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| valentine's day is coming up! |
Welcome to the Vinalhaven Sightings Report – January
27th, 2017
Brought to you by VLT and MCHT
Highlights :
Thick-billed Murre, Black-legged
Kittiwakes, Northern Shrike, Owls, Fungal species exclusive: Luminescent
Panellus!!!!, summer dreaming, more dog stuff (dog stuff left off due to time constraints)
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| selfie on ice photo by Leif Gentalen |
Business : contact us: with sightings, photos, or to get on the email list!
vinalhavensightings@gmail.com
is the place for us to be reached!
Tiit trick - Click on photos and they get massive!
R.I.P. – Pat Gasperini. I met Pat
when I subbed in the high school 11 years ago and always liked him. Good guy he will be missed. Our
thoughts go out to family and friends.
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| poop in a bag on a log |
Upcoming event - Don’t forget! – Friday, Feb 10th Full Moon Hike/snowshoe
bonfire outing! Meet at Skoog at 4pm to carpool to Huber Preserve. For more info email me at the
email above! An MCHT/VLT event! Like
this blog!
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| porcupines do scat in their own home |
Off island event – if you are on the mainland Saturday Feb 4th I’ll be leading a hike (hopefully on snowshoes)
at Erickson
Field in Rockport. 9am at the parking
area about a mile up from 90/1 intersection. It will be an “off trail” excursion, but there will
be lots to see, including this cool porcupine log.
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| kind of outside the log mudd room |
The porcupine must have backed up into the root system of the log and left these beauties. Lots of winter mushrooms too. For more information on this and other MCHT trips : www.mcht.org/trips-events
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| quills left from a backing up accident I would think. was stoked to find these |
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| there is a lot going on in this photo - Red-billed Tropicbird photo by John Drury |
Shameless nature blog plug – VSR’s “sister blog” (does that make us Big
Brother?) sometimes known as “Maine Sea
Bird Tours” or alternatively “Sightings
From Skua” – both edited by John
Drury (2 blogs! -how does he have
the time?) – has posted a great article about (and great shots of)
everyone’s favorite local summertime seabird –
the Red-billed Tropicbird.
Click here and you are on your way –
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| MDI snowy owl photo by John Drury |
Speaking of summertime, it’s never too earlier (but
sometimes can be too late) to sign up for John’s
Boat tours to Seal, Brimstone or
just about anywhere you’d like to go in Penobscot Bay. Spring trips offer the
chance to see Harlequins Ducks or maybe
Great Cormorants displaying (that is when they are at their finest). Check out his blog for more info about when John’s boat “Skua” goes in the water!
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| snowy owl on MDI photo by John Drury |
John also sent in
these photos of a snowy owl he encountered
on Mount Desert Island recently. Thanks for sharing John!
Sightings : Ferry Ride (1/20) 7am to Vinalhaven –
103 Old tailed ducks, 43 Common Loon, 35 Black Guillemot, 23 Surf Scoter, 1
Black Scoter, 35 Bufflehead, 67 Common Eider, 21 Red-breasted Merganser, 143
Black-legged Kittiwake, Common Goldeneye, 7 Red-necked Grebe, 2 Great
Cormorants, 7 Razorbill, Thick-billed Murre, 4 American Crow
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| black-legged kittiwake nesting colony stock photo - Homer Alaska |
The story here…was
the 143 Black-legged Kittiwakes loosely scattered in the middle of the bay. It took at
least a few minutes for the ferry to
make its way past the gulls which were all on the south side of the ferry.
There was no big group of them, but instead they seemed to be spread out as far as my eyes could see
through the binoculars. 143 is what I counted for sure, there
were plenty of unidentified gulls
(more than likely Kittiwakes) beyond where I could pick up detail. Best
Kittiwake day I have had from the ferry since that 500+ day a few years back (maybe 6 now?). This could have been the
case today, but that the birds were just out range. Good to see them!..... And
the Thick-billed Murre just inside
the narrows was sweet! Lots of ducks today as well – good numbers a good ride!
