#522
Tuesday, July 1, 2008 Hello Folks this is David Clapp with today's Nature
Note. There are only a few things that make July and August in eastern
Massachusetts acceptable. I am not a summer person. It is way too hot and way
to humid for me. It's not so much the sheen of perspiration and the sticky clothes
that bother me the most - it is the grin and seeming appreciation exhibited by
the "summer people". When I was working with Dianne Bartley, for instance,
she would sit there, her hair curling like thousands of coiled springs and claim
to actually like the weather. I was always looking for some excuse to open the
refrigerator. The reason for the summer heat is that the earth is
tilted; we do not sit upright with the North Pole over the South Pole. We lean.
Our orbit is of little consequence here; as a matter of fact we are about five
million miles closer to the sun on the fourth of July than we are on the first
of January.
The primary factor that causes the summer to be warmer than the
winter is the tilt of the earth itself, not the distance to, or from, the sun. The
tilt means longer days in the summer as we lean toward the sun; remember we live
on the northern half of the planet; and it is warmer also, because the atmosphere
presents a less reflective angle to the sun's rays, allowing the rays a straight
shot to the planet beneath. Thus, heat; and thus my two months of whining. This
is David Clapp on WATD 95-9 with today's Nature Note. #523
Wednesday, July 2, 2008 Hello Folks this is David Clapp with today's
Nature Note. There are more beetles that any other life form on the
earth. There are land beetles, water beetles, tree beetles, and on and on. There
are beetles everywhere. Most of them are of little consequence to us because we
never see them. Their role on the planet is probably very significant, but because
we know so little about them they continue to be underappreciated. There is one
beetle that may be underappreciated but we can see it. It is the firefly or lightning
bug or lightning beetle of these summer evenings. They fly through
the dark, blinking and winking, to let others of their kind know that they are
there and to identify what sex they are. The adults fly, using a chemical soup
to create a pattern of flashes. Even when they are eggs or larva and burrowing
in the ground, they glow. As a matter of fact that is what glow-worms are. These
are rarely seen as one needs to be digging in the earth in the dark to notice
the glowing grub or egg. The light is produced very efficiently, there is almost
no heat given off by the chemical process. The adult sparkle and
mate and lay eggs and die all within a few weeks. The eggs will hatch and the
grubs will over-winter and emerge as lightning bugs (or fireflies) early next
summer. This is David Clapp on WATD 95-9 with today's Nature Note. #524
Thursday, July 3, 2008 Hello Folks this is David Clapp with today's
Nature Note. When I was a kid there seemed to be lightning bugs (fireflies)
everywhere. I used to catch them in an old mayonnaise jar and see if I could get
enough to create a kind of biological reading lamp. This group of beetles has
the appropriate name of Lampyridae. I never did get enough, or at least I could
never get them to glow at the same time; I hope I released them when I realized
I couldn't. They were most often in Mrs. Caldwell's yard, near her grapes and
currents. Or more likely, near an area that wasn't too well maintained and offered
the leaf litter and cool rich soil the eggs and larval grubs liked best. Last
summer I was in New Hampshire, it was about a year ago; and the fireflies that
were over the pastures reminded me of what is was like years ago. The whole field
shimmered and flickered as hundreds and hundred of fireflies cavorted over the
grass tops. It was a spectacle. As I mentioned yesterday, the adults have a very
short time above ground and they seem to enjoy every second - at least at night.
During the day they rest and hang out. The females will soon be laying eggs and
the eggs will hatch underground, where the young will live for the next year or
two - arising to sparkle as breeding adults early next summer. This
is David Clapp on WATD 95-9 with today's Nature Note. #525
Friday, July 4, 2008 Hello Folks this is David Clapp with today's Nature
Note. There should be something red, white, and blue about today's
Nature Note.
