CASTAWAYS BIANCA GIACALONE- TOGETHER WE WILL WEATHER THIS STORM!

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Love this message painted by Bianca Giacalone. You can see the Big Red Heart at her Castaways breakfast and coffee shop. Thank you Bianca!

This would be a great spot to take a family photo at while out getting some fresh air and practicing physical distancing <3

Castaways Vintage Cafe is located at 65 Rogers Street, Gloucester. They are open from 8am to 2pm and are offering curbside contactless pick up of acai bowls, lattes, coffee, smoothies and juices. In addition Castaways is offering delivery or pickup of assorted fresh veggie bags and fruit bags. Deliveries are on Tuesdays and Fridays and must be ordered the day before. Order through FB or call the cafe 978-559-7984 to order. These are an offering to provide for our community while hopefully keeping people out of the grocery stores.

FISHERMANS WHARF GLOUCESTER ANNOUNCES NEW CURBSIDE PICKUP!

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Fisherman’s Wharf Gloucester would like to provide an update, starting this Friday we will be offering order by phone Curbside Pickup. To make our local fish easily accessible the curbside pickup will be open 5 days a week starting this Friday April 17th. Our ordering process will be fast and simple. Tomorrow we’ll post details to our Facebook page on how to order. Thank you for your continued support!

EASTERN MONARCH BUTTERFLY POPULATION PLUMMETS BY MORE THAN HALF

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How disappointing to see the Monarch numbers plunge to less than half of last year’s population. Scientist Chip Taylor from Monarch Watch predicted lower numbers, but not to this degree. It’s hard to believe, especially after witnessing the tremendous numbers at Cerro Pelon in 2019, along with the beautiful migration through Cape Ann last summer.

Plant a variety of milkweeds and wildflowers to help the Monarchs on their northward and southward migrations

The chief reasons for this year’s loss of Monarchs are decreasing amounts of wildflowers on their migratory route south, bad weather during the 2019 migration, and the continued spraying  of deadly chemical herbicides and pesticides on genetically modified food crops.

As we are all aware, Monarch caterpillars only eat members of the milkweed (Asclepias) family, but the plant has been devastated by increased herbicide spraying in conjunction with corn and soybean crops that have been genetically engineered to tolerate direct spraying with herbicides. In addition to glyphosate (Monsanto’s Roundup, which is now owned by Bayer), Monarchs are threatened by other herbicides such as Dicamba and by neonicotinoid insecticides that are deadly poisonous to young caterpillars and decrease the health of adult butterflies.

In 2014, conservationists led by the Center for Biological Diversity and the Center for Food Safety petitioned the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to protect the butterfly under the Endangered Species Act.

The decision on Endangered Species Act protection will be issued in December of this year under a settlement with the conservation groups. The low count of 2019-2020 reinforces the need to protect what we already know to be an endangered species.

SAINT PETER’S FIESTA POSTPONEMENT DATES

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This year’s 2020 Fiesta is scheduled to take place from Wednesday through Sunday, June 24th through June 28th. If a postponement were to occur, Fiesta President Joe Novello and the Fiesta Committee are waiting for final approval by the Special Events Committee to schedule postponement dates over the weekend of September 10th through the 13th. They are hoping to have a definite answer by May 5th. However, this is all contingent upon the State government’s mandated protocols.

You can read the full article in today’s Gloucester Daily Times

THE GOOD NEWS POST – THANK YOU KAREN GORCZYCA, MARK ANDREASSON, CHAD, AND OSCAR!

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A new series for my readers, where we simply highlight good people doing good things <3.

Write with some good news you would like to share. You can either comment in the comment section or send an email to kimsmithdesigns@hotmail.com. No act of kindness is too small to go unnoticed!

Today a huge shout out goes to Chad and his son Oscar. I spotted them from across the beach. Chad was methodically taking in tons of garbage and his little son’s blond curly head was bobbing along. When I got closer, I noticed Oscar had his own trash pick-up stick. Thank you Chad and Oscar for helping to keep Good Harbor Beach and the surrounding marsh and roadway clean of garbage

I’ve mentioned my friend Karen Gorczyca and her husband Mark Andreasson from Design Communication Ltd., or DCL, because they recently began diverting resources in their fabrication facilities to making and producing Personal Protection Equipment parts and face shields. On Friday, they made a custom delivery to the Boston Health Care for the Homeless Program (BHCHP) and donated 50 face shields that were made in their Avon facility.