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| Huber vernal pool looked especially cool that day |
Huber (1/20) : Golden-crowned Kinglet, Black capped
Chickadees, Red-breasted Nuthatch, 38 Bufflehead, 17 Common Goldeneye, 2
Red-breasted Merganser, 2 Oldtailed Ducks, Ravens
The story here…fun
to see the group of Common Goldeneye
displaying out in front of the Loring compound.
Seal Bay is great for winter
ducks!
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| not a very good picture of the shrike nice tree though! |
Lane’s (1/20) : Northern Shrike, 3 long-eared owl
pellets
The story here…was
twofold. Things seemed a little
quiet when I started my search for pellets. No songbirds chattering at all, and
with little to no wind it was surprising. That is until I spotted this Northern Shrike ( 1st Fold!)
hunting from the tops of spruce. Suddenly it all made sense. There was a free roaming, aerial predator in the
neighborhood. No place for chatter.
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| shrike on lane's island obelisk stock photo |
“When a shrike sights prey, it leaves it hunting perch in swift, direct
pursuit, seizing most prey items on the ground and dispatching them
immediately. A shrike kills vertebrate prey by pounding its bill into the base or
back of the skull and then using its hooked bill to sever the spinal cord
between the prey’s neck vertebrae, as falcons do” – David Allen “Little Al” Sibley
Now isn’t that the coolest thing
you’ve ever read about a songbird. Never mind their “butcher bird” habits, not
many songbirds eat other adult songbirds. Coward songbirds like Corvids take
non-fledged baby birds from nest, but no other songbirds are bad ass like shrikes.
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| never get tired of finding owl pellets |
Winter is the time to see
them, and Lane’s seems to be the most consistent (yearly), and easily
accessible place to check for them on island. And they are easy to find! Just check
the tops of trees, their preferred hunting perches apparently. If one is around,
they tend not to be too shy.
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| owl poop |
(
2nd fold) – Oh yeah, the other thing. Finding these long eared owl pellets made me realize that this is the 13th straight year Long-eared Owls have been documented at Lane’s Island. Undoubtedly they were a regular visitor to Lane’s for many years prior as well. Anyway, that’s pretty cool, I am very thankful for them. Thanks owls!
2nd fold) – Oh yeah, the other thing. Finding these long eared owl pellets made me realize that this is the 13th straight year Long-eared Owls have been documented at Lane’s Island. Undoubtedly they were a regular visitor to Lane’s for many years prior as well. Anyway, that’s pretty cool, I am very thankful for them. Thanks owls!
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| I love finding luminescent panellus |
Some photos taken at Huber (1/20) of a fresh patch of
one of my favorite mushrooms – Luminescent Panellus (Panellus stipticus) . This is the freshest patch I
have come across on island (and possibly my life). This is the one that has gills that GLOW an eerie GREEN
Along the trails at night.
“But for its luminescent gills, this listless little wood-rotter
wouldn’t attract enough attention to merit mention” – David Arora, Mushrooms
Demystified
Excuse me David, I know you
are “the swami of shrooms”, but man
have you taken a closer look at these beauties! Let’s stay positive David! Not
all mushrooms are for eating!
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| nub of a stub |
Here’s a slightly more
positive, 4-part take from Lawrence Millman’s “Fascinating Fungi of New England” – pages 56 & 57.
(Take one) “…we should be grateful for small glows, especially in
the winter time, a time when (Panellus stipticus)
often fruits…it’s produced only by the gills…the stem is often little more than
a nub attaching the fruiting body to its substrate….”
VSR Editor’s note - There is such a miss-mash of stuff Millman brings up, all out of it
coming from a place of respect. I like the line about the “the stem (stipe) is often little more than a nub”. There is
something different about the stipe for sure, and this nub description nails it
for me.(Take two) ”Local Chauvinism – Eat your hearts out, denizens of the British Isles. Your Panellus stipticus doesn’t glow at all, while North American fruiting bodies do. What’s more, specimens in the Northeast glow more obviously than specimens in other parts of North America”
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| the best/worst thing about this doggie bag stuffed in the tree was that it was empty. not sure what we can learn from this |
Then he gets a little continental pride bashing on the “denizens” of the British Isles. Like
there isn’t enough already to make the
Brits feel bad about, now this – their
panellus doesn’t glow as much as ours? I bet ours are bigger too! Take that denizens! North-A-merica! North-A-merica!
