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Just fifty years ago, the eastern bluebird (Sialis sialis) fluttered near extinction. Thanks to dedicated volunteer efforts at conservation and education, this spectacular species is now increasingly common in all seasons. (One winter flock here counted at least seven individuals, mostly male.) Local birders and conservationists* have been generous with time, energy and information; with […] Virginia creeper, Parthenocissus quinquefolia, is surely one of our finest native vines. Propagated by birds, it shows up almost everywhere, and is easily propagated deliberately from rooted ground sections. It is self-supporting, but much more benign to structures than other strong clinging vines like Campsis radicans (trumpetvine) or the climbing hydrangeas. It also offers possibly […] The beginning of June (in normal years; mid-May this time around the sun) times the arrival of hummingbirds from above and gravid turtles from below. On just one house lot not quite neighboring the pond, an average of 12~15 snapping and eastern painted turtles lay, mainly during a two-week period. (Layovers in smaller satellite and […] #gallery-1 { margin: auto; } #gallery-1 .gallery-item { float: left; margin-top: 10px; text-align: center; width: 33%; } #gallery-1 img { border: 2px solid #cfcfcf; } #gallery-1 .gallery-caption { margin-left: 0; } /* see gallery_shortcode() in wp-includes/media.php */ There’s a huge hatch this morning. Genus Hexagenia? Painted and snapping turtles clamber up the steep banks of Farrar Pond and through rough woodland, sometimes for hundreds of yards. When these energetic parents identify just the right patch of friable soil, they scoop out a narrow hole with their hind legs, pack it full of eggs and soil, moisten it, and head for […] MIT mascot raids the larder
Beaver dam touches earth, water and sky
Mute swan patrols outside the dam
… while goslings safely graze within […] This female bluebird is incubating at least five eggs in a nest box on the pond's north shore. Ron McAdow White-throated sparrow near more shore of Farrar Pond April 23, 2012. Sunflower seed in bill. Ron McAdow A tom and two hen turkeys, Friday, April 20, 2012. Ron McAdow
After you, I insist. Manners matter.
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