Category Archives: #newenglandpond

Red Maple Tree Giver of Life

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You may have noticed the glowing red tree tops dotting our landscape. What you are most likely looking at are the flowers of the Red Maple (Acer rubrum) tree. One of the earliest trees to come into bloom, the flowers are so small that they are often overlooked.Red Maple Tree in flower

There are countless ways in which this extraordinary tree gives life. Being one of the first trees to bloom in the spring, it is a potent source of nectar for early bees on the wing. Little warblers, like this female Common Yellowthroat, find tiny spiders, insects, and larvae that are attracted to the pollen and nectar found amidst the tree’s blossoms.

Following the tree’s flowering period, pink and green two-toned winged fruits form. Officially called samaras, we mostly know them by self-describing names like helicopters and whirligigs. The wind blows the seeds far and wide where they are eaten by a great variety of birds and small mammals including turkeys, squirrels, and chipmunks.

But it is their yummy foliage that makes Red Maples a critical native keystone species. Somewhere between 200 to 300 species of Lepidoptera feed on the leaves of Red Maples including Giant Silkmoths Luna and Cecropia.

Cecropia Moth CaterpillarsCecropia Moths Mating

To top off the smorgasbord of food for wildlife that this beautiful tree provides, for us humans, autumn brings a gorgeous display of brilliant red foliage.

Red Maples are also called Swamp Maples but that doesn’t mean they only grow in swampy, super wet environments. Red Maples will tolerate average garden soil, just not super dry conditions. Grown in well-drained, loamy and acidic soil, they will thrive. Red Maples are the fastest growing tree in the Eastern US. They may reach a height to 70 feet in the Northeast, adding about 18 inches in height per year. When properly cared for, Red Maples can live up to 100 years.

 

Golden-winged Northern Flicker

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Yet another wonderful woodpecker is returning to our shoreline, ponds, and woodlands. This fabulous golden-winged boy is a Northern Flicker, so named because of the brilliant underwing feather shafts that flash gold when he is in flight. Listen to his drumming and songs to a female before take-off.

Go here to download a nest box plan for a Northern Flicker

Instructions for completing the nest box.

Hello Rainbow Wood Duck!

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Feeling thankful that our Charlotte got to see this male Wood Duck on a sunny morning. And, that he was swimming towards us, not away, as Wood Ducks are want to do. She dubbed him Rainbow Boy.

Wood Ducks are named as such because they are one of the very few ducks that perch and nest in trees. Unlike most ducks, Wood Ducks have sharp claws that allows them to perch.

Wood Ducks are another conservation success story; a direct result of the passage of the Migratory Bird Treaty  Act of 1918. By protecting woodland and marsh habitat, enforcing hunting regulations, and erecting nesting boxes, Wood Duck populations have rebounded. Another reason why the population is growing is because of the return of the North American Beaver. Beavers create the ideal forested wetland habitat for Wood Ducks!

You really need to see iridescence in strong sunlight, otherwise the creature’s features just look muddy.

For comparison sake, in the above photo, the female is in the foreground and the male in the background.  The male Wood Duck in this photo is in ‘eclipse,’ or mid-molt.

Thank you Beavers!

Pocket-sized Ruby-crowned Kinglet

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Only weighing about as much as a quarter, the Ruby-crowned Kinglet’s tiny stature belies its vigorous foraging habits. The Kinglet flits and forages along the pond’s muddy edge, energetically snatching insects, all the the while flicking its tail. He leaps from stem to stem then takes off to hover mid-air, simultaneously pecking spiders from slender stalks.

The Kinglet’s ruby crown is well-hidden and mostly seen in spring during courtship display. RCKinglets are so incredibly fast; I was just hoping to capture some tiny bit of footage/documentation and was absolutely delighted when one flew to an adjacent bush only several feet away. He began floofing after his bath, with brilliant vermilion crown on full display.

We are at the tippy northern range of the Ruby-crowned Kinglets wintering grounds. Perhaps with the warming weather trend, we will see more and more.