(Take three) “A Versatile Fungus
– a photographic darkroom is the best place to see the greenish glow of a P.
stipticus. Let’s say you’re fumbling around in the dark of the darkroom, and
you have happened to cut yourself on a sharp object. Not to worry. The mushroom’s
species name is derived from its former use as a styptic (BLOOD CLOTTER), so
just apply an infusion from it on your wound, and you’ll soon be, if not golden,
at least a lot less red”
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| birch polypore - at Huber starting to turn and re-orient its pores to "open down" |
VSR Editor’s note - Now for the darkroom conversation. Which reminds me of when a group
of folks and I went into the bathroom at the Cobscook Community Learning Center
with some panellus. We didn’t see the gills glow, but fortunately no one fell
on a sharp object and needed to “just apply an infusion from it on your wound” –
quick definition
Infusion - a
drink, remedy, or extract prepared by soaking the leaves of a plant or herb in
liquid
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| I doubt the squirrels placed these birch polypores in this formation |
Ok , so if you are bleeding
in a darkroom you should make a quick “infusion” of Luminscnet Panellus to stop
the bleeding? I guess you are supposed to make it ahead of time, and be ready
for anything like a scout. Sounds cool!
(Take four) “Habitat
and Season – usually in large numbers or clusters on hardwood logs,
branches and stumps. An important
saprobe. Year-round.” –
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| I like ice under water |
Are there non-important saprobes (decomposers)?
Nice shout out the Panellus’ role in the forest, not sure what this is based
on, but nice shout out anyway! And now for a few more mushroom photos!
On the mainland
- (1/25) Erickson fields – after the
ice storm and a relatively warm stretch the downed birch logs and stumps were loaded with fresh shrooms! In January! Love it. Take a look at
these shots – starting off with more Luminescent panellus…
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| I still love finding luminescent panellus |
Jellies and other decomposers were out in force.
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| black jelly roll |
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| lots of tree ears |
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| fresh turkey tail or cousin thereof |
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| crowded parchment is one of our favorite parchments |
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| orange jelly was there of course |
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| crimped gill was in no short supply |
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| not totally sure what's going on here these marshmallow guys were rising out a stump Berkeley's Polypore? I'll just have to go back and see |
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| like many good things black jelly oyster
is fun to look at from below
from below.
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| birch polypore is always photogenic |
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| crowded parchment, black jelly roll, and black jelly oyster on/in the same branch. Beautiful |
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| red-belted conk redirectional viewed from above |
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| turkey time |
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| red tree brain. |
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| hemlock varnish shelf is a crowd pleaser |
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| burst of Violet Toothed Polypore (VTP) |
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| VTP redirectional |
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| orange mock oyster |
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| this blue jay was dead with its head missing |
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| hot poop |
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| nothing dysfunctional about this chaga |
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| impressive, no? |
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| trail busy with tracks of humans and their companions |
mainland tracking - went to a new zone for me, St. George town forest from the Fort Point entrance
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| hard to tell size, but this was decent sized |
lots of sign of local use, good to tracks and trails of people out in the woods.
and even with the congestion and busyness of the trail, it took maybe a couple dozen steps before I found this fisher trail.
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| fisher stroll |
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| beautiful spot |
The tracks were exactly what I dreamed they would be - an otter in the woods. A small otter at that, probably a female fisher walked through. Way bigger than a mink. And just as wonderful all the same. walking on ice over puddles through the woods. business. good to see.
and now for a couple more leif
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| if you give an 8 year old your camera you get a bunch of selfies |
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| more pie-face madness |
and one of our buddy Asa super excited at the Fungus Fair in Santa Cruz
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| Asa Casey-Jones photo by Big Al |
....and on that note (I can hear Asa from here!) we will see you out there!!!!!