I just think this is the best, manufacturing and employing people in Massachusetts, and with Heart!

SOME GOOD NEWS – RED SOX TCKETS FOR LIFE!

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John Krasinski, David Ortiz surprise Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center employees with free Red Sox tickets for life

A few Massachusetts hospital employees got a big surprise from actor John Krasinski and celebrated Boston Red Sox hitter David Ortiz.

The two announced during the third episode of Krasinski’s “Some Good News” YouTube show released Sunday that staffers at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston would be getting four free Red Sox tickets for life.

Krasinski, a Newton native, launched his online show last month to promote positivity during the coronavirus pandemic.

WONDERFULLY RARE FOOTAGE – SNOWY OWL TAKES A BATH

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Hello Friends on this rainy, windy day. People’s holiday weekend ran the gamut from joyful to tragic and I so hope yours was not too difficult and you were able to find some light. It was such a beautiful day weather-wise yesterday and if there is one thing about the coronavirus is how wonderful it is to see so many families enjoying each other’s company while out in the fresh air.

Part four, Snowy Owl Takes a Bath, was filmed early one morning. I stopped by to check on Snowy Owl (her nickname at the time was Hedwig) and noticed her face was stained red from breakfast. I only planned to take a few snapshots when she hopped over to a rocky tide pool and began to wash her face. I ran back to the car to get my movie camera and am so glad I did! For the next 40 – 45 minutes she bathed, preened, and fluffed.

I am calling this rare footage because I can’t find anything else like it. Unlike most owls, which are nocturnal (active at night) Snowy Owls are active during the day (diurnal), providing a rare glimpse into the world of owls in the wild.

To see all four episodes together, please go to the Snowy Owl Film Project page on my website. These shorts were created for the kids in the Cape Ann community during this at-home schooling time. The last segment, part five, Snowy Owl Returns to the Arctic, is almost completed and will be posted later this week.

Thank you for watching!

Again, thank you to Scott Weidensaul from ProjectSNOWstorm for script advice.

A Snowy Owl Comes to Cape Ann
Part Four: Snowy Owl Takes a Bath

After a snow squall and as the sun was beginning to appear, a Snowy Owl came out to take a bath. She found a watery icy pool tucked out of sight from dive bombing crows and gulls.

Snowy Owls, like most non-aquatic birds, take baths to clean their feathers.

First washing her face, she tip-dipped and then dunked. After bathing, Snowy fluff dried her feathers, pooped, and preened. During preening, oil from the preen gland, which is located at the base of the tail, is distributed through the feathers to help maintain waterproofing.

Washing, fluffing, and preening took about forty-five minutes from head to talon.

 

EASTER MORNING CHURCH BELLS FROM THE GLOUCESTER UU CHURCH

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Church bells ringing from the Gloucester Unitarian Universalist Church on this beautiful Easter morning. You can very faintly hear Our Lady of Good Voyage from where I was standing (I think it’s Our Lady). Perhaps I should have tried to record between the two churches. Anyway, a handful of people had gathered outside the UUChurch and it was sweet when everyone clapped at the end. Happy Easter, Happy Passover <3

 

PUREST SYMBOL OF HOPE

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I’d like to write Happy Easter and Happy Passover but I think this spring of the coronavirus pandemic is for far too many of us the furthest from happiness that there is. Instead I’d rather think about eggs. Our granddaughter had the best time coloring Easter eggs last weekend (and all the fun made her suddenly love eating hard boiled eggs 🙂 ). It was her little two-year-old self first time and she adored every moment. Imagine children the world over decorating Easter eggs. The egg is a universal symbol of new life, fertility, purity, faith, and hope. We can fight this coronavirus thing with faith and the hope for better days to come (and of course the mandated protocols).