Maybe we can make it an afternoon scavenger hunt - a search for
the red, white, and blue - for the whole family. It will be fun and get you out
to a couple super coastal locations. Red is easy; there are Northern
Cardinals and Scarlet Tanagers amongst the birds. There are all sorts of flower
blossoms out right now as well. But the flowers are perhaps too easy. Let's stick
with animals. Reddish can be applied to the House Finch and Purple Finches as
well. White may be the hardest to locate - there are few all-white
birds, especially around the yard. But birds like the Blue Jay and American Robin
have quite a bit of white on them. Maybe you need to visit a grand expanse of
salt marsh and look for the stately Great Egret or the slightly smaller Snowy
Egret. Both species nest on the South Shore and are not uncommon in the marshes
and swamps of the area; especially north of the North River, as they nest in Hingham. Blue
is more difficult; but nothing will brighten up your search (and your
afternoon)
more than finding an Eastern Bluebird or even an Indigo Bunting under some high
tension lines. The bluebirds are usual in old fields and pastures or even golf
courses. They are cavity nesters so look for bird boxes or dead trees. This
is David Clapp on WATD 95-9 with today's Nature Note. #526
Monday, July 7, 2008 Hello Folks this is David Clapp with today's Nature
Note. You have been brainwashed - so have I. I was brought up to
think that earthworms were the salt of the earth - so to speak. I was please to
add them to my soil, place them in the garden, grow them in the mulched compost,
and watch as they tilled the soil and made the vegetables grow rich and plump. Well
earthworms are the bad guys in many places. The New England forests never had
earthworms. About eleven thousand years ago the forests were release from the
grip of the glaciers - actually the land was released from the grip of the glaciers
- the forest had been killed and scraped away tens of thousands of years prior.
There was only stone and gravel and sand. There was no soil and there were no
earthworms. The microscopic stuff of the forest floor; the bacteria,
fungi, and those big guys, the insects, set about recycling the debris of the
developing forest. Leaves and twigs, bark and wood, were turned to smaller bits
by these miniscule workers. There were no earthworms for about 9,000 years - they
arrived with the European colonists. Many species of earthworm have been brought
here and seven are steadily increasing in numbers and effect. This
is David Clapp on WATD 95-9 with today's Nature Note. #527
Tuesday, July 8, 2008 Hello Folks this is David Clapp with today's Nature
Note. So, earthworms were brought by the colonists. In many parts
of the northern forest they have only been around for one hundred years or less.
In some woods they don't exist yet. What harm can a mindless, boneless, spineless
creature do anyway? The organic stuff of a forest; twigs, leaves, seeds, fruits,
and so on; were broken down slowly, very slowly, by bacteria and fungi. The earthworm
is a bulldozer by comparison. They eat everything and eat it rather quickly. The
duff layer, that sort of rotting leaf layer, is eaten as well. The plants which
adapted to the slower activities of bacteria are stunned by this change in the
soil activity. The organic layer becomes thinner and much of its
nutrient value washes away with heavy rain. Many native plants are not suited
for this fast-moving life. Those non-native plants that are suited to disturbed
areas move in and replace the native shrubs and trees. The invasion
of the forests by earthworms is a function of their own ability to move (about
fifteen feet a year in the right conditions) and the activity of people. We have
brought earthworms to almost all ponds for fishing bait.
The unused worms
are often tipped out and left behind. Thus there are woodland pockets through
out the deep woods. In suburban land like eastern Massachusetts - there are earthworms
just about everywhere. Their impact, along with acid precipitation, forest fragmentation,
and climate change, will surely alter the woodlands of our children and grandchildren. This
is David Clapp on WATD 95-9 with today's Nature Note. #528
Wednesday, July 9, 2008 Hello Folks this is David Clapp with today's
Nature Note. May and June are the months of bird migration. The further
north you go the later the passage period. I was in central Maine a couple weeks
ago and was struck by both the birds and the scenery. What a nice place. I should,
mention that central Maine is a long way from Portland or Bar Harbor.
Northern
Maine is essentially in the middle of New Brunswick or Quebec.
Central Maine
is about two-hundred miles up Interstate ninety-five and then smaller roads a
bit further; northernmost Maine can be another one-hundred and fifty miles on.
But remember that is only a few hours driving and the rewards are great - well
all except for that gas price thing. When I say central Maine I am
talking about places so far north that lifetime Mainers never go there. Here are
the reasons to plan this kind of trip for yourselves: it is beautiful, the people
are great, and the wildlife is just waiting for you to arrive. We had moose every
day without looking for them. They were seen as we walked and as we drove. It
was the same with deer. Birds were singing from every habitat. The warblers that
migrate so hurriedly through eastern Massachusetts are just hanging out and calling.
