Sightings Report
November 10, 2010
Brought to you by VLT and MCHT
“I’ve got this brown thing growing in my backyard” (historical)
And “I’ve seen a coyote on every ‘basin watch’ I’ve been on” – J. Peñalosa
And “Thank you for your patience” – Anonymous
Highlights: Coyote, Sandhill Cranes, Sabine’s Gull, Snowy & Cattle Egrets, Red-headed & Black-backed Woodpeckers, Golden Eagle, Fungus, Slime Mold update, Whales, Long-eared Owl pellets, Pied-billed and Red-necked Grebe, and more!
Many of your favorite ducks are here, with plenty more on their way. Hot spots like Carver’s Pond, Folly Pond, Pleasant River and State Beach have all noted recent increases in activities of the waterfowl kind – with a current high count of 40 Hooded Mergansers in Carver’s Pond (11/4). For this Sunday afternoon outing (the 21st) we will go for a 2-scope (minimum), multi-stop auto tour to Vinalhaven’s ducky spots. Along the way there will be many opportunities to re-heat at the vehicles and re-charge with the beverage of your choice (that you bring). We are likely to see these species and more on the drive- Hooded & Red-breasted Merganser, Common and Barrows Goldeneye, Canada goose,Bufflehead, Black Duck, Wood Duck, Eider, Old-tailed Duck, Red-necked Grebe, Common Loon, Bald Eagle, Snow Bunting, Horned Lark. So grab your thermos and binos and find yourself at Skoog Park on the 21st. This will be a Maine Coast Heritage Trust event. |
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Some sightings may be “Historical” – as in, things that need to get mentioned, and should have been mentioned a while ago, such as the sighting of the Sandhill Cranes. Sylvia Reiss from City Point Road reports that she and a few friends witnessed 2 large birds flying westward by their place around 11 AM on Sunday, June 13th. “Necks and legs fully extended like sandhills” is the quote and Sandhill Cranes are apparently just what they saw! The pair of Cranes had been observed in a meadow on Greens Island that morning where John Drury got a great photo (right) before they took flight. The two flew up the Reach, past Sylvia’s, and then banked north to the North Haven golf course where Terry Goodhue nabbed some photos of the birds the next day. 
Great sighting! That’s 3 sandhill cranes for John in a 9 month stretch.
something a little more current…. After spending an afternoon earlier in the season with sheep out on Greens Island, a cattle egret 
has taken up residence in the ball field (11/5, 6, 7, 8, 9). A neighborhood horse, Wizard, has also been visited by the cattle egret, a bird which gets its name from it habit of chilling with grazing animals and feasting on insects flushed by ungulates.
In some cases cattle egrets will “aggressively defend area around an individual grazer”. (This particular aspect of Cattle Egret behavior was not reported.) Cattle egrets are considered an “invading species” in the Americas, since they only “recently” (about 130 years ago) made their way to the Western Hemisphere. You see, this 12 ounce African species flew across the south Atlantic to South America around 1880 (not as impressive as flying over the north Atlantic – but still pretty cool - North Atlantic Pride!). It then worked its way to Florida and Texas by the 40’s and 50’s. This particular individual is one of at least 2 that are in the state right now. It’s pretty cool to have him show up and find Vinalhaven hospitable enough for an extended stay. Local legend and glue that keeps the Vinalhaven Historical Society together, Bill Chilles spotted the egret in the ball field as of this morning (11/9). It has been hanging right along the road. If it’s there it’s hard to miss – its white doesn’t blend in at all – and well worth a drive by if you are in town.
On the water- Well, another unique summer of off shore wildlife sightings is in the books. Selected highlights begin with a push of Minke Whale sightings in late June with reports coming in consistently for a few weeks. The whales were seen from the ferry thanks to eagle-eyes Bob Delsandro, top daddy-o on the boat, around the bay and throughout our stretch of the Gulf of Maine….…
The Fluke crossed paths with an adult Sabine’s Gull. Sabine’s gulls are “mostly pelagic away from its Arctic breeding grounds”. In other words, they spend most of their time way the heck off shore. North Atlantic Sabine’s actually spend most of their days in the eastern Atlantic, migrating across the north Atlantic to Northwest Europe and then down the coast to wintering grounds off of Namibia and South Africa. That’s like a gagillion miles of flying for a 6 ounce bird. In Harrison’s “Seabirds” the recommended place to watch for Sabine’s from land is St. Ives, England – the “best place to witness passage with daily peak during gales of up to 13.” That’s not that many, especially for dealing with a gale – extreme birdwatching. Beautiful gull for sure! Glad it was seen!…then came a rush of Thresher Sharks, spotted on several outings from the Fluke. This was about the same time that Tuna started showing up in numbers. Apparently the food was so good this year that a feeding frenzy seemed to last for a stretch several weeks long, and tuna were being seen continuously throughout this period.
Fungus- It seems like anyone who spent some time in the woods this fall has noted what an exceptional year it was for fungus. Edibility was an afterthought as the trails were lined with waves of colors and textures. After last year’s low mass this was a nice fungal rebound that created a buzz in the woods (and around town) starting in July. And just when you thought things couldn’t get any better, the wonderfully pleasant fall we’ve had has provided a heavenly mix of timed rains (at appropriate locations, and in desried amounts) with epicly sunny, warm (a bit breezy) days. Perfect conditions for fungus and the best fungus season I’ve experience on Vinalhaven. (Doesn’t say much as it was only my 7th but still.) Within my limited data set I’d say it was “exceptional” year. And while not going into detail of the season, I did have a few favorites and a story of a visitor who boldly states - “I’m 99% sure these are Chanterelles” - only to have 2 bags of False Chanterelles dumped onto my kitchen table, with 2 real Chanterelles mixed in. I hadn’t seen False Chanterelles , or Kuld-kukeseenik (Estonian), on Vinalhaven before, and they were everywhere this fall and continue to be seen into November.
