It was windy but it looked like a nice day to ice fish. There are only two shacks on East Musquash Lake today.

It looked like a good morning to be out on the ice.

Foxes

There is actually quite a bit of activity going on in Maine in the bleak midwinter.  Bears typically have their cubs (See ‘Lugnut’ and her twin cubs, born 1/16/2012, at http://www.wildliferesearch.org); honeybees are starting a new generation of workers, and foxes have romance on their minds and are marking their territories.  We only have the Red Fox here in the Quoddy region and there has been some debate as to whether or not these critters are native or were introduced by the early European settlers.  Our Red fox was long recognized as a separate species  Vulpes fulva, but it is now deemed the same clever animal of European folklore V. vulpes. Even though some of these animals had been brought over from Europe, the early explorers noted Red foxes and the trade with Native Americans included the furs of the Red fox.  Martin Pring, searching for furs and anything of value to trade in 1603, noted Red foxes in the openings along the coast of Maine and especially on the islands.  He even named one of the islands ‘Fox Island’, which is now known as Vinalhaven.  I checked with Kirk Gentalen, the only naturalist that I know on Vinalhaven, and he wrote that he saw a Red fox there about 7 years ago, but hasn’t seen any signs since.  I haven’t seen a fox on our property for many years, even though I encourage native predators, and there is a Fox Island off our shore in Cobscook Bay.  I have seen foxes in the town of Pembroke, but I have never gotten a good picture of one.

The Red fox has the widest range of any terrestrial carnivore, and, with over 50 recognized subspecies, it is found on most continents except South America, Antarctica and most of Africa.  It may be seen in many colors; including black, gray and silver, but it always has a white-tipped tail.  The Red fox has a keen sense of smell and acute senses of hearing and sight.  Interestingly, the ears of the Red fox are most sensitive to sounds of about 3.5 kHz; much lower than other predators.  It is thought that this sound is more in the range of small rodents gnawing or rustling in the grass or leaves.  The eyes of Red foxes are also unusual, being of yellow color with vertical pupils, more like a cat and not much like other canids.  Foxes are of the same family as wolves and coyotes but they separated into their own genus about 10 million years ago, so although there have been reports of coyote, wolf, or dog/fox hybrids there have been no hybrids that have stood up to scientific scrutiny.

Red foxes are not very big, and average about 10 pounds.  They are pretty immune to the cold weather, and seldom seek shelter for a nap in the most severe blizzard.  They just curl up where they feel the safest from predators.  The biggest predators around here are trappers and automobiles, even though coyotes will prey on foxes.  It’s sort of interesting that there is a strong dislike among members of the canid family.  Many years ago I was hunting gray squirrels in Massachusetts, and I had a couple of farm pooches that every once in a while would be helpful in my sport.  This time they ran off, and shortly after I heard them barking.  The barking was different; there was a distinct hatred conveyed by my normally pretty docile mutts, and I found that they had cornered a Red fox in a bank.  I wasn’t after fox, and it was with some difficulty that I got them out of there and back home, because squirrel hunting was done for the day.

Red foxes are clever and considered a challenge to trap.  From the data that I have, in the past 10 years the number harvested annually in Maine has ranged from about a 1000 to 2000.  The pelts may average about $20, but some exotic silver or platinum colored morphs have in the past brought well over $1,000 each.  I hope some plain old Red fox doesn’t get harvested because he rolled around in my wood ash pile.  Nah.  They’re too smart for that.

The Wildlife Research Foundation has live video of Lugnut, an adult black bear, and her two newborn cubs online now. The cubs were born on January 16. This is an opportunity to learn a lot about Maine’s bears. I made a donation this morning and will be checking in on Lugnut and the cubs daily until they leave the den in the spring. You have to watch closely to see the cubs. They are tiny and are snuggled against Lugnut to stay warm. You can hear them, sometimes loudly, often.

The Bittersweet Aspect of ‘Bittersweet’

                Bittersweet, of the genus Celastrus, is a handsome, climbing vine with dark green foliage in the summer and oodles of red berries that appear in the fall and persist all winter. According to one of my references, ‘Flora of the Northeast’ by Magee and Ahles, there are two species of bittersweet that appear in Maine.  The native species, American bittersweet, C. scandens, is pretty widespread but rare, and ranges as far north as Piscataquis, Penobscot and Hancock counties, however is not listed in Washington County.  The introduced Asiatic bittersweet, C. orbitculatus,  is relegated to Waldo, Knox and York counties.  In his book ‘Flora of New Brunswick’ Hal Hinds mentions only C. scandens, and as “Formerly inhabiting several islands in the St. John River in Carlton and York Counties and extirpated due to flooding by the Mactaquac Hydroelectric Development.”