For comparison sake, two years ago (November 2022), a flock of Golden-crowned Kinglets graced our eastern most shores, staying for about a week.

 

Are Beavers Tool Users?

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In thinking about the happy outcome for Nibi the orphaned Beaver, Massachusetts newest wildlife ambassador, I was reminded of some footage I took of a Beaver over the summer (for the full story about Nibi, visit the Newhouse Wildlife Rescue Facebook page here).

The Beaver dove down to retrieve some kind of vegetative tuber or rhizome, a behavior I have seen countless times. He/she resurfaced, ate half, and then proceeded to use the half eaten rhizome to scrub his face. Okay that’s interesting but perhaps just a fluke. A few minutes later, the Beaver dove again and returned with a fresh rhizome, this time with his left side facing the camera. After munching away for a few moments, he then groomed the left side of his face with the rhizome in his left paw. Wow, so thorough to scrub both sides, and with a “tool!”

The video footage is longer than the usual post but he’s so cute at the end I had to include that, too. You can see his long orange tooth at about 1 minute 20 seconds in.

I wondered, are Beavers considered “tool users?” They build their lodges by cutting down and arranging trees, packing all with mud and that may or may not be called tool use, but to use vegetable matter to groom his face? That certainly seems as though it would qualify as tool use.

 

Welcome to the Garden of Dissipating Beauty

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The seeds of both Zinnias and Sunflowers are Goldfinch favorites. No dead-heading in this garden!

Cicadas in Massachusetts

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When we think of cicadas, we think of the spring time periodic cicadas that emerge en masse, in some years, by the billions and billions. There are also annual cicadas and they typically emerge in late summer or the “dog days” of summer, hence the name, Dog Day Cicada.

Our daughter Liv spotted a Dog Day Cicada atop a 5-foot tall stalk of the Marsh Mallow plant.

Dog Day Cicadas are about half an inch larger than the periodic cicadas. We hear male Dog Day Cicadas in our gardens and neighborhoods and they are one of the wonderfully familiar sounds that immediately brings to mind the music of sultry summer nights. Unlike periodic Cicadas. Dog Day Cicadas emerge singularly; they need to “scream” loudly to attract a female.

Song of the Dog Day Cicada. You can hear the Cicada at about 4 seconds in.

The astonishingly loud sound that is emitted by cicadas comes from a pair of organs called “tympana” located at the base of the males’s abdomen.

Musical Geniuses

Arizona State University, “Ask a Biologist.”

Cicadas are most well-known for their very loud, constant chorus of song during the summer season. Although they sort of sound like crickets, it is pretty clear that cicadas are bigger and better at bringing the noise.

While crickets rub their wings together, male cicadas use a different, louder part of their bodies to make noise. Both sides of their thoraxes have thin, ridged areas of their exoskeletons called tymbals. Tymbals are made of a rubbery substance called resilin. The cicadas vibrate their tymbals very fast using muscles in their bodies. With every vibration, a sound wave is released, and cicadas can send out 300-400 sound waves per second! Females also make sounds to attract males, but they use their wings to make a clicking sound, rather than a high-pitched song like the males.

The cicadas you hear singing long into the night are male cicadas looking for females to mate with. Males are so loud because they have a couple other sound features that allow them to make very loud continuous noises. The abdomen of male cicadas are almost completely hollow. When sound waves from the tymbals enter this hollow area, they bounce around. This can change the sound, make the sound louder, or both.

Different size and shape cicada abdomens will change the sound in different ways. This explains why different cicada species make different noises. Cicadas, and all insects for that matter, also have hollow tubes running through their body called trachea. Trachea move oxygen and carbon dioxide around, sort of like our lungs. Trachea are also hollow, so they are also used by the cicada to make their songs louder. All in all, the cicada is one complicated insect instrument!

Wall of Fragrance

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Walking around Niles Pond at this time of year you can’t helped but be knocked out by the fabulous combined scent of the blooming Summersweet (Clethra alnifolia)  and Rosa rugosa. Summersweet, also know as Honeysweet and Sweet Pepperbush, is the large shrub that densely lines both sides of Niles Pond Road. With racemes that look like bottlebrushes, the many florets provide nectar for dozens of species of pollinators, of all sizes. The tiniest winged wonders attracted to the panicles provide sustenance to hummingbirds and I often see them zipping in and out of the Clethra blossoms, too.

