Nature Trust; special because the INT is a fabulous organization striving to protect species at risk and to conserve their habitats. The Island Nature Trust is a model of great stewardship and I am honored that our film has been selected for screening.
Read more about the outstanding work being accomplished by the Island Nature Trust here.
Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours <3
I am thankful for your friendship and for your support of our film projects, Beauty on the Wing and The Piping Plovers of Moonlight Bay. Both films are continuing to do well and were only made possible because of your generosity and kind support. A most heartfelt thank you!
I may have but don’t think I did, shared this clip of a late hatched Turkey poult. Watch how Mom patiently waits for her poult to take a tiny seed from her mouth. Turkeys are so outwardly cumbrous but have such tender tendencies towards their young.
Happy Thanksgiving!
xxKim
A mini flock of mini birds – every few years or so I am fortunate enough to catch the Golden-crowned Kinglets traveling through our neighborhood. In perpetual motion when foraging, they are challenging to film and even more so to photograph. You would think the Kinglets would be interested in the magnificent buffet of ripe crabapples but no, they were devouring the insects and web encased egg sacs found mostly on the undersides of leaves.
One of these days I may be lucky enough to see a Golden-crowned Kinglet with his crown puffed out like this-
Photo courtesy American Bird Conservancy
Dear Friends,
I hope you are doing well. What a lovely weekend weather wise for we in southern New England although we’re getting ready for the big cold snap coming. Right after Dia de Muertos, we plant paperwhites and amaryllis bulbs to force indoors. We switch up the colors of the soft furnishings in the music living room from warm weather blues and greens to white, rose, red, and greens. It’s a cozy (and gradual) way to get in the holiday spirit.
I am so very delighted to write that we received the Best Director Feature Film award at the London Vision Film Festival. It’s a wonderful honor and my first ‘Best Director’ award. I thank all of you everyday. Both Beauty on the Wing and The Piping Plovers of Moonlight Bay would not have been made possible without your generosity and I am so very grateful for your interest and kind support.
If you have a chance, there’s a very fun new film about the vibrant music scene in Boston during the 70s and 80s, Life on the Other Planet. Beautifully produced and directed by Vincent Straggas, we went to the premiere at the Regent Theatre in Arlington several weeks ago and it is again playing at the Regent on Thursday, November 19th. Along with a great many Boston musicians, my husband Tom Hauck and Fred Pineau from The Atlantics are featured, as well as local Gloucester musicians Willie Alexander and Jon Butcher. There is talk of Life on the Other Planet coming to The Cut!
The Rat
Here’s a link to a short video and photos of the amazing Pectoral Sandpiper that stopped over for a day on its arduous migration to southern South America. I mentioned the pair last time I wrote and wanted to make the video before too much time had passed. I wonder what the predicted whoosh of arctic weather will bring to our shores next!
Sending you kind thoughts and much gratitude,
xxKim
A new-to-my-eyes shorebird to love was seen at a local cove. A pair of Pectoral Sandpipers stayed for a day to refuel on the rich feast of invertebrates found in the wrack of seaweed deposited along the shoreline and as you can see, to get some shut-eye. I had spotted a Yellowlegs and was heading to the shoreline to investigate when I nearly tripped over one of the Pectoral Sandpipers. It was so well camouflaged in the drying seaweed. Only a few feet away was its traveling companion, also equally as difficult to see. They appeared at first glance to be something akin to a shorter legged Yellowlegs but I noticed right away the clean line between its crisply stippled upper chest feathers and bright white lower breast plumage. I knew it was unique to the shorebirds we usually see and had to be something special.
The Sandpipers hungrily burrowed their long bills in the soft sand, coming up with mouthful after mouthful of opaque white invertebrates. This seaweed and sand habitat is extraordinarily rich with small insects. As the seaweed piles up on the beach, the sand washes over and buries it. You may notice when walking the sand underneath your feet feels squishy. That’s because of the seaweed beneath, which also becomes a veritable hot house for insects.
The pair were sooo tired. They frequently dozed off in the midst of foraging and didn’t seem at all deterred by my presence. Perhaps I was the first human they had ever encountered and didn’t know to be frightened. Pectoral Sandpipers have one of the longest migrations known. They may journey from the far southern end of South America, to the high Arctic tundra to nest, quite possibly a nearly 20,000 mile journey. Not only that, but once the polygynous male arrives at the breeding grounds, he will criss cross the Arctic looking for females. From satellite transmitters, biologists know that they may stop and mate at as many as 24 different locations. Pectoral Sandpipers are masters of migration and it was no wonder they were so exhausted.
I returned in the afternoon to find the pair had not moved more than a few feet from where they had been seen in the morning. They were still feeding voraciously and sleeping in-between bouts of foraging.
Pectoral Sandpipers are more likely to be seen in the central part of the country during their autumn migration. Because they are mostly foraging in grassy marshes and wet fields on their typical migratory routes, they, along with several over sandpipers, have gained the nickname ‘grasspipers.’ Pectoral Sandpipers are in the same family as Woodcocks and you can sort of see that in the last clip where the male’s chest feathers are puffed out.
Male Pectoral Sandpipers have a special air sac that lies beneath their breast bone. The air sac fills so that he looks like a feathered balloon and while he flies over the female, he lets out throbbing hoots (and many other extraordinary sounds!).
The wind was still blowing hard when i returned the following morning. Neither were seen and I hoped they had taken advantage of the super strong tailwinds to take them to the next leg of their journey, what seems mighty epic to this wingless human.
Dear Friends,
I hope you are doing well. We are all in this together and I just know we will get through these difficult times. I am so proud of my community for the way organizations and individuals are pulling together to help the food insecure, especially The Open Door and Common Crow.
