In a few short weeks the Earth will mark its journey around the sun with equal sunlight for both its southern and northern hemispheres, also known as the vernal equinox or “spring” in our northern hemisphere. You may have been noticing that the sun sits higher on the horizon these days (called the “solar altitude […]
Maine's Naturalist
Small Wonders: Winter Tree Bingo
Winter is an invitation to look closer. It’s also a season of working with what you’ve got, and what we’ve got right now in Maine is a whole lot of “bare” trees! Start squinting at them and you’ll notice that they’re bursting with signs of life. Written on bark, branches, and buds are the stories […]
Small Wonders: Connections
The other day, while staring out at a snowy Gilsland Farm, I wondered to myself “what are Scarlet Tanagers up to right now?” Something about it being ten degrees was making me think of these striking summer residents. Male Scarlet Tanagers (pictured above) look like ripe Roma tomatoes with solid black wings and a whitish, […]
Backyard Bird of the Month for January: Tufted Titmouse
You don’t have to be an expert to know what’s on the mind of a Tufted Titmouse. As one of the most vocal birds in Maine, they’re a great subject for studying bird behavior. Their most familiar noises might be their squeaky (dare I say ‘mousey’) contact calls and the raspy, mechanical scolding which you […]
Backyard Bird of the Month for December: Redpoll
You may see large numbers of uncommon visitors at your feeder this winter. Poor seed crops in the boreal forest this year are forcing arctic and subarctic breeders southward. This type of species movement is called an “irruption.” Among irruptive species this year are Redpolls, small, bouncy finches that travel in large flocks. Their rosy-red […]
Small Wonders: Convergent Evolution
Depending on how online you are, you may have seen the plethora of articles and memes about carcinization. This is the phenomenon of various crustacean lineages eventually evolving into crabs. In Maine we have species of “true crabs,” like the finely-speckled Atlantic Rock Crab (Cancer irroratus). Elsewhere in the world, however, many other animals in […]
Backyard Bird of the Month for November: Barred Owl
Barred Owls maintain year-round territories in Maine, but the loss of deciduous foliage in the fall makes it just a little bit easier to see these inconspicuous birds in the winter. Folks with Barred Owl neighbors know that individuals tend to be faithful to their favorite hunting and roosting perches, which are often close to […]
Small Wonders: How do birds find all that food?
The Magic School Bus set me up for a lifetime of disappointment. In this excellent kids’ book and TV series, students set off on wild field trips in a bus that could transform into a spaceship or a submarine or . . . it could also shrink! In the real world, I can use binoculars […]
Small Wonders: No Touchy!
I spoke to someone recently who said that the most unpleasant feeling in the world is itchiness. Many of their fellow humans might agree; a 2011 study at the Emory University School of Medicine compared the impacts of chronic pain and chronic pruritus (itchiness) on quality of life, and found that the average itchy patient […]