Blue-tailed damselfly (male, I believe) on lupine plant outside my house several nights ago.

Interesting fact:  There is a global seed vault (the Svalbard Global Seed Vault) buried in a mountain on an island in the Arctic Circle.  The seeds in the vault are meant to give us food for that fun post-apocalypse era when we are rebuilding life on earth.  Indeed, this vault is known as the “Doomsday Vault.”  This is feel good stuff, right?  The location of the vault was supposed to have been perfect – able to withstand nuclear war and natural disasters.  This winter, however, climate change caused the permafrost to melt to such an extent that the doorway to the vault flooded.

What does this have to do with damselflies in my backyard?  Nothing and everything, I suppose.  Only that climate change is real and horrifying and the Trump Administration is rolling back environmental regulations that will protect this planet for future generations.

Mad about all the ticks in your yard, on your pets, on your children? Global warming.

Can’t breath on bad ozone days?  Maine is the “tailpipe” of the nation.  In other words, air pollution flows in our direction due to the gulf stream and other air patterns.  As a result, Maine has some of the highest rates of asthma in the United States.

Do you eat Atlantic Salmon once a week?  Splurge on Maine scallops when they are in stock?  Someday you may not be able to buy them in Hannaford or Shaws or wherever you buy your groceries.  These fish and shellfish are among the most vulnerable to climate change and may be wiped out.

Each day Washington rolls out a new plan that will help the wealthy and to hell with everyone else.  Indeed, we seem to be marching straight into the fire.

Stay clear-eyed and brave.  Look around you – literally.  Spin in a circle.  Gaze ten feet ahead of, then as far as you can see.  What difference can you make in your yard? In your neighborhood?  In your town or city?  If we cannot reach out to hold up the least among us then maybe a seed vault future is what we deserve.

Fun fact:  Bumblebees sweep their wings back and forth (rather than up and down) to fly.  The angle of their wings also creates vortices in the air — like small hurricanes. The eyes of those mini-hurricanes have lower pressure than the surrounding air, so keeping those eddies of air above its wings helps the bee stay aloft.  (http://www.livescience.com/57509-bumblebee-facts.html)

But before we get to the bumblebees, we need to acknowledge the rain.  I’m trying to learn to love the things I hate, and what better way to do this than to honor the rain with a poem snippet:

Let the rain kiss you. 

Let the rain beat upon your head with silver liquid drops. 

Let the rain sing you a lullaby.

                      – Langston Hughes (April Rain Song)

So what’s new in my neighborhood?  Nothing and everything, I guess.

The blossoms on the magnolia tree in our yard came and went under a spring sky that hung low and gray for better than a month.  The sweet fragrance of the petals was a balm to winter-worn spirits.

Bloom time is brief, only about two weeks.  Unfortunately two days of rain and wind pulled the petals loose earlier than I might have liked.

I was feeling rather triumphant about a half dozen scrawny tulips in my flower bed until yesterday, when I was feeling baffled about the missing petals.  My lilac tree boasts five flowers this year, so that is a victory for sure.  (Our backyard is a super-highway for hungry deer.)

When the rain finally let up (about three days ago) I made my way over leaf litter down to our water’s edge to watch the sky for something impressive.  I startled an adult eagle and a great blue heron out of a pine tree and the cattails, respectively.   There was a bird in the osprey nest that I watched last summer, but my camera couldn’t pick up a good image so I’m not sure what I was seeing.  I could hear the osprey and I saw one hunting for dinner.  I also have had fun this spring watching the osprey come into our yard (and the neighbor’s) to take sticks for its nest.  Stayed tuned for a nest update.

Aside from black flies and the mystery nest guest, I found a pretty crazy looking mushroom growing up out of the pine needles.

Knowing I couldn’t possibly top the excitement of great fungus photos, I retreated to the house.  And that is when I decided the bumblebees deserved my attention.

Anyone who has read this far into this post likely cares enough about nature to know that Honeybee Colony Collapse Disorder (“CCD” or “Oh dear, where are the bees?”) has become a serious problem.  But who cares, really?  They buzz in your ear.  Maybe sting you.  Good riddance to bugs that won’t quit bugging us!  What does it matter anyway?

Except that it does matter.  Bees pollinate 35% of the world’s food.  In 2015, 42% of bee colonies collapsed due to a combination of climate change, habitat loss and pesticides.

What can you do to help?  Hold off on the Roundup, for starters.  If you feel you can’t live without pesticides, at least consider organic pesticides, which are safer for bees.  You might also consider buying at least one bee-friendly plant, or go wild and buy several.  For tips on how to get started check out The Honeybee Conservancy website:  http://thehoneybeeconservancy.org/plant-a-bee-garden/.

Even during dark political times, I remind myself of a quote that I had taped to my bedroom bulletin board through all of my high school years:

Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.

     –  Margaret Mead

In other words, plant a flower for a honeybee.
 