This Oyster Mushroom, or Austerservik (Estonian) can be bountiful in June on the big-tooth aspen in Acadia National Park, but I had not found it anywhere on Vinalhaven until (10/28) in the Basin Also found in the Basin is Hemlock Varnish Shelf, growing on a Hemlock, the only ones I’ve found on Vinalhaven (low number of Hemlocks may have an effect on HVS numbers)…Boletes are always a treat to find and this year was a good bolete year for sure. 
Certain Boletes stain blue when torn/scratched, I’ve included a shot of a Red-mouthed bolete where some vandals had scratched in “Bolete” into the cap which then stained blue. We do not advocate this kind of behavior as Red-mouths are poisonous and not a fungus to mess with.
I’ve also included a cool shot (judgment) of a Blue-staining Bolete that must have been kicked over or something in the trail and where the pores are clearly stained blue. Blue staining Bolete is a good name for it. This is hardly a scratch of the incredible fungal scene out here this year and along the coast. Hope you got to be out there and enjoy it….
Golden Eagle - “Large white wing patches in conjunction with a gleaming white tail and the absence of white on other parts of the body are virtually irrefutable evidence of an immature Golden Eagle.” – Hawks in flight.
Twice in October I saw a juvenile Golden Eagle in flight around Vinalhaven. The first time was on Lane’s Island (10/2) about mid-day. It was a low(ish) fly-by from Greens Island direction across the low valley beyond the graveyard (sound creepy?). Its golden nape and crown were lit up on the fly by and while circling on close thermals, and its striking white tail band and white wing patches were also clearly visible. It continued on thermals towards school, where the hope was it might be seen by one of the masses in attendance to watch a little ball. (Was not seen at school). The second time was over Leadbetter Island(10/24). It was a long approach, slow fly by, quick chase with adult bald eagle and then off towards Brown’s Head light. Anyway, kind of assume it’s the same bird, and the hope is that he is still around and might show up at a popular eagle spot/deer carcass stash over the next month. I’ve been looking at the basin, and while seeing 10 Bald Eagles the other day I have not seen the Golden again. To read or download help in eagle indentification, click here.
Coyote– The entire staff at VSR can confirm that we share our fox island with at least one coyote. Last Saturday (10/30) while doing a MCHT/VLT weekly Basin wildlife survey (“Basin Watch”) with volunteer observer Javier Peñalosa we spotted a coyote for about a 10-12 second view. We were on the sand bar off of the Basin Falls trail that connects to Mouse/Thrumcap Island. We were scanning north towards O’Neills with my spotting scope on this, the first day of hunting season. Gunshots in the distance (and some not so distant) were heard. It was mid-day and sunny when out of nowhere (alright, the woods) the coyote crossed the mussel covered, low-tide exposed, old lobster pound dam in front of O’Neills and headed onto MCHT’s Williams Preserve. Calm and collected, like he’s done it a million times, he gave off the energy that he was completely in charge (all interpretations). He sniffed a bit and walked on the rocks along the shore before heading into the woods. We both got great scope and binocular views.
Coyote tracks and scat were being reported as early as last February and there has been recent talk of Calderwood Neck sightings and sign around the island. Taking this into consideration - seeing a coyote in the Basin didn’t come as a complete surprise, yet it was completely unexpected at that moment. The language associated with this excitement that poured out of one observer’s mouth might’ve been deemed inappropriate by some. Peñalosa, a recovering academic, not only took it all in stride, but provided his own colorful color commentary. He’s already tried to extort his services as a second observer for any sighting confirmation trial he may have to go thru. Gotta like that.
A dramatic increase in the presence of Coyote in our woods like this (from 0 to at least 1, possibly more) can kinda get the speculator going and a lot of questions flowing. You know, like - how’d it get here? How long has it been here? Have I been watched while walking in the woods? Is this why my goats were acting funny the other night? How has global warming played a role in this situation? Did the turbines attract it to Vinalhaven? Is it scavenging or running the deer amuck? Does it eat bunnies? Will it mate with my dog? Will it mate with my cat? Is it really a super-genius? Can we teach them to eat feral cats? Do they smell as bad as those stinky fox do? How can we blame North Haven for this? What effect on the island deer population will this have?
I don’t know, must have been the folk music - I don’t know much, but I have lived in a few places that were healthy with coyotes and I have never been threatened at any time while observing them even when having very close, unexpected encounters. Nor have I heard of any friends being treated aggressively by coyotes. In the Santa Cruz, California area where I lived, hardly a month went by without multiple coyote sightings and you saw some so often that you knew where the different coyote families lived and where to look. You might even see coyotes walking thru Santa Cruz itself. Kinda don’t see this kind of scenario developing out here.
It’s certainly good to be aware that this coyote is out here, and if you have animals you should be appropriately aware. I guess my point is that with the information currently known about coyote food in the woods and the fact there hasn’t been a coyote associated problem anywhere on the island (that I’ve heard of yet), a lot of worrying seems a little premature, especially when you factor in that this scenario is not likely to last long, like when that moose made its way out here. Until then it will be very interesting to see what is found out about Vinalhaven’s recent mammal addition.
See you out there!
Kirk
If you would like to be notified when Kirk’s report has been posted on the web, please send your email address to info@vinalhavenlandtrust.org.