The Winery Gazette – Martha’s Winery Information
Baltimore oriole
— Lanny McDowell
The numbers of birds within the U.S. has declined by fifty p.c since 1966! This isn’t a casual evaluation by longtime birders; it’s backed up by knowledge from Federal Breeding Hen Surveys, Christmas Hen Counts and different scientific knowledge. Sadly, well-studied birds aren’t the one organisms declining quickly. Previously few years a number of experiences have documented that bugs — probably the most plentiful of all animals — have additionally suffered huge inhabitants declines, as a lot as 45 per cent previously 4 a long time alone.
These two declines are associated. Birds and bugs reside collectively in the identical areas and are topic to the identical environmental disturbances — habitat destruction, invasive species and local weather change to call three. Additionally, bugs are a significant meals supply for birds; fewer bugs means much less meals for birds, resulting in decrease replica, decrease survival and decrease populations.
However bugs preserve our surroundings. They assist convert lifeless crops and animals into soil; they pollinate lots of our vital meals crops, particularly vegetables and fruit; they assist management many insect pests; and they’re a supply of historical and trendy medicines.
Glaucous gull
— Lanny McDowell
Happily there are actions we are able to take to forestall additional declines. We’d deal with the pure setting just like the vital useful resource it’s moderately than like a handy wasteland. We’d convert a few of our lawns — they’re sterile deserts — into useful habitat by planting native species that bugs have to survive. Bugs will thrive if we give them an opportunity.
Our winter resident waterfowl proceed to reach. Matt Pelikan noticed a male Barrow’s goldeneye on the drawbridge on Nov. 24; it could be the identical chook that wintered there final 12 months. It was with a standard goldeneye, the primary of which arrived per week or two in the past.
Matt Pelikan noticed a northern pintail — a primary for the season — at Mink Meadows on Nov. 24. A pied-billed grebe was additionally on the identical pond. And on Nov. 26 Allan Keith discovered one other pied-billed grebe at Squibnocket.
An unusually massive flock of 204 Bonaparte’s gulls in Winery Haven outer harbor was noticed by Matt Pelikan. A brand new gull sighting for the 12 months is a glaucous gull, seen by Bob Shriber on Nov. 25 at Dogfish Bar. It’s a massive white-winged gull that doesn’t have black wingtips as do most different gulls.
Northern mockingbird with flying ants
— Lanny McDowell
The opposite white-winged gull that we are able to see right here is the Iceland gull, which is barely smaller. Now we have not seen an Iceland gull since final spring, though they’ve been noticed just lately in Falmouth.
On Nov. 22 Shea Payment discovered massive numbers of winter-resident sea birds from Cape Pogue: 570 frequent eiders, 100 white-winged scoters, two long-tailed geese, 69 red-breasted mergansers, 6 horned grebes, 175 Bonaparte’s gulls, 3 lesser black-backed gulls, 14 red-throated loon, 21 frequent loons and 30 northern gannets.
Two American bitterns have been seen by Tara Whiting-Wells and Anne Whiting at Black Level Pond on Nov. 27. This species may be very secretive and may simply disguise amongst marsh grasses, however these two flew over their heads.
There have been a number of sightings of the American coots which are nonetheless hanging out at Crystal Lake. A excessive depend of three coots was made by Charles Morano on Nov. 27 whereas Matt Pelikan discovered two there on Nov. 24. Lanny McDowell additionally discovered two there on Nov. 27. Connie Alexander noticed one there on Nov. 27.
American coot
— Lanny McDowell
Lanny McDowell encountered a flock of about 35 snow buntings between the outlet of Sheriff’s Meadow Pond, Little Seashore and the Fuller Avenue Seashore in Edgartown. Tara Whiting-Wells and Anne Whiting discovered a flock of seven snow buntings at Black Level Pond on Nov. 27. On Nov. 22 Shea Payment noticed a flock of fifty snow buntings and 7 horned larks on Cape Pogue.
On Nov. 27 Richard Worth discovered a winter plumage Baltimore oriole in an uncommon location within the seashore grass on State Seashore close to the Large Bridge. Not its typical habitat by any means; what was it doing there? Anne Whiting noticed one the day past in a extra typical late fall location: her suet feeders on East Chop.
In November, winter resident nice blue herons turned extra plentiful than the summer season resident nice egrets. There have been six nice egret sightings in November: Bob Shriber noticed a flock of eight within the West Basin salt marsh on Nov. 1; Jim Suozzo discovered one at Nashaquitsa Pond on Nov. 2; I noticed one within the west arm of Lagoon Pond on Nov. 6; Luanne Johnson noticed one at Cove Meadow Protect on Nov. 13; Matt Pelikan noticed one in Winery Haven harbor on Nov. 24; Jeff Bernier discovered one at Sheriff’s Meadow Sanctuary on Nov. 25; and Allan Keith was shocked to search out two at Lobsterville on Nov. 29.
Nice blue herons have been seen rather more regularly. Jim Suozzo noticed three at Nashaquitsa Pond on Nov. 2; Matt Pelikan discovered one at Lengthy Level on Nov. 3; Nancy Nordin noticed seven at higher Lagoon Pond on Nov. 6; and Richard Worth noticed one at Norton Level on Nov. 7. On Nov. 9 Matt Born discovered one at Clay Pit Street Pond and Charles Morano reported one at Chilmark Pond. On Nov. 12 I noticed one at Menemsha Seashore; Silas Beers discovered one at Felix Neck; and Shea Payment noticed one on the Mattakesett boat ramp.
Nice blue heron
— Lanny McDowell
Susan Whiting discovered an awesome blue heron at Previous Fields Path on Nov. 13. On Nov. 14 Matt Born reported two at Squibnocket Seashore and Bob Shriber and Susan Whiting noticed two at Squibnocket Farm. The subsequent day Richard Worth noticed one at Felix Neck. On Nov. 19 Al Gatti discovered one at Sepiessa Level; the Martha’s Winery Hen Membership noticed one at Lengthy Level; and Matt Pelikan reported three at State Seashore.
Nancy Nordin had a flock of six nice blue herons at higher Lagoon Pond on Nov. 20. Matt Pelikan noticed two on Nov. 24. Throughout my chook stroll for Felix Neck’s Fall Competition on Nov. 25, the group caught a glimpse of 1. Parker Fyfe-Kiernan reported from Howell Lane that there was one at Menemsha Pond on Nov. 26.
Margaret Curtin and Nancy Weaver counted 44 black-crowned night time herons on the Oak Bluffs pumping station. Is that what number of are all the time there however are hid by the dense shrubbery that traces these shores?
Bob Shriber experiences that the American woodcock has returned alongside Moshup Path and Previous South Roads as of Nov. 25. Is that this the identical one which was there final winter?
Extra Hen Photographs
Please e mail your sightings to [email protected].
Robert Culbert is an ecological guide with Nature Watch LLC residing in Winery Haven.
