Keep Calm and Bird On: March 2024

Mar 01, 2024
“If you don’t look, you don’t see. You have to go and look.”
-Edith Andrews
The fact is, we never know what may show up in the winter. Look closely and you can see the unmistakable head of an-out-of season Whimbrel in the icy marsh. A young bird taking a late jaunt found the UMass Field Station marsh a welcome rest stop for almost a month.

In March what we look forward to most is the Ospreys’ return. Usually around the 23rd or 24th, sometimes a little sooner, sometimes a little later, these magnificent birds are coming back to the old roost, to the old nest, to familiar fishing grounds.


Their stick nests atop high platforms sometimes attract Red-tailed Hawks, however. All through February Red-tails have been pairing up, looking at old nests, exploring the potential of new ones. And sometimes an Osprey nest of a previous year looks like the perfect Red-Tailed starter home. At least, until an Osprey shows up. Battles between the two can be dramatic. Both are equipped with razor-like, skin-tearing beaks and sharp, hooked talons. Both are territorial. But the Osprey out-weighs the Red-tail by about a pound, with an extra foot or so of wing-span, and perhaps most important of all, attitude. Red-tails are a bit more lackadaisical. Rather than diving into cold water searching for shadows of a fish dinner, they often hang out along highways, waiting for dinner, often in the form of roadkill rabbit, to be delivered. So in a contest over a nest, the Osprey usually wins.


Then it is the Ospreys’ turn to go through the ritual of courtship and nest-building. Will it be the same mate? Did he or she survive the hazards of the long journey to South America and back? Successful pairs often continue together. If both survived the trip, if they liked the location, if they raised two or three young together, it’s likely to be “don’t mess with success.” That’s a lot of ‘ifs.’ And sometimes there is disappointment. But, is there someone else hanging around? A better provider, stronger, or more determined? Or just lucky with the timing of a favorite food? Ospreys do best when there is a bountiful herring run. This early-returning, oily fish is packed with nutrition for developing eggs, and later, for growing young. So the drama continues.


Photo by Vern Laux

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Keep Calm and Bird On: May 2024

08 May, 2024
“If you don’t look, you don’t see. You have to go and look.” -Edith Andrews

Shards

By Jascin N. Leonardo FInger • 06 May, 2024
I have written of my love for sea glass and pottery shards in the past and the recent replacement of the sewer and water lines on Vestal Street created a small shard collection over the last month. Since the work required the asphalt to be completely removed (all twelve inches of it!) and the road to be dug up multiple times as they worked to remove pipe, relay new pipe, hook up the water meters, and install drainage and manhole covers, this resulted in the earth in the street being tossed about quite a bit. And, with that, came the shards! Some of these likely came from the sewer line (yes, yuck) but others came from being simply in the dirt of the road – which was not paved until 1946/1948. Pieces were likely tossed out at times, made to act as filler in holes, or simply tossed. So I found all sorts of pieces I will keep here at the Mitchell House. They included: a lovely piece with a red floral, many pieces of plates, glass, the top of a late nineteenth or early twentieth century (medicine) bottle, glass shards, a flattened spoon, a brass knob (found by a neighbor) some nails, a spike, pieces of a larger container or two based on the size and curve and coloring of the shards, and possibly a Wampanoag stone tool. One person’s trash is another one’s treasures! JNLF

Is That A Wrap?

22 Apr, 2024
Yes. Well, almost. After about a month of working – and some living (staff and or neighbors) – on Vestal Street with all the sewer and water replacement work, the paving happened today (April 17, 2024). This is the first “layer” – a three-inch binder coat. In the fall, once time has passed, they will return for the final one inch of the finish layer. Some of the other things along Vestal Street will also be repaired and updated between now and the final coat – and a bit after that. But we are very happy, after all these years to have a modern system of piping – and all new drainage we never had before! While the curator in me loved the old clay pipes, they were riddled with roots from the trees, holes, and in some places, collapsed, and the twelve inches of asphalt had to go. Vestal Street was only paved in about 1946/1948 – and has not been paved in maybe twenty years so that is a lot of asphalt in about fifty years! And with climate change and the increase in how much rain we get in these heavy rain events, all that water rushed down Vestal Street with nowhere to go – except our cellars. I am sure the neighbors are happy too! A thank you to the Town of Nantucket’s Sewer Department, especially David Gray (who may regret giving me his cellphone number forever), N&M Excavating and Utilities (Dean, we appreciate you being so nice when we had too many questions), Victor-Brandon Corp for paving, and numerous others. We are looking forward to great flushing, powerful hose lines, and rainwater being whisked away via the new, never-before-had storm drains! JNLF And to all the N&M workers who wondered why I was constantly looking down as I walked along Vestal Street, you should see the trove of porcelain shards, glass, old nails, a bottle neck, 19 th century spoon, and even possibly a Wampanoag stone tool I found!
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