The Summersweet shrubs growing so closely together creates a “Wall of Fragrance,” which always reminds me of Phil Spector’s “Wall of Sound,”  where his musical arrangements called for multi tracking multiple instruments, creating “symphonic saturation.” Niles Pond right now is a symphonic saturation of sweet summer scents – GO!

The following is an excerpt from a book that I wrote back in 2004-2007, which was published by David R. Godine in 2009. The book is about designing landscape habitats for wild creatures and for people, titled Oh Garden of Fresh Possibilities: Notes from a Gloucester Garden, and all that I wrote then, still holds true to day.

“Summersweet is a native shrub that bears small white florets held on racemes, and depending on the cultivar may be shaded with varying hues of pink to rose-red. The tapering spires of fragrant blossoms appear in mid to late summer. Clethra has a sweet and spicy though somewhat pungent aroma, and when the summer air is sultry and humid, the fragrance permeates the garden, Summersweet is a nectar food attractive to bees and a wide variety of butterflies, notably the Silver-spotted Skipper.” See more at Oh Garden

Myriad species of bees and butterflies, along with Ruby-throated Hummingbirds, are attracted to Clethra for its sweet nectar, while American Robins, Goldfinches and warblers dine on Summersweet’s ripened berries.

Beach Rose (Rosa rugosa)

Happy Earth Day feat. the Carolina Wren and why we LoVe leaf litter!

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Joy in the wild garden- What fun to observe our resident Carolina Wren vigorously tossing leaves around while looking for insects. Just one in a million reasons why we leave leaves on the ground, and don’t cut down expired flower stalks. Leaf debris and stalks create the ideal inset habitat, and insects are the number one food for birds during the breeding season. Songbirds need the extra protein to make eggs and keep their young well-fed. 

 

Happy Earth Day feat. Red-winged Blackbirds!

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A most welcome sign of spring!

Male Red-winged Blackbirds establishing their territory, in flight display and with their wonderfully varied courtship calls. Towards the end is a brief shot of the object of their desire, the elusive female.

Happy World Wildlife Day! #WWD2024

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Every year on March 3rd, United Nations World Wildlife Day (WWD) is celebrated  The purpose of the celebration is to recognize the unique roles and contributions of wildlife to people and the planet.  Read more here.

A special event for World Wildlife day is being held at the UN tomorrow, March 4th, that anyone is welcome to tune into. Here is the link and more information:

https://www.linkedin.com/events/worldwildlifeday2024uncelebrati7163493005688041473/comments/

#SaveTheDate 📅 🌱 Tune in online to watch the hashtag#WorldWildlifeDay 2024 UN Celebration!

When: 4 March (10AM-1PM EST)
Where: webtv.un.org

This year, we are exploring digital innovation and highlighting how digital conservation technologies and services can drive wildlife conservation, sustainable and legal wildlife trade and human-wildlife coexistence, now and for future generations in an increasingly connected world. 📱💻🐟🐯🌳

Meet our organizing partners: UNDP, ifaw, Jackson Wild, and WILDLABS Community

hashtag#WWD2024 hashtag#ConnectingPeopleAndPlanet hashtag#DigitalInnovation hashtag#TechForWildlife

 

WONDERFUL WILD CREATURES 2023 YEAR IN REVIEW!

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Saying goodbye to 2023 with a look back at just some of the magnificent creatures and scenes we see all around our beautiful North Shore.

The slide show begins with January and runs through December. When clicking through, you can see the photos are captioned and dated. If you would like more information, all the photos are from posts written throughout the year, and most of the posts have short videos featuring the animal.

