Vinalhaven Sightings

Welcome to the Vinalhaven Sightings Report

September 27 2022

Thanks to VLT and MCHT for their continued support!

Highlights – Plant stuff – Fruits & Ghost Pipe update, Smooth Green Snake, Lesser Yellowlegs, Mushrooms, Trip to the White Islands, Trip to Calderwood, Otter stuff, and so much more

upside down red crossbill

Important Red Crossbill update – Well, the Red Crossbill event that hit the mid-coast region this summer rages on. Things seem to be a little quieter in some regards – I’m not hearing crossbills consistently through the day per se – I have come across some sizable groups both on Vinalhaven and the mainland. The groups consisted of several to more juveniles, appearing to be family groups flocking together as only a gregarious species can. Some still in small groups.

red crossbills drinking water

The photos here are from Clark Island in St George. The youngsters don’t appear to have much fear, or survival instincts.

Like they are invincible or something.

quite the year for Monarchs

Business – contact us – vinalhavensightings@gmail.com – send in your sightings, your reports, your nature stuff – and we’ll include it! Send your email address to get on the exclusive list of those who get an email every time a new VSR is posted. What fun right? Much fun!

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Tiit Trick – click on the photos to make them as ‘jumbo-fide as physically possible’.

fishing loon

Pluggin’ another blog – That’s right – there is plenty of nature around Vinalhaven, and lots of places to see and learn what others are seeing and learning – and one source/resource to see and learn from is John Drury’s ‘Sightings from Skua’ – sightingsfromskua.blogspot.com - .

lesser yellowlegs

Check it out to see what John’s seeing out on the water and around the greater Vinalhaven area. Lots of good stuff there!

lesser yellowlegs

PSA – Ticks – bait, click- bate, uptick in tick–bait. Been such a nice stretch with no ticks – even got to the point that I hadn’t seen a tick in so long it felt like winter. - almost forgot about them. It was refreshing.

And so with that into – the fam has found 3 or 4 ticks in the last week on the dogs on the mainland. Not many for sure, especially with them outside a bunch, dog ticks as well. Just to give a heads up – Tick Check when you get back, tick check before you go to bed! Even if you don’t sleep in a bed!

Sightings – Fruits – here is my poem called ‘plant people’, joined by lane’s island blackberries in black and white. Quite complimentary I would say.

some people like plants

some people like flowers

some people like fruit

some people like foliage

some people like plants

jack in the pulpit

I do understand there is more to appreciating plants, but the current plant appreciation I have been enjoying in the in the woods has been fruits...

Jack in the pulpit adds some color

skunk cabbage

Where Skunk Cabbage does not add much color….

pink lady slipper

Lady Slippers look luscious and slightly peach fuzzy.

And then there is the case of the ghost pipes.

The old stamens on these ghost pipes looks cool

red and red necked phalaropes
photo by John Drury

From Skua - John Drury sent in these photos of recent sightings from his boat, Skua. -

peregrine falcon
photo by John Drury

Peregrine on Seal, and Red and Red-necked Phalaropes

northern parula

On Greens - Pulse of migrants including, Red-eyed and a Philadelphia Vireo, Magnolias, yellow rumped, yellow, black throated Green, & Bay breasted Warblers, Turkey Vulture,

black throated green warbler

Fox Rocks - Patience Chamberlin sent in some recent sightings - Three Red crossbills on fox rocks trail … Two adults and one juvenile – giving good looks…Three migrating sharp-shinned hawks, Bald eagles…

…The pond next to parking lot was jumping with mixed flock of warblers and regulars. Serious bathing going on with birds almost up to their necks. Cedar Waxwings, red breasted nuthatches, black throated green warblers, Red Eyed Vireos, Northern parula, black and white warbler, yellow rumped warbler.

yellow rumped warbler

State beach - Red-necked Grebes are back. One near breeding plumage.

Thanks Patience!

yellow rumped with butter butt blazin

Pumpkin Ridge - Jim Clayter reports 8 cedar waxwings in his yard over the course of two days. Good yard bird. Lovely even.

Calderwood Island – quick trip to chainsaw, walked only the northern most loop, but came across this scene

sea star processing stump

I love trail side tall stumps like this – they are great perches.

I’m guessing this was extras from a crow or raven’s sea star feast. Only the legs were left behind.

sea star leg on stump

Apparently the core with the Madre-pora (the mother pore!) is the best part.

underside of sea star leg

I have seen gulls eat seastars whole, but never before have I seen sign of a sea star feast where the legs had been removed.

last leg

It was a lovely find.

Notes jotted down – not lists!

8/30 – Brown Creepers singing, 5 gannets, common loons, turkey vulture, red crossbills, smooth green snake

northern gannet

9/1 – Huber – red breasted nuthatch, brown creeper, red crossbill, broad winged hawk, ghost pipes – so, so many crossbills and nuthatches

harbor porpoise

9/2 – Carrying Place Preserve parking lot– red crossbills, red breasted nuthatch with young, brown creeper singing, black throated green and black and white warblers, golden crowned kinglet, downy woodpecker, red-eyed vireo, black-capped chickadee

Mill River – red crossbill, greater yellowlegs, otter and raccoon sign

'B' or '8' - either way its funky

Lane’s – common yellowthroat singing, cedar waxwings with babies

with many songbirds singing in the first half of September – Common Yellowthroat, Black-capped Chickadees, Northern Parula, Red-breasted Nuthatch, Brown Creeper.

…as well as lot of Spring peepers peeping. Maybe not a ‘lot’ of peepers, but consistently one (or a few) peeping together just about everywhere for the past three weeks or more.

Trip to the White islands – Mink Den, Otter dens and latrines, Merlin, many, many Hummingbirds, Smooth Green Snake, American Redstarts, Chickadees singing, Northern Flicker, Sand Dollars,

this otter trail went under
this branch. the latrine is on top
of the branch

Otter stuff in the Whites - Fun seeing historic latrines and trails still being used, and two active dens.

aerial latrine

otter trail

could not have felt good
going through

One latrine had spraints with complete crab exoskeletons in it.

isopod part

And another had part of an isopod

shrimpy maybe?

And another looked like a shrimp

but my favorite was the carrion beetle in spraint

first time i had ever seen

rosy polypore

Mushrooms – slow fall on the fungal bloom front, and ones that are found aren’t so photogenic in the traditional mushroom photography sense - (not a judgment, just the fax, mam).

Here’s a couple of decent ones – including this series from Huber –

from below

If you walk Huber on a regular basis you may be familiar with the Rosy Polypore (Fomitopsis cajanderi) tree that fell across the trail a few years back. What remains of the tree is mostly in three pieces - a tall stump, and a couple of sizable logs on either side of the trail.

Well, currently all three pieces have Rosy Polypore mushrooms growing out of them, so the fungus was most likely in the tree when it came down. Possibly could be the culprit who weakened the heart wood of the tree so much that it snapped high – leaving the 10 foot stump or so.