I took some snapshots of eggs from around our home. We don’t have many Easter decorations but the ones we do have I treasure. They include eggs covered in origami paper that we made when the kids were little. A decorated ostrich egg found in a junk store. And a bowl of small speckled stones that I have been collecting from the beach because they remind me of shorebird eggs.

Send us your egg photo tonight and tomorrow and I will post them Easter Sunday night. Any egg photo you like. Thank you. <3

Photos can be added in the comment section or sent to kimsmithdesigns@hotmail.com.

Ostrich egg vs chicken egg

Don’t you love the the beautiful ovoid shapes and myriad colors of creature’s eggs?


Love the bits of colorful yarn woven into this Robin’s nest photo taken at Michelle Del Vecchio’s home

Catbird egg

Kildeer eggs

Piping Plover Eggs

 

THE TENACITY OF TREES

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This was sent to me by my friend Susan and I cannot find the author to credit , but sharing nonetheless because it has lifted my spirits and I hope it does your, too.

The tenacity of trees
#1 A Place Of Enchantment
59830853cd583_6349891801_055b29fb06_b__7

#2 This Palm Tree Fell Over And Curved Right Back Up

 
#3 This Tree Fell Over And Cloned Four More Trees!  

 
#4 The Only Tree That Survived The Tsunami In Japan
Now Protected And Restored.
      trees-refuse-to-give-up-24-59846122a265c
 
#5 Tree Of Life – Olympic National Park, Washington  

#6 A Tree’s Root Spill Over The Sidewalk  

#7 An amazing tree grows out of a rock!
59830b63c15f6_4620123510_f5db6a55f1_o__7
#8 This Tree is Growing Through Speed Limit Sign  
trees-refuse-to-give-up-17-59831833509f6
#9 This Tree Refuses To Die  
#10 This Tree Still Has Its Leaves Because Of
The Light Shining On It
    trees-refuse-to-give-up-78-59846719c7af7
 
#11 Life Finds A Way  
trees-refuse-to-give-up-13-59830fe90cb2a
#12 Tree Roots Extend To The Mainland For Nutrients
    
 
#13 Life Finds A Way  

#14 Ta Promh Temple In Cambodia  
trees-refuse-to-give-up-11-59830de8d632a
#15 Never Give Up!  

#16 Someone Hung His Skates On A Small Tree. The Tree Grew Around Them       trees-refuse-to-give-up-103-598418ba6df7
 
#17 A Tree Growing On Another Tree  
trees-refuse-to-give-up-102-598417e86fa0#19  As Tree Grew Out Of The Stump Of A Dead Tree  — Then The Stump Rotted Away       
 
#20 A Tree Grows From Third Floor Window  

 
#21 A Lone Tree Found a Way to Live Surrounded by Rock
trees-refuse-to-give-up-10-59830dbe9fa89
#22 A   Tree Grows Out of a Rock
  
 
#23 A Floating Island Grew At The End Of A Sunken Tree
  
 
#24 A Wooden Chair Sprouted Leaves
 
#25 This Tree Grew Through A Piano
trees-refuse-to-give-up-15-598311618f5d7
#27 This Tree Refused To Accept Winter  

#28 This Tree Is Eating A Fence  
trees-refuse-to-give-up-101-598416b37d16#29   This Tree Grew Through A Fence  
#30   Trees Will Find A Way  

 It goes to show that when we are determined to survive and persist ,despite the impediments , we can do it.
Like birds, let’s leave behind what we don’t need to carry…grudges, sadness, pain, fear and regrets. Fly light. Life is beautiful .

PARKING BAN AT NILES BEACH AND NEIGHBORHOOD STREETS SURROUNDING GOOD HARBOR BEACH AND WINGAERSHEEK BEACH

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New beach parking restrictions are being implemented by the Mayor’s office. These restrictions include Witham Street, Nautilus Road, Eastern Point Road (the road that runs along Niles Beach) and the neighborhood roads around Wingaersheek Beach.

Barricades were placed today in several locations and we imagine more will be forthcoming.

