FIConservancy’s Nature Days is back! This year, enjoy a Free Family Event Sat. Aug. 11, 3-6 p.m. at the Parade Grounds. Enter through the Demonstration Garden.
Learn about local wildlife through hands-on discovery. Have an up-close visit with a bird of prey, touch turtles and snakes, meet frogs, see and touch feathers, furs and many other natural items.
Don’t miss the ice cream truck, and stop by for wine, beer and lemonade.
Cecropia moth, early morning. Dianne Crary Photo
The Cecropia moth, largest moth in the eastern U.S., made a surprise appearance on Fishers Island July 3, 2018. Dianne Crary was out for a morning walk and spotted the stunning moth on the needles of a yew shrub on Lucinda Herrick’s property.
Adam Mitchell, University of Delaware PhD candidate has encountered Cecropia caterpillars on the Island, but not the adults. “This moth is a female, so she was probably laying eggs for the next generation nearby,” Mr. Mitchell said. “They feed on a lot of different plants, but cherry, birch and sugar maple will likely be the host plants on Fishers.
Cecropia moth, late afternoon. Lucinda Herrick Photo
“Unfortunately, this species of moth is in decline, due to a parasitic fly that was initially released to handle gypsy moths. They also suffer from the loss of native host plants.
“Although caterpillars appear to have spikes on their body, they do not sting. Caterpillars will move to the base of host plants and form silken bag cocoons, where they will overwinter.”
The osprey population on Fishers Island continues to grow. Andrew Edwards used a drone to count the number of fledglings in nests this year.
An overcast sky and the threat of rain did not deter a group of 13 birders in four vehicles, led by Adam Mitchell from University of Delaware. Following Audubon bird count rules, the group made 15 five-minute stops. At each timed stop, the birders would count birds and call out what they saw.
Sites with the greatest number of bird species included:
“It is likely that the increased number of birds in the Parade Grounds correlates directly with the removal of invasive plants,” Mr. Mitchell said.
Although 55 is the number for the official count May 6, a few dedicated birders informally added nine more species as they scanned the sky on the ferry ride to the Island May 5 and at an informal birding tutorial that afternoon.
Birders also reported hearing an American woodcock calling out on the Parade Grounds the night before the official count.
Photo by Kristen Peterson.
Recorded bird species, both official and unofficial:
Canada Goose
Mute Swan
Mallard
American Black Duck
Common Eider
Red-breasted Merganser
Ring-necked Pheasant
Common Loon
Great Cormorant
Double-crested Cormorant
Great Egret
Black-crowned Night-Heron
Osprey
Northern Harrier
Bald Eagle
Red-tailed Hawk
Killdeer
Greater/Lesser Yellowlegs
Herring Gull
Great Black-backed Gull
Common Tern
Mourning Dove
Chimney Swift
Belted Kingfisher
Downy Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
American Kestrel
Blue Jay
American Crow
Fish Crow
Northern Rough-winged Swallow
Tree Swallow
Barn Swallow
Black-capped Chickadee
Tufted Titmouse
White-breasted Nuthatch
Winter Wren
Carolina Wren
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
American Robin
Gray Catbird
Northern Mockingbird
European Starling
Cedar Waxwing
Blue-winged Warbler
Black-and-white Warbler
Common Yellowthroat
Northern Parula
Yellow Warbler
Black-throated Blue Warbler
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Chipping Sparrow
Dark-eyed Junco
Song Sparrow
Eastern Towhee
Northern Cardinal
Baltimore Oriole
Red-winged Blackbird
Brown-headed Cowbird
Common Grackle
House Finch
American Goldfinch
House Sparrow
Merlin
2018 controlled burn at Battery Marcy, east of the airport. Jane Ahrens Photo
The Fishers Island Fire Department, in coordination with FIConservancy, annually conducts controlled or “prescribed” burns in the Parade Grounds and surrounding areas that are part of the Conservancy’s Grassland Restoration project.
Fire is necessary to maintain grassland, and different sections are burned on a rotating basis every three years, with careful exclusion of nesting bird areas.
John Sargent wrote a thoughtful and comprehensive story about the 2018 controlled burn.
For updates to the lawsuit intended to protect the Long Island Sound Estuary, filed in August 2017, including the recent update on April 16, 2018, please visit fishersisland.net
Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution’s (WHOI) Coastal Systems Group (CSG) is hunting for evidence of ancient (paleo) hurricanes, and the clues lie in the mud deposited at the bottom of these ponds. “We look for layers of sand that may have been washed over with hurricane storm surge. These layers of sand originating on the beach and carried by the waves and high waters, cover the mud and offer clues about when and how large the storm may have been.” As a precursor to collecting the deep cores of mud from the bottom of the ponds, the team from Woods Hole first needed to determine several bits of information such as: How deep are the ponds? Are they fresh, brackish or salty? For how long have the ponds been there? And are they susceptible to hurricanes of the past tracking along the eastern seaboard?
WHOI visited Fishers Island on June 12, 2014 in an effort to gain scientific information about several ponds on the east end of the Island. With the help of Fishers Island Naturalist Justine Kibbe and Island Sentinel Conner Wakeman, they surveyed the ponds using a skiff (special thanks to Steve Malinowski) kayak and canoe, and utilized scientific equipment such as a depth gun and CTD (Conductivity/salinity, Temperature, Depth) to make measurements.
The ultimate goal was to map the ponds then revisit sites and core 30 feet into the mud to find layers of sand deposited from past hurricanes. The historic record, collected from human observation and tide gauge data, gives us only a short history of hurricane events (about 150 years), whereas a 2,000 year story is preserved in the mud.
Woods Hole Oceanographic institute will be back to core Island Pond sometime over the summer….stay tuned.
Read the full article from The New York Times.
Pre-orders are recommended as not all plants on the list will be available the day of the sale. All plant orders MUST be received by MAY 10 and can be picked up May 19-20. Native plant enthusiasts are also welcome to choose from available stock on the days of the plant sale.
First, however, come to the Parade Grounds Sat. May 5 at 3 p.m. for a brief tour and a tutorial by the experts on the best way to count birds. The University of Delaware team of Adam Mitchell, Emily Baisden and Will Aleida will lead the bird count and be available to answer all questions about migratory birds.
FIConservancy President Tom Sargent and his wife Allison will host a reception at their house Sat. May 5 at 6:30 p.m. for all those participating in the Spring Migration Bird Count and for anyone else interested in meeting the University of Delaware experts.
The Spring Migration Bird Count begins Sun. May 6 at 8 a.m. Meet at the Community Center and bring your binoculars!