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| nice clouds these days |
June 20th, 2014
"when life cancels your ferry, go find some slime” – ancient Estonian proverb.
Highlights – Young Redstarts (Upstarts), slime mold, robins,
flowers, other things. Jaeger
Tiit Trick – click on photos to enlarge. Go ahead, enlarge
the slime! Miss you Dad every day, but even moreso on special days.
Reported- A pair of Moose have been reportedly observed in the Company Point area. The report was relayed to the VSR in a “third-party telephone game” fashion and is considered “unconfirmed” at this point. Requests for direct “two party telephone game” conversations have not been fulfilled – although messages have been left. For everyone’s safety we have taken the liberty to change the three names involved to “Honest” “Chris-toff” and “Zanzabar”.
Anyway, “Honest” reports that he/she/it’s friends “Chris-toff”
and “Zanzabar” saw two Moose swimming (they are very good swimmers) by Company
Point (somewhere on vinalhaven). Huge antlers were observed and apparently one
even got out of the water and walked around a bit (not sure if the other one
treaded water until things were deemed safe). “Chris-toff” and “Zanzabar” are
reportedly to be familiar with Moose according to “Honest”.
Anyway, it’s hard to imagine what folks would mistake for a
moose, especially males with racks (nice rack!). It’s also just as hard to
imagine that there are two big ol’ moose on the island and that they made it to
Company Point (somewhere on island) with no one else seeing them. 
And with that I ask – has anyone else seen Moose around recently? We all know of the famous Moose cow that made her way to Vinalhaven and Greens maybe 10 years ago now or so. And we all know of the fake one along highway 1 going south – Warren maybe? Anyway – if you’ve heard of any moose or seen one or dreamed that you rode one on Vinalhaven recently we would love to hear from you! Thanks!
Reported – Fairy
Houses popping up in the Basin. No fairies seen, but the habitat appears to
be perfect. The moss will grow back and the kids getting outside and excited is
priceless. Thanks to Heather White, Amy Palmer, VLT , the school and the kids! Photos
were taken by random people who get credit in their own heads. awesome, artistic shots!
Sightings – At the Friend – the Fisherman’s Friend
is a fine establishment that reliably supplies desired beverages, munchies, and
many stories that end with a good laugh. And it’s got wildlife as well!- (6/16) Angie was kind to point out this
Small-Eyed Sphinx moth (Paonias
myops) perched above the entrance. Never seen one before – never heard
of one before. Apparently common, cherry and serviceberry are the likely hosts.
Loved the orange spots, hard to tell where the fore wing ends and the hind wing
begins. Thanks for pointing it out Angie! |
| youngster redstart photo by Sally |
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| photo by Sally |
Also of note – many Hermit Thrush fledglings are out and
about in the woods – hike gently…RE-start -Heard singing once again in the
woods – Winter Wren, Brown Creeper, and Golden-crowned Kinglet – getting ready
for round 2?
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| head trauma? photo by John Drury |
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| puffins are cute, small and they can fly photo by John Drury |
Also at Seal – Razorbill and Puffin apparently – all the
terns (well, the ones that matter).
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| these razorbills were not seen from the ferry or at least this picture was not from the ferry seal island photo by John Drury |
From the Ferry – Razorbills are regular, and on the 10:30
the other day I totally biffed getting pictures of a Parasitic Jaeger way up
the bay. And when I say biffed I mean I wasn’t ready and I had no memory card
(at all). It was a beauty though…
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| ivory black-backed gull photo by John Drury |
Ivory Black-backed Gull - Roberts – The Great Black-backed Gull is the biggest gull in the world, which also makes it a big bully. But even bullies can be albinos (or is it even albinos can be bullies) or leucistics can be bullies. Whatever. Here’s a shot John sent in from Robert’s Island beach (6/12). Anyway albino vs. leucisism – or is it leucistic vs. albino? – as told by someone….
Leucistic and Albino Birds
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| leucistic gulls can't hide from garter snakes not that they have to photo by Linnell Mather |
Albinism, on the other hand, affects all the pigments, and albino birds show no color whatsoever in their feathers. Furthermore, an albino mutation also affects the bird’s other pigments in the skin and eyes, and albino birds show pale pink or reddish eyes, legs, feet and a pale bill, while leucistic birds often have normally colored eyes, legs, feet and bills.
Cleared up? And here’s the problem with leucistics…
Problems
With Bird Leucism
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| this has nothing to do with birds coolest scat - raccoon? most likely all ant and termite (?) exoskeletons |
Because so many birders rely on
plumage colors and patterns for bird identification, seeing an unusual bird
with lighter colors or white patches can initially be confusing. By
understanding what leucism is and how it can affect birds, birders can better
appreciate the great variety of avian life they see.
This last paragraph is just silly.
Actually, most of this is silly.
Anyway, whatever the case may be in
this instant, this “ivory black-backed gull” is out there. Look for it.
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| golden heather |
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| more golden heather - look on the Williams Basin trail up in the pitch pine |
Flowers /plants– Yeah, we’ve got ‘em around, and I’m not talking just about the state flower – pine cone! Check out these bad boys from around the island…low to the ground…
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| purple pitcher plant flower and pitchers |
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| Huber lady slipper count totaled at 103 (for me) 102 pink and this one white dude |
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| single delight, toad's reading lamp |
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| there are plenty of single delights to go around these days |
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| no flower, but sundews are cool anytime! |
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| even lamb's kill is getting into the flowering act these days |
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| water hyacinth - photo by Sylvia reiss |
Here's a question - Sylvia Reiss found this Water Hyacinth out at City Point. Their range map does not show them anywhere near Vinalhaven, much less Maine or New England. Do people plant these? or see them on a regular basis? I haven't noticed them in the woods at all, and as a rule don't look in people's yard - it's not tempting anyway. Thoughts/knowledge on this?