 

Niles Beach Eastern Point Road is clearly barricaded and marked

No barriers yet on Nautilus Road (we expect they are coming)

No barriers yet on Witham Street 

New barriers at the corner of Witham and 127A

Walk-ons allowed and bike stand still in place at Good Harbor Beach

Good Harbor Beach this afternoon, in and out of storms

BE PREPARED TO BE GROSSED OUT- SNOWY OWL REGURGITATING A GINORMOUS PELLET – PART THREE: A SNOWY OWL COMES TO CAPE ANN

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Casting a pellet is a totally normal thing that Snowy Owls, and all owls do. You may even have dissected a pellet in biology class. I  just had no idea until seeing Snowy do this that they could be so large!

You can view the first three episodes here: Snowy Owl Film Project. All five will eventually be found on this page. Almost finished with Part Four: Snowy Owl Takes a Bath 🙂

A Snowy Owl Comes to Cape Ann

Part Three: Snowy Owl Casts a Pellet

Once or twice a day an owl casts, or regurgitates, a pellet, which is a mass of undigested parts of the bird’s food. Pellets form after an owl has fed. The owl often casts a pellet, and goes poop, shortly before heading out to hunt.

Pellets contain sharp-edged bones and teeth that could damage the bird’s lower digestive tract. Its presence prevents the owl from swallowing fresh prey.

 

HUGE SHOUT OUT TO LOCAL BUSINESS OWNERS MARK ANDREASSON AND KAREN GORCZYCA OF DCL FOR MANUFACTURING PPE FOR FIRST RESPONDERS!!

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Local people doing amazing things – DCL is a Boston based leading fabricator of architectural specialties. DCL President Mark Andreasson and his wife Karen Gorczyca reside on Cape Ann. DCL is now producing and delivering Personal Protective Equipment to area hospitals, police, and fire departments.  Thank you Mark and Karen and DCL staff for all you are doing to help first responders.

About DCL:

DCL is a leading fabricator of architectural specialties – including custom signage, rebranding, wayfinding, and themed entertainment. We partner with architects and designers to custom-engineer the right solutions for each project. Our experience and expertise spans globally, and we provide custom solutions for the Academic, Athletic, Healthcare, Hospitality, Retail, and Transportation industries.

PIPING PLOVERS ARE HERE AND THEY NEED OUR HELP!

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Friends, the Piping Plovers are on Good Harbor Beach!! They arrived on March 22nd and are definitely here to stay. The endangered/threatened species signs have Not Yet been installed, so most people are unaware that they are nesting at Good Harbor.

These are the signs that were installed last year on March 27, two days after the Piping Plovers arrived. Dave Rimmer and Essex County Greenbelt were working with us last summer and their ongoing support was one of the key reasons why we were able to successfully fledge three chicks.

Piping Plover nest scrape, March 2020

The little Dad is building tiny nest scrapes in the sand in nearly the exact same area they were nesting at last year. Please be on the look out and please give them some space until the proper roping and signs are installed. Thank you so much!!!

In case you don’t recall where they were last year (and the three years prior to that), they have made an area between Boardwalk No.3 and the corner of Saratoga Creek their home.

About a week ago, a very narrow corridor of symbolic roping was installed along the entire length of the beach; we presume for dune conservation, because it is far too narrow for the PiPls.

Also, no signs are there to indicate the purpose of the symbolic rope fence, so many folks are walking through and within the roped off area. Last year’s installation, March 27, 2019

Currently, the PiPls are hanging out and nest scraping about ten to twelve feet outside the area where the symbolic fencing ends. We need to widen the area to create a similar footprint to last year’s to make a safe zone for the PiPls.

In the above photo taken a few days ago, you can see where the PiPls are trying to nest, outside the roped off area (Papa Plover is in the lower left quadrant, almost to the midline of the photo). The bird’s efforts are constantly thwarted by people and dogs, no fault of the peoples, because no one knows the PiPls are here without proper signage.

People are sitting in the area where the PiPls are repeatedly trying to nest. This nice group of young folks was not aware that the PiPls are here, because there are no signs posted.

The most important thing for everyone to remember is that the earlier the Piping Plovers are allowed to nest, the earlier they are off the beach. Allowing them to nest early is doubly important this year because as the pandemic breaks, our beaches are going to be flooded with people.  It’s no use to say well they should just find another beach, because these lack of habitat issues are taking place at beaches on both coasts. Wildlife doesn’t stop being threatened or endangered because there is a pandemic, nor does our responsibility to help the birds survive.