Some of the highlights were a Northern Lapwing blown far off course, Barred Owls, flocks of Snow Buntings, successful Gray Seal rescue by Seacoast Science Center, the return of handicapped Super Mom and Super Dad to Good Harbor Beach, Great Blue Herons nesting, Rick Roth from Cape Ann Vernal Pond team helping me find frog’s eggs for my pond ecology film, Bald Eagle pair mating, Earth Day Good Harbor Beach clean-up, Osprey nesting,Creative Commons Collective native plantings at Blackburn Circle, mesmerizing encounter with a Fisher, Mama Dross Humpback and her calf, Beth Swan creating PiPl logo, PiPl chicks and Least Terns hatching, Pipevine Swallowtail pupa, PiPl t-shirts and decals selling at Alexandra’s Bread, rare Nighthawk, Spring Peepers, chicks fledging, trips to Felix’ Family Farm with Charlotte, Monarchs in the garden, Merlin, juvenile Glossy Ibis, and a  flock of Horned Larks.

Perhaps the very most memorable moment was a wonderfully close (and extended) encounter with a Fisher. Read more about that here: Lightning in a Bottle

 

Happy New Year Friends. We’ll see what 2024 brings our way <3

UP CLOSE WITH A YOUNG GLOSSY IBIS!

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Not a creature we see at Niles Pond everyday! The young Ibis stayed for awhile, resting, floofing its magnificent iridescent feathers, and drinking water before heading back out over the ocean. I used to see them only over on the west side of Gloucester, but this year there was a very large flock at pastures in Essex, and a beautiful flock foraging in the tidal marsh at Good Harbor Beach, too.

According to Cornell, “Glossy Ibises are found throughout the world. In North America, populations increased by an estimated 4.2% per year between 1966 and 2015 (indicating a cumulative increase of nearly eightfold over that period), according to the North American Breeding Bird Survey. In 2002, the North American Waterbird Conservation Plan estimated 13,000–15,000 breeding Glossy Ibises in North America and listed it as a species of low concern.”

The Glossy Ibis breeding territory is indicated in orange and the coast of Massachusetts is part of that territory.

BLUET DAMSELFLIES MATING IN THE CATTAILS

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“Get a room,” my friend Lauren laughed when we arrived at the Pond, noticing within moments dozens upon dozens of bluet damselflies readying to mate. The little pond is surrounded by a magnificent variety of vegetation however, the damselflies were only interested in perching on the cattail blades, in some instances three pairs per blade!

During mating, the male clasps the female by the neck while she bends her body around to his reproductive organs, forming a “mating wheel.” The damselfly photos here show the damselflies in the initial stages of mating.

There are no fewer than twenty different species of bluet damselflies in Massachusetts. One quick way to tell the difference between a damselfly and a dragonfly when out in the field is to look at the eyes. Dragonfly eyes are large and spaced very close together, whereas the eyes of damselflies are smaller and separated.

Cattail flowers are not bright and showy because they do not need to attract pollinators. Multiple tiny florets grow on the cylindrical-shaped stalk and are pollinated by wind. After releasing pollen, the flowers fall off leaving behind the spikes. The spike falls apart eventually to release the fluffy seeds, which are also disseminated by the wind. Clearly, the blades of Cat-O’-Nine-tails are useful to damselflies. The fluff is also wonderfully beneficial to songbirds, such as Red-winged Blackbirds, for lining their nests.

WATER SNAKES ENCOUNTER!

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While working on my pond film, I had a chance encounter with a bunch of Water Snakes that were interacting, sort of. The smaller one kept trying to engage with the medium-sized snake, but he/she would have none of it. After a time, an even larger Water Snake appeared on the scene and made his way to a sunny spot on a hummock in the pond.

I read that Northern Water Snakes are mostly solitary creatures. They are generally social only in the fall and spring.

The Northern Water Snake swallows its prey whole, feeding heavily on amphibians and fish. The above photo is of the closely related Garter Snake swallowing a Bullfrog as I was so engaged with filming the Water Snake, I neglected to take a photo.

Shadblow blooming in a gentle spring rain

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Simply one the most beautiful sites has to be when our native Shadblow comes into bloom. The airy white flowers light up the woodland scene and water’s edge.