…a
little bit higher now…..trees in bloom – Mountain Ash and Mountain maple flowering in
the canopy. Mountain Ash photos do not do it justice, probably neither does this video...but here we go anyway - a dancing Mountain Ash...
Butterflies – and with Mountain
Maple showing some flowerage I will have to admit that I wouldn’t have noticed
it if it weren’t for the Aphrodite Fritillary that was “suckin’ nectar” from
deep within… |
| Aphrodite Fritilary enjoying Mountain Maple nectar! |
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| mighty aphrodite |
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| American copper can't remember why, but these are my favorite butterflies. probably a good reason though |
…and American Coppers were plentiful on Calderwood Island….Eastern Tiger Swallowtails are everywhere at this point.
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| Rusty Tossock Moth eggs |
Butterflies are "Day moths" - so here are some moth eggs - most likely from a Rusty Tossock Moth - eggs laid on the cocoon the female just left! good luck guys -
Fresh Fungus – or mushrooms
rather….always great to see this year’s crop of fungal dispersal mechanisms
(mushrooms) begin to pop up with the warm days (too warm!). Here’s some of what
we’ve been noticing around…
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| chrome-footed bolete |
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| lactarius grieus - so subtle |
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| tawny grisette - everyone's favorite amanita |
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| lactarius grieus - "up gill" shot - pre tear |
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| post tear - milkin' |
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| dye-makers polypore is yellow |
Decomposers – Polypores..we love ‘em
and it’s always our pleasure – Huber is legendary for its Polypores- here’s a
few recent fungal sprouters - Dye-maker’s Polypore, Red-belted Conk, and Varnish Shelf. But wait - Shiny cinnamon Polypores are out as well - but they are Mycorrhizal! The only genus of Polypores that are Mychorrhizal! so cool
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| a little varnish shelf for ya! |
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| roger is peeling a little, but a new pore layer has opened up inside |
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| these ironclad beetles apparently find red-belted conks stimulating |
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| so word is that these dudes - fairy stool or shiny cinnamon polypores are mycorrhizal! so cool... |
Oyster Mushrooms - they seem to prefer big-tooth aspen, which we don't really that many of on island. So we don't see Oysters every year, but this june has been nice - Adam White found this patch I had walked right by. Blind. They are beautiful
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| oysters are nice to see from above but turn 'em over for some fungal bliss |
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| "dog vomit" slime is not a VSR approved name for this scrambled egg slime is preferred |
And of course – the slime is up! Scrambled Egg, Coral, Wolf’s Milk and Chocolate Tube slimes have all been spotted recently – get in the slime!
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| wolf's milk slime looks great at all phases |
Quick/long Slime Mold Story - (6/17) - I killed a vole today…..had
his neck broken in a trap set behind the kitchen garbage can. Doesn’t happen as
often as, I don’t know, one might guess maybe. There are tons of voles on
island and their placement on the food chain (pretty damn low) is reflected in
their numbers. And while I do appreciate all the predators they feed, once they
come into the house a line has been crossed and, well, there you have it.
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| fresh patch of Chocolate Tube Slime |
And so I nailed this guy in (personal) record time – from
trap to snap in less than 5 minutes – the process from sight to trap to snap
was less than 7 minutes. So fresh I saw the leg twitch. Am I proud? Not
particularly.
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| here's what this patch looked like at first check out the photos below for the changes throughout the day |
Anyway, so when I transferred the freshly bagged trap and carcass to the “special isolation transfer station (garbage can)” I happened to notice a stump with some fresh slime – so fresh. And we all know nothing beats fresh slime.
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| over time this guy seemed to be making a run for it |
It was a little while (entire minutes even!) before I realized I was not checking out a super young patch of Tapioca Slime (how foolish of me!), but was seeing the freshest emergence of Chocolate Tube Slime I had ever seen ---- in my life! like Super fresh.
So even though I had to stay by the phone and email to
figure out plans and work and stuff I managed to check in on the slime every ½ hour
or so. And it was awesome! And I would never have seen this if the 7am ferry
had been cancelled! See, “when life cancels your ferry ride, go find some slime”
– ancient Estonian proverb.
anyway - enjoy the changes over the course of the day!
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| life is better on the side of a stump |
anyway - enjoy the changes over the course of the day!
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| the patch is now completely on the side of the stump |
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| going brown, going tubular |
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| slugs helped to disperse the spores - 24 hours later |
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| going to spore |
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| ....a little taller now... |
here's another patch over 24 hours or so....
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| starts out simple.... |
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| ....a little browner.. |
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| ....a little browner.... |
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| ....a little chocolater..... |
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| ...even more... |
and then the inevitable happens. a 5 year old who loves to disperse spores saw that the changes had come to a halt for the most part.....
...and patience had run its course. it was time to get some spores flyin'
And finally….the robins – when we left off it was day 4 out
of the eggs for the youngsters. Here’s a run down
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| day 6 |
Day 6 – the female (“mom” if you will) seemed to be getting
used to our poking noses into the tree (a few anthropomorphisms there) and
didn’t even bail…
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Day 7
Day 8
Day 9
Day 10
Day 11
Day 12 –
day 13 - right on schedule
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| that's me on the right and see - leif has more than 1 shirt! |
here's how we peaked in....
and leify got his first bass - on his first cast of the day! good times - nice temps, nice breeze and lots of nice mosquitoes in the woods! we'll see you out there!