If the city has the manpower to place fencing along the entire length of the beach, then we have the manpower to set aside one small area for the PiPls, and to install the endangered/threatened species signs.

If the City does not have the manpower or the funds for signage, then it is not too late to contact Essex Greenbelt for assistance.

Piping Plovers foraging last night at low tide

A SNOWY OWL COMES TO CAPE ANN PART TWO: SNOWY OWL MIGHTY HUNTER with graphic warning for very young children

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Snowy Owl MightY Hunter is part two of the series A Snowy Owl Comes to Cape Ann. The segment where Snowy is eating her prey may be too graphic for very young children, so parents please preview.

Please share with friends and your young naturalists. Thank you for watching and take care <3

 

A Snowy Owl Comes to Cape Ann
Part One

Dear Friends,

Not last winter but the winter before, an exquisite Snowy Owl arrived on Cape Ann. I think it was sometime in December we first began seeing her perched on Bass Rocks. Many of us followed her escapades daily and we took lots of photos. I was also filming her. Like many Snowies, she was tolerant of people, but I think she was especially unperturbed by humans. I also filmed other Snowies that irruptive winter, a stunning nearly all white male nicknamed Diablo at Salisbury Beach, a pretty female at Plum Island, and several males that were located at a beach just north of Logan Airport. And while filming one morning in the dunes at Crane Beach, two were having an epic battle. I was sitting super still and one of the combatants landed within several feet of where I was perched, startling us both!

About two months ago my computer crashed and I lost my film editing program and also became sick with what I thought was a cold. I had been mostly self-quarantining for a month prior to the mandated quarantine because I didn’t want any elderly friends to catch my cold. It turns out it is pneumonia. So between quarantining and learning my brand new film editing program I have made a series of short 3-5 minute films, mostly for the parents and kids in our neighborhood, and also for all our owl lovers. Hopefully, these shorts will help a bit to pass the time.

A Snowy Owl Comes to Cape Ann is part one in the first of five episodes. Next to come is Snowy Owl Mighty Hunter.

Please share with your neighbors and Moms and Dads home with the kids. I think you will love seeing the Snowy and how beautiful, too, Cape Ann looks in wintertime. And we’ll also learn some fun facts about Snowies!

Thank you for watching and please be well <3

LOVE IS IN THE AIR – COYOTES IN THE BLUE HOUR

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Prior to dawn this morning, two Eastern Coyotes were spotted perusing Saratoga Creek and Good Harbor Beach. They appeared to be a pair; the huskier of the two was definitely the ‘alpha’ Coyote, with the smaller trotting after the larger. Before crossing the Creek, they both stopped to go pooh and pee in a pile of seaweed.

The larger (am assuming a male, but not entirely sure) has a more mottled snout with a black tail tip, while the smaller of the two has a very black snout and no black on its tail tip.

SHOULD GLOUCESTER CLOSE BEACHES TO NON-RESIDENTS?

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Folks at Good Harbor Beach this afternoon practicing physical distancing 

Over the weekend many more beaches and beach parking lots closed across the state. Massachusetts DCR State Beaches such as Winthrop Shores Reservation, Revere, Swampscott, and Nahant joined other North Shore communities (Crane Beach, along with Ipswich and Newbury town beaches, for example) in closing to non-residents.

Should Gloucester close her beaches to non-residents? Please write and let us know what you think (and why).

The good news is that State Parks across the Commonwealth are opening early. Massachusetts owns more 450,000 acres of recreational property. Several of the State Parks listed below are beaches, which are now closed, but many are not.

Here is a link to Massachusetts State Parks, alphabetically listed by town.

State Parks by region.

Not everyone though is following GHB guidelines

NEW SHORT FILM: DO YOU REMEMBER CAPE ANN’S SNOWY OWL HEDWIG?