Shadbow, Shadbush, Chuckleberry Tree, Serviceberry, and Juneberry are just a few of the descriptive names given the beautiful Shadblow tree.

Shadblow (Amelanchier canadenisis) is one of the first of the natives to bloom in spring, growing all along the Atlantic coastal plains. A fantastic tree for the wild garden, over 26 species of songbirds and mammals, large and small, are documented dining on the fruits of Shadblow (including bears). The small blue fruits are delicious, though rarely consumed by humans because wildlife are usually first at the table.

The foliage of Shadblow is a caterpillar food plant for the Red Admiral Butterfly. Look for her eggs on the upper surface at the tip of the leaf.

Shadblow buds with dewdrop necklace

HAPPY EARTH DAY SHORT FILM WITH MUSIC FROM THE MARSH AND BLACKBIRDS!

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For my pond ecology documentary I have been filming Red-winged Blackbirds at ponds and marshes all around Cape Ann. Only about 15 seconds of footage is needed, but when I began, it was mid-February and their songs filling the marsh was a welcome reminder that spring was on its way.

When the blackbirds first arrived, there was snow on the ground and chunks of ice on the cattails. It was so cold you could see their breath. The choristers perch from every outpost, from the tallest tree to the slenderest of reeds, singing their hearts out, calling to the females. Red-winged Blackbirds are especially fond of perching on cattails; they construct their nests with cattail fluff (along with other bits of vegetation).

In all that time, two months roughly, I never saw a single female once. Mid- April and at long last the elusive females are beginning to arrive. Rather a Plain-Jane compared to the male’s dashing velvety black with brilliant red shoulder epaulettes, underlined in a slash of yellow, nonetheless, she is the object of desire of the chortling males.

Red-winged Blackbird’s nests are well camouflaged in the reeds, and so is she! Look for the females at the very end of short film, the last two clips. Happy Spring, Happy Earth Day!

 

 

MISTY MORNING RAIN

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Heading out early this morning I didn’t have great expectations of capturing pond wildlife.  How wrong I was! Misty rain softly billowing across the pond, beautiful orb weaver spider webs ornamented with pearls of dew, Red-winged Blackbirds chortling, a female Downy Woodpecker foraging adjacent to a web and, surprise of all, a Glossy Ibis flew up from the marsh. I wasn’t expecting to see the Ibis and my camera was set for filming small creatures but I caught the tail end of the flight.

We mostly notice orb spider webs in the summer and fall because the webs are larger however, the spiders begin weaving webs as soon as they appear in spring.

NEW SHORT FILM – THE HAIRY WOODPECKER

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The wonderful Hairy Woodpecker featured in this short film was seen on a sunny afternoon along the banks of Niles Pond. He spent a great amount of time alternating between excavating a fallen log, foraging for wood boring beetles, and climbing up and down trunks of trees. I’ve been back several times and can usually find him by his funny high pitched squeak that sounds much like a pup’s squeaky chew toy.

Snagging a grub

On that very same day the Hairy Woodpecker was pummeling away at the log, a sweet little Downy Woodpecker and beautiful Red-bellied Woodpecker were also in the neighborhood. And too, there is an elusive golden-winged Northern Flicker flitting about, but he has been a challenge to capture. Hopefully, at some point in the future, we can add him to the short film.

Related Post –

Update from Beaver Pond: A Wonderful World of Woodpeckers!

Red-bellied Woodpecker

Downy Woodpecker

Hairy Woodpecker

Northern Flicker

 

LINK TO WCVB CHRONICLE PIPING PLOVER AND MONARCH EPISODE! #ploverjoyed #sharetheshore #plantandtheywillcome

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New England residents and nonprofits work to save threatened species

https://www.wcvb.com/article/new-england-residents-and-nonprofits-work-to-save-threatened-species/41915984

Climate concerns growing for the future of many migratory species.

We travel all over coastal Massachusetts to learn about a few local “indicator species,” which can help explain the impact of climate change. Award-winning documentarian Kim Smith tells us the story of piping plovers breeding in Massachusetts.

The City of Cambridge raises monarch butterflies for release.