The flycatchers and woodpeckers are easy to see and hear. It is very exciting
and we had almost no black flies or mosquitoes. There are three areas
where you might stay in this region: Jackman; Pittston Farm, north of Moosehead
Lake; and Millinocket; more on each of these over the next few days. This
is David Clapp on WATD 95-9 with today's Nature Note. #529
Thursday, July 10, 2008 Hello Folks this is David Clapp with today's
Nature Note. The western-most area of the Maine North Woods can be
visited from Jackman.
Jackman is just a few miles from the Quebec border and
the logging trucks are frequent in this region. The logging trucks are not scary
and the drivers were very pleasant - somehow there is a feeling that they charge
hell-bent down the middle of the road and other drivers had better look out.
That
wasn't the case at all and surprisingly there were very few logging trucks overall
- and those were most often at coffee shops. Anyway the Jackman area
is full of woods and lakes. It is largely deciduous forest and rich with white
and yellow birch, beech trees and sugar maples.
There are patches of spruce
woods but it certainly isn't predominant. This was an area full of American Redstarts,
Yellow Warblers, Ovenbirds, Least Flycatchers, and others that are fleeting here
in eastern Massachusetts. The access to these woods is by logging roads but these
ropads are in great shape and passable in all vehicles. We saw no logging trucks
in the woods but we pulled off the road as much as we could when we got out to
go birding or walking. We stayed at Bishop's Motel and ate at the Black Frog -
both were very nice. This is David Clapp on WATD 95-9 with today's
Nature Note. #530 Friday July 11, 2008 Hello
Folks this is David Clapp with today's Nature Note. Much of Northern
Maine is in a consortium of landholdings that protect and manage the forest; this
land is called the North Maine Woods. There are over three and a half million
acres in the total parcel. It is pretty amazing actually. There is an east-west
road that passes north of Moosehead Lake from the Canadian border to the town
of Millinocket; about one hundred miles of well maintained gravel road. There
are gates along the way where visitors are asked to pay for their use of the North
Maine Woods property; other than the gates, we rarely saw anyone. The
east-west road is the Golden Road. One morning we were on this road for four hours
before seeing our first vehicle. By the end of the day we had seen four or five
pick-up trucks and a couple logging trucks and that was it - about one vehicle
an hour. Just driving the Golden Road is a treat. The great woods
of Maine, the sweeping spruce bogs, and the rolling hills of birch and maple are
truly a sight to behold. Osprey, Bald Eagles, and moose were regularly seen. The
quiet was rarely broken by a passing aircraft and the shades of green seemed endless. If
you think to visit this area there is a grand place to stay - it is called Pittston
Farm and is a real treasure. This is David Clapp on WATD 95-9 with
today's Nature Note. #531 Monday,
July 14, 2008 Hello Folks this is David Clapp with today's Nature Note. North
of Moosehead Lake, Maine becomes very rural. There is a charm to the unoccupied
woods and that charm blossoms as you enter Pittston Farm.
Pittston Farm is
a real farm deep, very deep, in the woods. There are oxen and open fields. There
are Penobscot River flood-plain-fields and a twenty-acre spruce wood. The main
buildings are large white New Englandy farm buildings. The farm is open for guests
year-round with snow machines providing winter access. Fisherman and hunters have
long known about this area but birders and nature lovers and people looking for
a quiet get-away should use the farm also. The farm exists where it does because
it was the headquarters for one of the large logging programs many years ago. Meals
are provided along with lodging. There are both deciduous and coniferous forests
near by. The wildlife-rich Golden Road is a mere five miles away. We had all the
boreal forest birds' right where the Twenty-Mile Road (also called the Northern
Road) and the Golden Road intersect. The Northern Road (or the 20-Mile Road) is
the road that brings you up from Moosehead Lake's main town of Greenville. For
about a hundred and ten dollars a day you can stay in this picturesque area, with
great birding and wildlife nearby, with good meals and comfortable bed provided
- what a deal. This is David Clapp on WATD 95-9 with today's Nature
Note. | 