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Dear Friends,

Not last winter but the winter before, an exquisite Snowy Owl arrived on Cape Ann. I think it was sometime in December we first began seeing her perched on Bass Rocks. Many of us followed her escapades daily and we took lots of photos. I was also filming her. Like many Snowies, she was tolerant of people, but I think she was especially unperturbed by humans. I also filmed other Snowies that irruptive winter, a stunning nearly all white male nicknamed Diablo at Salisbury Beach, a pretty female at Plum Island, and several males that were located at a beach just north of Logan Airport. And while filming one morning in the dunes at Crane Beach, two were having an epic battle. I was sitting super still and one of the combatants landed within several feet of where I was perched, startling us both!

About two months ago my computer crashed and I lost my film editing program and also became sick with what I thought was a cold. I had been mostly self-quarantining for a month prior to the mandated quarantine because I didn’t want any elderly friends to catch my cold. It turns out it is pneumonia. So between quarantining and learning my brand new film editing program I have made a series of short 3-5 minute films, mostly for the parents and kids in our neighborhood, and also for all our owl lovers. Hopefully, these shorts will help a bit to pass the time.

A Snowy Owl Comes to Cape Ann is part one in the first of five episodes. Next to come is Snowy Owl Hunting.

Please share with your neighbors and Moms and Dads home with the kids. I think you will love seeing the Snowy and how beautiful, too, Cape Ann looks in wintertime. And we’ll also learn some fun facts about Snowies!

Thank you for watching and please be well <3

 

 

CAPE ANN EARLY SPRING WILDLIFE UPDATE

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Hello Friends,

I hope you are all doing well, or as well as can be expected during this heartbreaking pandemic event. The following kind words were spoken by Pope Francis today and I think they could not be truer.

“We are on the same boat, all of us fragile and disoriented, but at the same time important and needed,” he said.

“All of us called to row together, each of us in need of each other.”

In the world of wildlife, spring migration is well underway and gratefully, nothing has changed for creatures small and large. That may change in the coming days as resources for threatened and endangered species may become scarce.

A friend posted on Facebook that “we are all going to become birders, whether we like it or not.” I love seeing so many people out walking in the fresh air and think it is really the best medicine for our souls.

Several times I was at Good Harbor Beach over the weekend and people were being awesome at practicing physical distancing. Both Salt Island Road and Nautilus Road were filled with cars, but none dangerously so, no more than we would see at a grocery store parking lot. I’m just getting over pneumonia and think I will get my old bike out, which sad to say hasn’t been ridden in several years. Cycling is a great thing to do with a friend while still practicing distancing and I am excited to get back on my bike.

An early spring wildlife scene update

The Niles Pond Black-crowned Night Heron made it through the winter!! He was seen this past week in his usual reedy location. Isn’t it amazing that he/she survived so much further north than what is typical winter range for BCHN.

Many of the winter resident ducks are departing. There are fewer and fewer Buffleheads, Scaups, and Ring-necked Ducks at our local ponds and waterways.

Male and female Scaups

No sign lately of the American Pipits. For several days there were three! Snow Buntings at the Brace Cove berm.

I haven’t seen the Northern Pintail in a over a week. Sometimes the Mallards play nice and on other days, not so much.

Male Northern Pintail and Mallards

As some of the beautiful creatures that have been residing on our shores depart, new arrivals are seen daily. Our morning walks are made sweeter with the songs of passerines courting and mating.

Black-capped Chickadees collecting nesting fibers and foraging

Song Sparrows, Mockingbirds, Robins, Cardinals, Chicadees, Nuthatches, Tufted Titmice, and Carolina Wrens are just a few of the love songs filling backyard, fields, dunes, and woodland.

Newly arrived Great Blue Herons and Great Egrets have been spotted at local ponds and marshes.

Cape Ann’s Kildeers appeared about a week or so ago, and wonderful of wonderful news, a Piping Plover pair has been courting at Good Harbor Beach since they arrived on March 22, a full three days earlier than last year.

Kildeers, Gloucester

Why do I think it is our PiPls returned? Because Piping Plovers show great fidelity to nesting sites and this pair is no exception. They are building nest scrapes in almost exactly the same location as was last year’s nest.

Piping Plover Nest Scrape Good Harbor Beach 2020

I’m not sure if the Red Fox photographed here is molting or is the early stages of mange. It does seem a bit early to be molting, but he was catching prey.