Wildlife stories and dramas continue despite all and I am grateful for that. I’ve only touched very lightly on posting about the amazing fall migration still underway. Look for upcoming stories about a tiny bird with the outsized name, Golden-crowned Kinglet, a pair of sweet Pectoral Sandpipers that stayed for a one-day stopover on their supreme 17,000 -20,000 mile round trip migration, a three woodpecker sighting day, and much more. Aren’t these atmospheric months of September, October, and November wonderful! Stormy weather and high winds sometimes bring not often seen creatures to our shores, only needing a brief respite, before resuming their extraordinary journeys.
A male Pectoral Sandpiper – you can see he is a male because males have an inflatable air sac in his chest that he also utilizes to puff out his feathers during mating displays
I don’t think I shared the video about the fabulous four plants for pollinators – The Fab Four Plants for Monarchs (and Bees)! There are still a few Monarchs straggling along, some still even in Ontario. The latest I have ever seen a Monarch in our area was November 4th. It was memorable because it was also the year Barack Obama was first elected president. A note about the Fab Four plants. Common Milkweed can be substituted with Marsh Milkweed, Seaside Goldenrod with Canada Goldenrod or Tall Goldenrod, and Smooth Aster with either New York or Purple-stemmed Asters. The idea is sturdy nectar-rich plants that also provide a convenient landing pad and that bloom late in the season.
I was nominated for the City of Gloucester’s Kindness Campaign by our Ward One City Councilman Scott Memhard, and accepted the award on behalf of our wonderful team of dedicated and kind Plover ambassadors and friends. Please read more here.
November 1st and 2nd are the days Dia de Muertos is celebrated. One of the most evocative locations we were invited to film at during the making of Beauty on the Wing was a small family cemetery in Macheros, a remote village at the base of Cerro Pelon Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve.
Honoring our loved ones with offerings on this beautiful Dia de Muertos.
xxKim
I am so very honored to receive a nomination from our Ward One City Councilor, Scott Memhard, for the City of Gloucester’s 2025 Kindness Campaign. I accept this nomination on behalf of myself and all our Piping Plover Ambassadors, DPW, Conservation Commission, and Mass Audubon. Our Gloucester Plovers are very fortunate to have such a dedicated and kind team working to keep them safe and their habitat intact.
I’d also like to thank Scott especially, who has been a supporter since the Plovers first arrived in 2016. He has been a tremendous help navigating with the City to develop conservation protocols for the Plovers. The Plovers are under Scott’s ‘jurisdiction,’ so to speak, as Good Harbor Beach is part of Scott’s ward, and we couldn’t ask for a more helpful and engaged advocate.
Thank you to Scott, all our PiPl Ambassadors, the Gloucester DPW, Conservation Commission, Mass Audubon, and all our Plover friends and advocates <3
“I would nominate Kim Smith for her tireless environmental advocacy & her documentary photography and film educational outreach, now on PBS.
For years Kim has worked tirelessly with the Gloucester DPW, Conservation Commission & MA Audubon. Kim has organized the local citizen group of the Piping Plovers Ambassadors at Good Harbor Beach.
In addition to the Piping Plovers, with her new documentary “Piping Plovers of Moonlight Bay”, and working to protect Good Harbor Beach and dunes, Kim has produced a remarkable film documentation “Beauty on the Wing” of migrating Monarch butterflies which pass through Cape Ann every Fall.
Kim is a blessing & a credit to Gloucester. “
To learn more about Gloucester’s Kindness Campaign, please go here.
And thank you to our little photobomber, Holly, who is generally not allowed on the dining room table
I thought the warblers were attracted to the bushes because of the abundance of berries but no; watch how she snatches a winged insect and only eats the abdomen, tossing aside the wings.
Yellow Warblers primarily eat a wide variety of insects including caterpillars, beetles, spiders, mosquitos, and moths. During the fall and winter months especially, they also eat fruits and berries.
See this beautifully done new short film created by Cape Ann’s Lisa Smith and featuring marine biologist and habitat restoration expert Eric Hutchins in which they describe how the salt marsh at Wingaersheek was filled in. We learn what can be done to restore the estuary to vibrant thriving pools for fish, mudflats for clams, and a nursery for eels. Restoring the salt marsh will put Wingaersheek’s dune system back in equilibrium with nature and is our best defense against rising sea level.
You may have noticed an influx of sparrow-like birds foraging on the ground. They seem to be gathering along every lane and woodland edge. The Juncos blend in easily enough, until disturbed, and then all alight at once, softly twittering while heading for the nearest tree or bush.
Dark-eyed Juncos bear the nickname ‘Snowbird’ as they often signal the onset of the coming cold weather. The ones we are seeing in our neighborhoods at this time off year are feathered in lovely shades of charcoal gray to Mourning Dove brown, as you can see in the video and photos. This little flock was eating the tiniest seeds, grass seeds I think, and also foraging around the small cones of this very spectacular Red Spruce. I think of this native tree as spectacular, not only because of its majestic beauty, but because of the wonderful array of wildlife supported by its cones and resin.
Please write and let me know if you are seeing Dark-eyed Juncos in your area.
Sea Salps have returned. There is a bunch at Niles Beach currently. Write if you see them at your favorite beach.
Luminescent Sea Salps was filmed at night at a dock on Rocky Neck in the underwater lights of the FV Hot Tuna.
Sea salps are warm ocean water creatures, exploding in population during algae blooms. With beating heart, notochcord, and gills they are more closely evolutionarily linked to humans than to jellyfish. Sea salps are individual creatures that through asexual reproduction, can form linear chains up to fifteen feet long!
Salps are planktonic (free floating) members of the subphylum Tunicata. Tunicates get their name from the unique outer covering or “tunic,” which acts as an exoskeleton. The sea salp’s tunic is translucent and gelatinous; in some species it is tough and thick.