Every year, hundreds of sea turtles are stranded on the Cape. The New England Aquarium’s sea turtle hospital comes to the rescue.

Meanwhile, terrapin turtles on the Cape are struggling to survive.

In Plymouth at Manomet, researchers monitor coastal health, tag songbirds, and study the presence of a mighty migratory shorebird – the whimbrel.

And scientists at Nature and students at Bristol Aggie examine the health of river herring in the Taunton River watershed.

RARE LARK SPARROW RETURNS TO #gloucesterma!

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The Lark Sparrow returns!  It’s been a delight to observe her foraging at Eastern Point. She has been here for over a week, finding plenty to eat in the seed heads of wildflowers. The Lark Sparrow is also eating caterpillars she uncovers at the base of plants and snatching insects tucked in the tree branches.

You can see from the Lark Sparrow’s range map that she is far off course, although this is the second time I have seen a visiting Lark Sparrow at Eastern Point. In November of 2019, we were graced with an extended visit from a Lark Sparrow. You can read more about that here:

THE RARELY SEEN IN MASSACHUSETTS LARK SPARROW IS STILL WITH US!

While working on the Piping Plover film project, I am also creating a half hour long documentary on the ecology of New England pond life. Some of the beloved creatures that we regularly see at our local ponds that are featured in the film include Beavers, Muskrats, Otters, herons, frogs (of course), raptors, butterflies, bees, spiders, turtles, snakes, songbirds, and the Ruby-throated Hummingbird. Being able to include rarely seen wild creatures such the Lark Sparrow, the Yellow-billed Cuckoo, and the Orange-crowned Warbler adds to the joy and fun of the film and i am so excited to be working on this project.  I just hope I can edit everyone in within a half hour time frame!

 

Lark Sparrow Eastern Point 2022

When out in the field and only a quick glance is afforded, the easiest way to tell the difference between the the Lark Sparrow and the Song Sparrow, (the sparrow most commonly seen in these part) is to compare breast feathers. The Lark Sparrows breast is white with only faint streaking and a prominent black spot in the center of the upper chest. Compare that to the more heavily streaked Song Sparrow’s chest feathers (see below).

GARTER SNAKE EATING A BULLFROG

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The American Bullfrog, both predator and prey

This month I am taking a short break from working on the Piping Plover feature documentary and am developing a film about the ecology of New England ponds. Frogs, in all their myriad incarnations, are keystone species, playing starring roles as both predator and prey.

American Bullfrogs are by far the most commonly seen. While filming and adventuring around local ponds with Charlotte we witnessed a dramatic scene where a Garter Snake snatched a Bullfrog from the road. As the snake was keeping his eyes on us, he was successfully dragging the frog into the cover of grass, simultaneously trying to devour the frog whole in one swallow. As you can see, the frog was enormous, compared to the mouth of the snake nonetheless, the snake was determined. We couldn’t continue to wait to see what took place but were convinced the snake was going to prevail and eventually swallow the frog.

Known predators of  American Bullfrogs include Great Blue Herons, Great Egrets, Little Blue Herons, snakes, raccoons, Belted Kingfishers, and turtles.

Little Blue Heron eating a froglet

As tadpoles, American Bullfrogs are herbivores that eat aquatic plants. As adults, ABullfrogs are carnivorous ambush predators who eat insects, birds, fish, snakes, baby turtles, bats, rodents; anything that fit into their wide mouths. They even eat each other! Bullfrogs wait patiently for prey to pass by and and then use their powerful back legs to pounce. American Bullfrogs are North America’s largest. Females are generally larger than males and can grow up to 8 inches.

 

Note the tail on the above Bullfrog froglet. Half tadpole, half frog, froglets are outgrowing their tadpole stage, but are not yet fully fledged frogs.

American Bullfrog

Green Frog 

An easy way to tell the difference between an American Bullfrog and a Green Frog is to look at the fold of skin behind the eyes. The ABfrog’s wraps around the very large eardrum (tympanic membrane). The Green Frog’s fold on either side runs along the length of the body.