We should be seeing Fox kits and Coyote pups any day now, along with baby Beavers, Otters, and Muskrats 🙂
It’s been an off year for Snowy Owls in the Northeast and mid-Atlantic with relatively many fewer owls than that wonderful irruptive winter of 2017-2018 when Hedwig was living on the back shore. 2019 was a poor summer for nesting however, reports of high numbers of Lemmings at their eastern winter breeding grounds are coming in, which could lead to many owlets surviving the nesting season of 2020, which could lead to many more Snowies migrating south this coming winter of 2020-2021.

Take care Friends and be well <3

Mini-nature lover

WE HAVE A PIPING PLOVER NEST SCRAPE!

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As you may recall from Sunday’s post, our sweet Piping Plover pair arrived on March 22nd. This is three days earlier than last year. The two are concentrating their courtship in exactly the same area they have been courting, nesting, and raising their chicks for the previous four years (with the exception of the parking lot nest). Today PapaPl made a serious nest scrape about five feet away from last year’s nest.

Each year, as they become better at migrating and better parents, they are arriving earlier, and earlier, and are wasting no time in getting down to the business of reproducing. Piping Plovers famously show great fidelity to their nesting sites and our PiPls are no exception.

Piping Plover nest scrape today at 8:30am

You can see in the photos, the male is in the nest scraping, and the sand is flying in the middle photo as he digs out the nest.

We are very much hoping the symbolic Piping Plover fencing can be installed as quickly as possible. Yesterday, protective dune fencing was installed the length of Good Harbor Beach. What was installed yesterday only needs to be widened in a relatively small area  to accommodate the Piping Plover’s nest scrape.

With all the terrible consequences of Covid-1 taking place all around us, some people may think it not important during the pandemic to help the Good Harbor Beach Piping Plovers. I don’t think I am in the minority when I write nothing could be further from the truth. It’s critical to post the threatened/endangered signs and symbolic fencing and let the community know the birds are here. Helping endangered and threatened species is a meaningful way for us all to better understand our natural environment. The fact that the PiPls successfully fledged three chicks last summer gives us hope for a brighter future for all living creatures on our Planet.Pops Plover getting down to business this morning!

NEWLY INSTALLED DUNE PROTECTION AT GOOD HARBOR BEACH!

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Looks like dune protection measures have been installed along the entire length of Good Harbor Beach!

Thank you Gloucester’s awesome DPW!

NILES POND PANORAMA AND EXQUISITE LIGHT LATE YESTERDAY

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Late afternoon when the clouds cleared briefly – click the panorama to view full size.

 

HOW TO SEW SURGICAL MASKS AND ELASTIC IS DESPERATELY NEEDED BY LOCAL SEAMSTRESSES

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Home sewers across the country are pitching in to make face masks for hospitals. Local Essex shop owner Georgeanne Richards from Sea Meadow Gifts and Gardens has been sharing how she and her sewing warriors are organizing, sewing, and collecting supplies for these much needed facial masks.

Georgeanne writes, “There is a desperate need for 1/4 inch flat elastic or elastic cord as you see in the photos.

The elastic is used to hold the masks in place. About 14” of elastic is used for each mask. Please check your home craft and sewing spaces for much needed elastic. Your very much appreciated donations can be placed in a bag and left on Sea Meadow’s porch in the boat planter on the bench.”

Sea Meadow is located at 7 Main Street Essex.

There are several styles of masks and here are instructions for two. Both these sets of directions are written very clearly and are super simple to follow.

From the Button Counter – Facemask: A picture tutorial

And from Sweet Red Poppy – How to Sew a Surgical Face Mask 

BEAUTIFUL DRONE SHOTS OF OCEAN ALLIANCE’S NEW DOCKS!

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Iain Ker forwarded these spectacular drone shots from the Ocean Alliance new dock installatio

Drone Photos by Iain Kerr using a DJI Mavic 2 Pro

Work on the docks has temporarily ceased due to the coronavirus situation however, although not quite finished, the docks are useable to a certain degree and are quite secure against bad weather.