It was raining, at least at my house, when I got up this morning. Therefore, I called the gatehouse and left a message saying I wasn't coming in. Of course, by late morning it had cleared so I started to feel both guilty and deprived. Anyway, I ain't there today. And furthermore, I didn't get a chance to blog last week. So here is the catch-up entry.
Summer broke out in full force last weekend. Hot and sunny and tons of people on the beach. Dogs too. The town beach allows dogs not on leashes but dogs are not allowed on the refuge. Trouble is dogs can't read. I spent the first 45 minutes of my shift chasing dogs and locating their owners. Not fun. The dog action calmed down as the early morning walkers thinned out and the crowds of beach goers arrived for the first nice day of summer.
It was totally a summer day. Sunbathers, roving packs of teenagers, kids digging holes in the sand, and Science Fiction Fishing Guy (a summer regular) fishing for flounder. The only clue that it was still April was the huge flock of long-tailed ducks . Hundreds and hundreds of them. I'm estimating about 500, maybe more. They started the morning all spread out but as the tide came in and wind shifted around to more southerly I noticed they were all clustering in one spot. Science Fiction Fishing Guy wanted to know what kind of fish they eat because they'd obviously found a good fishing spot.
A few swallows, barn and tree, were catching flies over the sand. Other than that, all the bird action was on the other side of the dunes where warblers and other passerines were arriving in droves.
The most disturbing human action was on the town beach, not on the refuge. Whole family groups were climbing up the dunes and sliding down, grabbing onto the newly planted shoots of beach grass on the way down. This is the dune they built after the house fell into the sea last fall.. Dunes are fragile. Beach grass is necessary. Sand circulates. Etc. Etc. Etc. A local TV station did a story on last weekend's dune destruction. There's probably a lot more I should write about sand, dune formation, and beach grass, but I feel like I've written it a thousand times before . Enough for now.
Invisi-bird status: Still invisible. Up to 6 adults have been reported by various people.
Coffee of the Day:I've forgotten but it was good.
Bird of the day: long-tailed duck of course.
Life on the beach at Parker River National Wildlife Refuge and occasional other birding adventures and, of course, piping plovers.
Saturday, May 2, 2009
Thursday, April 23, 2009
museum piece
The famous giant squid of Plum Island is on loan from the Smithsonian to the Georgia Aquarium.
I should update my list of famous giant squid links on my Plum Island web page some day. Also, I should move said page to some more modern and hip hosting site instead of the oldest public dialup Internet Service Provider (ISP) on the planet. My old web site is even more of a museum piece than the famous giant squid.
Speaking of museums, if you are in Ohio you can hear coastal bird conservationist Scott Hecker speak Friday 4/24 on Make Way for Plovers: Reversing Coastal Bird Declines in America at 7:30 p.m. at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History. 1 Wade Oval in the University Circle area. Tickets are $10 for adults and $9 for senior citizens, students and children. Call 216-231-1177 or 800-317-9155, ext. 3279, for information.
Meanwhile, back on the refuge: Looking for something to do on Saturday?
I should update my list of famous giant squid links on my Plum Island web page some day. Also, I should move said page to some more modern and hip hosting site instead of the oldest public dialup Internet Service Provider (ISP) on the planet. My old web site is even more of a museum piece than the famous giant squid.
Speaking of museums, if you are in Ohio you can hear coastal bird conservationist Scott Hecker speak Friday 4/24 on Make Way for Plovers: Reversing Coastal Bird Declines in America at 7:30 p.m. at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History. 1 Wade Oval in the University Circle area. Tickets are $10 for adults and $9 for senior citizens, students and children. Call 216-231-1177 or 800-317-9155, ext. 3279, for information.
Meanwhile, back on the refuge: Looking for something to do on Saturday?
Come to a volunteer information session Saturday, April 25, 11 to noon at Refuge Headquarters, 6 Plum Island Turnpike, Newburyport. Call the Refuge at 978-465-5754 ext. 208 for information.
Anyone interested in learning more about the types of volunteer positions for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service at Parker River, is encouraged to attend. Attending does not create an obligation to volunteer. Besides plover wardens, the refuge needs volunteers to staff the information desk, help with invasive vegetation control -- like pulling pepperweed and planting pitch pines and stuff, and to do various maintenance tasks on the Refuge.
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Midwesterners Get Chance to Hear Scott Hecker
For readers out there in the Midwest, don't miss Scott Hecker speaking on piping plovers at Cleveland MNH 4/24. http://tinyurl.com/ca77vz
Scott is the king of piping plover restoration in Massachusetts -- and hence the world, because Massachusetts is the star of piping plover recovery. :-)
Seriously, if you have a chance to catch Scott's presentation, do it.
Scott is the king of piping plover restoration in Massachusetts -- and hence the world, because Massachusetts is the star of piping plover recovery. :-)
Seriously, if you have a chance to catch Scott's presentation, do it.
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