I’ve been rather focused on other things lately, but I wanted to share these photos before the 4th of July.  Enjoy!

Don’t despair.  The flowers tell me spring will arrive eventually.

Good morning.  Snow on the way.

Interesting read about the relationship between pollution and the color of our sky: https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/fact-or-fiction-smog-creates-beautiful-sunsets/

Got to scoot….

In November I joined the Androscoggin Land Trust.  This month we are putting together our spring 2017 newsletter.  I’m writing an article about agricultural conservation easements – a legal tool that farmers can use to protect their farmland from development.

My article features a farm in Lisbon, and so I recently visited the property to speak with the husband and wife team that tends 170 acres of farmland.  (The article will be out later this month.)

While waiting for the farmer to emerge from the barn, I snapped a few photos.

Given my irrational level of fear on seeing this rooster, I vaguely recalled an incident from my childhood in which I had a bad run in with a rooster.  I kept my distance.

An orange barn cat kept winding around my legs, and a half dozen energetic barn birds flew into my wheel hub.  Apparently they quickly determined that my tire was nothing special because they left within a minute.

I’m pretty certain this horse was sweet on me, and I sorely regretting not having a secret stash of carrots.

 

This goofball below had an ear decorated with hay.

Sure, we just celebrated Maine Maple Sunday.  (Despite the cold spring, sugarhouses around the state were up and running and sweet syrup was bubbling.)  But mark you calendars now for Open Farm Day on July 23, 2017.  As explained by Maine’s Agricultural Resource Development Division within the Department of Agricultural, Forestry and Conservation, “Maine’s Open Farm Day is an annual family adventure in which farms throughout all 16 counties open their gates to offer the public an opportunity to learn about the business of agriculture.  Open Farm Day gives families the chance to visit local farms throughout the state.”  http://www.maine.gov/dacf/ard/market_promotion/open_farm_day

Now, the particular farm I visited is not in fact a “Forever Farm.”  As explained by Maine Farmland Trust, designating a farm as a ‘”Forever Farm” is a way to celebrate the growing success of farmland protection efforts in Maine.   “Forever Farm” signs are installed on farmland in Maine that has been preserved through agricultural easements.  While there are many farms that are protected with conservation easements (like the farm I visited), not all are designated as Forever Farms.  The goal of Forever Farms is to celebrate the partnerships between landowners and land trusts (like the Androscoggin Land Trust!) that have led to the growing success of farmland protection in Maine.

Perhaps you’d like to get involved in your local land trust?  Here’s a list, compliments of the Maine Land Trust Network (http://www.mltn.org):

• Androscoggin Land Trust
• Bangor Land Trust
• Belgrade Regional Conservation Alliance
• Biddeford Pool Land Trust
• Blandings Park Wildlife Sanctuary
• Blue Hill Heritage Trust
• Boothbay Region Land Trust
• Brewer Land Trust
• Brunswick-Topsham Land Trust
• Cape Elizabeth Land Trust
• Chebeague and Cumberland Land Trust, Inc.
• Chewonki Foundation
• Coastal Mountains Land Trust
• Crabtree Neck Land Trust
• Damariscotta River Association
• Downeast Coastal Conservancy
• Downeast Lakes Land Trust
• Downeast Rivers Land Trust
• Eastern Trail Alliance
• Ecotat Trust
• Falmouth Land Trust
• Foothills Land Conservancy
• Forest Society of Maine
• Francis Small Heritage Trust, Inc.
• Freeport Conservation Trust
• Frenchman Bay Conservancy
• Friends of Merrymeeting Bay
• Friends of Wilson Pond Area, Inc.
• Georges River Land Trust
• Gorham Trails, Inc.
• Great Diamond Island Land Preserve
• Great Pond Mountain Conservation Trust
• Great Works Regional Land Trust
• Greater Lovell Land Trust
• Harpswell Heritage Land Trust
• Holden Land Trust
• Island Heritage Trust
• Islesboro Islands Trust
• Kennebec Estuary Land Trust
• Kennebec Land Trust
• Kennebunk Land Trust
• Kennebunkport Conservation Trust
• Kittery Land Trust
• Landmark Heritage Trust
• Loon Echo Land Trust
• Mahoosuc Land Trust
• Maine Appalachian Trail Land Trust
• Maine Audubon
• Maine Coast Heritage Trust
• Maine Farmland Trust
• Maine Huts and Trails
• Maine Island Trail Association
• Maine Wilderness Watershed Trust
• Maine Woodland Owners
• Medomak Valley Land Trust
• Midcoast Conservancy
• Monhegan Associates
• Mt. Agamenticus to the Sea Conservation Initiative
• New Brunswick Community Land Trust
• New England Forestry Foundation, Inc.
• North Haven Conservation Partners
• Northeast Wilderness Trust
• Oceanside Conservation Trust of Casco Bay
• Orono Land Trust
• Peaks Island Land Preserve
• Pemaquid Watershed Association
• Phippsburg Land Trust
• Pleasant River Wildlife Foundation
• Portland Trails
• Presumpscot Regional Land Trust
• Rangeley Lakes Heritage Trust
• Royal River Conservation Trust
• Saco Bay Trails
• Saco Valley Land Trust
• Sanford-Springvale Mousam Way Land Trust
• Scarborough Land Trust
• Sebasticook Regional Land Trust
• Somerset Woods Trustees
• South Portland Land Trust
• Southern Maine Conservation Collaborative
• Southern Maine Wetlands Conservancy
• The Nature Conservancy in Maine
• The Nature Trust of New Brunswick
• The Trust for Public Land
• Three Rivers Land Trust
• Upper Saco Valley Land Trust
• Upper St. John Land Trust
• Vinalhaven Land Trust
• Wells National Estuarine Research Reserve & Laudholm Trust
• Western Foothills Land Trust
• Woodie Wheaton Land Trust
• York Land Trust, Inc.

