Vinalhaven Sightings

Welcome to the Vinalhaven Sightings Report –

June 5 2022

Thanks to the kind support of VLT , MCHT and YOU!

‘It was brown and probably bigger than smaller’

– Human describing a Northern Flicker

Highlights – Baby time – Harbor Seals, Snowshoe Hare, Hairy Woodpecker styles, Egg laying Snappin’ Turtle, Warblers, Snakes, Flowers, Slime Mold, Otter stuff – and so much more!

Business – Contact us – vinalhavensightings@gmail.com – send photos, questions, nature stories and what nots like that. Wonderful place to share -

Tiit Trick – hey – click on the photos to make them fill up your screen. Snapping turtles are cuter when they are larger. (Last statement is ‘not necessarily’ correct in anyone’s opinion).

Public Service announcement – Brown Tailed Moth – it was brought to a lot of people’s attention that there was an impressive Brown Tailed Moth caterpillar action in the Rosa Rugosa along the beach at Lane’s Island. Word of mouth spread that attention my way and sure enough I went in an removed maybe 30-40 webs, and I’m guessing I ‘rehabilitated’ (killed) about 1500 BTM caterpillars that day.

As some of you know, we have been aggressively removing webs close to trails on Lane’s for the last several winters, as well as caterpillar groups that have popped up along the trail the last few summers. This was the first time I’d seen BTM in the Rosa Rugosa there – granted I don’t hang by the beach much – and it was appreciated that word spread fast and we could address this issue before the caterpillars could molt much and release those ‘dastardly hairs’. (see photos)

That said, this will be an ongoing situation to check on (for me) as undoubtedly some BTM caterpillars evaded/dropped on this first go through. The goal on Lanes is to maintain and contain BTM – complete removal from the preserve does not seem like a possibility – and keeping the beach area clear is a priority. So – take a look at the caterpillar photos – BTM has the distinctive ‘two orange dot’ pattern towards the end of the caterpillar. If you see these, feel free to take action and kill it (not with hands or teeth or by squishing on arm), but whether you take action or not please send me an email here – vinalhavensightings@gmail.com – and I’ll ‘get on the job’ soon as I can. It’s like a game finding these buggers, a game with hopefully a deadly, rather than an itchy ending.

Enough!

snapping turtle
photo by Sarah Crossmnan

Sightings – Sarah Crossman was kind enough to send out a few photos she took of a Snappin’ Turtle laying eggs down Pumpkin Ridge way. Some tid-bits of Snapper natural history as told by Thomas Tyning in the great ‘Stokes Nature Guides – a Guide to Amphibians and Reptiles’…..

snapping turtle
photo by Sarah Crossman

‘A high percentage of nests (up to 100 percent in some years) are destroyed by predators…most predation occur within 24 hours of nest construction, though some nests are destroyed weeks later’

‘If you walk along a known nesting area for snapping turtles you will easily see the remains of egg shells dug out by predators….raccoons and mink are known to dig up eggs’

‘The temperature at which snapping-turtle eggs are incubated determines what sex the turtles will be. Researchers discovered that if all the eggs are kept at 58 degrees (at least for the early part of incubation) all the young will be females. Kept at 73 degrees, all the young become males. But if the temperature is raised to 77 degrees, once again all of the young become females’

‘In natural nest sites, the eggs and embryos are subjected to widely fluctuating temperatures. The length of times the eggs take to reach certain temperatures is an added factor in determining the sex of the young. Furthermore, the temperature of the eggs near the surface of the ground is different from that of those deeper in the nest. This will produce nests that have varying ratios of males and females’

‘Hatchlings break free from their eggs in August and September. In some places they will emerge from the nest within a few hours of hatching. In others, the group will remain in the nest all winter’

‘Lifespan of adults – at least 47 years, probably longer’ – Thomas Tyning

Wow, that’s a lot to digest. Should be noted, ‘incubation’ with turtles (and alligators) is done by the earth around the eggs. The adult female who laid the eggs does not come back and sit on them, or protect them at all. I love the temperature thing.

Anyway – so good luck pre-hatched snappers! We’ll let you know about any updates we hear about this nest. Thanks for sharing Sarah!

From the ferry - Youngster abound and right on schedule – in kind of a cool twist, the last set of shots my SLR camera took before it (my camera) died (RIP) was of Harbor Seal mothers with ‘freshly popped-out’ pups on the ledges just west of Lairey’s Narrows. Nice subjects to go out on I would say….

Mid-May is the time for birthing for Harbor Seals, and these were right on schedule. Quickest of the marine mammal to go from nursing to weaned (21-28 days or so(max?)) so the next week or so might be it to look for the mother/pup pairings. Not just from the ferry, around island … on a ledge near you!

Huber – (6/1) - speaking of youngsters – first time I knowingly crossed paths with a young Snowshoe Hare – and it was while I was weedwacking the Huber Trail last week. It hopped across the trail in front of me, and made its way to the beautiful rock wall that borders the trail at times. Found a little nook and ‘disappeared’. Unfortunately for the bunny I saw easily followed the path it took with my eyes, but fortunately for the bunny I am not a predator of bunnies, even though it looked cute enough to eat! – can you find it? Hope so.

Bunch of flower things along the trail at Huber makes for a lovely outing as well.

Lots of Lady slippers,

They are the pink lady slipper flavor…

Even if they are white.

Bunchberry is fun right now!

And lots of it…..

Twinflower is cool too…

Basin – while we are at it – Golden Heather patches are in bloom at the high point of the Wharf Quarry section of the Basin Preserve. Yearly smiles they produce.

northern parula
photo by John Drury

Birdies – John Drury was kind enough to send in photos of a Northern Parula and an American Redstart singing on Greens Island recently. Lots of singing around island, all walks are musical these days (except those that aren’t?) – let’s run down the list ….

American Redstart
photo by John Drury

Warblers – Yellow, Black-throated Green, Black-throated Blue, Blackburnian, Black and White, Yellow-rumped, Chestnut-sided, Magnolia, Ovenbird, Common Yellowthroat, Northern Parula, American Redstart,

black-throated green warbler
photo by Banner Moffatt

Banner Moffatt sent in these photos of a female Black-throated Green Warbler on the ground. Why would she be on the ground? Looking for food? Maybe, but more likely looking for things to line/make a nest out of! Good times in the woods these days, lots of ‘love’ or whatever you call it.

brown creeper

‘Non-warblers’ – Winter Wren, Brown Creepers (lots of em still), Hermit Thrush, dark-eyed Junco, Purple Finch, American Goldfinch, Cedar Waxwing, Golden-crowned and Ruby-crowned Kinglets, Red-breasted Nuthatch, Blue-headed and Red-eyed Vireos.

Hairy Woodpeckers – the nests around active have been loud and raucous with young woodpecker begging. These videos I took on Clark Island in St George, but are reflective of

what’s going on around Vinalhaven island too – specifically by the Wharf Quarry road parking area for the Basin preserve. I wasn’t prepared to document when I found that nest, which also happened to be the day my other camera died and my macro-clip attachment for my phone busted. Hilarious day!

spotted salamander egg mass
photo by Kendrick Simmons

And speaking of youngsters – Kendrick Simmons was kind enough to send in some photos from a recent vernal pool outing VLT/MCHT sponsored in the Basin Preserve.

little hand, big hand and eggs
photo by Kendrick Simmons

The youngsters here are Spotted Salamanders, and when we say youngsters we mean really young – hadn’t hatched yet, but most likely have by now. Baby salamanders with gills, maybe I’ll try and get some shots for the next VSR. We’ll see – we get distracted sometimes, and sometimes it us who distract us. Thanks Kendrick!