 

 

 

The things that make me different are the things that make me.

                                                                  — Winnie the Pooh / A.A. Milne

P.S.  The good folks on MAINE Birds have suggested this bird has leucism.  Similar to albinism, the condition involves a problem with pigmentation, basically.  See here for a much more scientific explanation:  https://www.bto.org/volunteer-surveys/gbw/gardens-wildlife/garden-birds/behaviour/plumage/leucism

 

This may be getting out of hand….

 

Sitting at my computer tonight working on testimony for tomorrow’s public hearing related to mining in Maine.  (More on mining shortly.)  Got up to get a glass of water and noticed an eagle soaring toward the open field opposite our house.  After watching the eagle I then notice my friend the owl on her usual spot on the power line in front of the house, watching that same open field.  Decided to take a picture of her from my bedroom window and when she flew down to the base of a near by tree I ran outside to see what she was up to. (Or, frankly, to see what she might be eating.)

Had a lovely exchange with her while she hunted and I watched.  I chatted a bit with her (Bernd Heinrich uses this technique wonderfully, and if anyone is a bird-charmer it is he) and she didn’t mind much that I was six feet from with my zoom pointed at her for twenty minutes.

This is her watching and listening to food, an owl calling from the woods, and me creeping closer.

She eventually got her meal.

By the time she stood erect to swallow dinner in one gulp, my fingers were so cold that I was pushing the side zoom button without realizing it, knew my camera was struggling to focus but couldn’t understand why, and so missed those shots.

This last shot was taken immediately after she swallowed her meal.  I have never seen this particular expression on her face.  Suggests satiety to me.

How lucky I am to be this close to nature.  I am just dumbfounded that our President wants to cut the EPA’s budget by 30%.  Closer to home, the Maine State Legislature’s Environmental and Natural Resources Committee takes up several pieces of proposed legislation related to mining tomorrow.  The bottom line is that mining certain areas poses incredible risks to the environment and what is at stake with this legislation is the health of Maine’s waters, woods and wildlife.  I need to get back to working on my testimony so I don’t have time to explain it.  See for yourself what’s happening in your state and to your state – and take action tonight or tomorrow by emailing your local representatives.  Follow this link for a super easy way to make this minimal effort:  http://www.nrcm.org/take-action/

Feel free to email me or message me with questions.

 

 

Lakeside at dusk.

Not the best shots but was fun to see male and female cardinal together.  Lots of birds out after the storm.

 

Two nights ago (sometime near 1:00 a.m.) I peered outside to the moonlit snow and noticed a fox eating birdseed thirty paces from my porch.  His size (smallish) and pointy ears (comical) reminded me of our youngest dog and I tried (without luck) to snag a photo.  Last weekend I noticed a fox (same one?) dashing across the lake toward our wooded waterfront.  Used to see foxes near our other house across town, but haven’t seen any for years now.

Yesterday I saw the ermine (stoat/short-tailed weasel) that runs along our farmer’s wall.  This creature moves much too quickly for me to photograph.  Last month he (she?) was white – now his coat is brown.  I sprained a finger today and can’t type well, so for more on ermine I offer this “Creature Feature” by Catherine Schmitt of Bangor, author of The President’s Salmon: Restoring the King of Fish and its Home Waters and posted by the Natural Resoruces Council of Maine here:  http://www.nrcm.org/nrcm-creature-feature/ermine/.

Best of all, this morning as I rushed to get out the door ahead of the storm I noticed my friend the barred owl sitting about three feet from the foundation of my house.  She was watching and listening to the birds and (and small rodents) and eventually flew off, but not before we’d glanced at each other a few times through two different windows.  Since she didn’t mind me making crazy eyes over her I eventually cranked a window open and asked her if she was okay and she blinked at me and let me take a few pictures.

Now I see red winged blackbirds fighting blizzard conditions.  I am being quite liberal with the bird seed.