American Bittersweet evolved in the Western hemisphere and ranges out beyond the Mississippi, but does not appear on the West coast.  Asiatic Bittersweet is native to Eastern Asia (Korea, China and Japan) and was introduced to the United States around 1860, possibly as a low maintenance  decorative plant.  It appeared in Connecticut by 1916, in Massachusetts by 1919, and in New Hampshire by 1938, and presently has a range beyond its native cousin.  One of the reasons it spread was because Asiatic Bittersweet was planted as a very economical method of soil stabilization along roads.  There are some subtle but serious differences between American Bittersweet and Asiatic Bittersweet.  The plants and berries look very similar, but the Asiatic bittersweet will have the fruiting stems appear where the leaves grow out of the main vine, while the American bittersweet will have the fruit at the tip of small branches that include leaves.

I’ve never noticed American bittersweet in my tromping around in New England, but I have witnessed the expansion of the range of the Asiatic variety.  The plant is very rugged and aggressive and will inhabit just about any area, although it really likes wetlands and roadsides.  It can tolerate shade and its favorite starting place is the base of a tall hardwood like oak, maple or ash on river bottom soil.  Asiatic bittersweet grows sort of slowly in the shade but eventually reaches beyond 50 feet until it finally finds full sunlight, and there its photosynthesis shifts into high gear, and soon  plunges the top branches of the host tree into shade, often with fatal results.  The vine will grow in about any type of soil and is even appearing on sand dunes along the coast.  Some states like CT, MA, NH and VT have listed Asiatic bittersweet as a noxious weed, and the Extension Bulletin #2506 of The University of Maine labels it a threat to native habitats, but it is listed for sale at Surrey Gardens.  Be careful, as once established, Asiatic bittersweet is a very difficult plant to eradicate or control.

Bittersweet is not palatable to deer, rabbits or cattle but the berries are readily eaten (and seeds spread) by many birds and small mammals, although they are poisonous to people.  The inner bark of American bittersweet had been used by Native Americans as an emergency food, and recent studies have shown anti tumor, anti inflammatory, anti oxidant, anti bacterial and insecticidal properties in compounds produced in this plant.  An interesting relative of the bittersweet that is plaguing parts of the US is a shrub from India, C.paniculatus. The oil pressed from the seeds of this plant is, “… used to increase memory and facilitate learning.  It induces a feeling of well-being and has reported aphrodisiac effects.”  Sounds pretty benign.  I certainly could use some help in the memory department.  Maybe we could convince those that are inclined to experiment with drugs that C. paniculatus is a good substitute for bath salts.

The photo I have attached is of our “Hemlar” tree. Years ago we
planted the hemlock on the right. Several years later we planted the
cedar and they now look like one tree.  JF

(It bet it’s a nice shelter for birds during a storm. RF)

A blogger challenged readers to choose their word for 2012. I’ve had this entry floating around in my mind for a few days and since it fit with her challenge, and I don’t want it to float away, now’s a good time to write.

My word for 2012 is Outdoors. I spent so much time outdoors without a choice to stay in when it was hot, cold, wet or thick with black flies as a market farmer that I stopped enjoying being outside. Being outdoors meant work most of the time. That changed a bit in 2011 as I stepped back from market farming and into full-time writing. Being an outdoors and agriculture writer gives me ample opportunity to make being outdoors more fun in the coming year.

This year I will:

Spend more time fishing. I’m going to learn how to fly fish and take up fishing for brookies.

• Sleep in a tent without being eaten by a bear. Hopefully no moose get the idea to stomp on me while I’m out there. “Camping” has always been in a camp with solid walls and doors. I’m not a fan of tents but I’m going to learn to be ok in them. I might even buy one.

Kayak more. I took a kayaking class at BOW last summer. Joanna, my instructor, was awesome. She gets 100% of the credit for my love of kayaking. When I’m out there I hear her saying “feet to seat” and remember proper paddling.

• Hunt. I hunted a lot in 2011 and will at least match the amount of time in 2012. Maybe I’ll get something in 2012…

• White water raft the West Branch of the Penobscot River. The Crib Works scares me but I’m doing it.
• Zipline. I’m a member of the board of directors at Becoming an Outdoors Woman. Part of my responsibility involves going to Camp Caribou a day early to help set up. Last summer, during my kayak lesson, I watched a 60′ish year old woman (I am 47) zipline from a platform 60 feet high into the pond as part of a ropes course. She laughed all the way! I used to be terrified of heights. I’ve spent a lot of energy working on that; now I’m mildly uncomfortable. I’m going to do it if someone is there to lead me.
• Plant more flowers.
• Plant Christmas trees. I’ve ordered a dozen Colorado Blue Spruce and I’ll transplant balsam fir from our woodlot.
• Plant fruit trees. I’ll probably have to replace the apricot trees I planted last spring. I’ll do that and add pears and/or plums.
• Prune the apple trees this winter.
• Maybe I’ll climb Mt Katahdin. I said I’d never do it. I’ve been to Chimney Pond. One look at Knife’s Edge from Chimney Pond was enough for me to know I wasn’t going further. At the time I was terrified of heights. And I had a bad knee but it’s healing now. Kirk kept telling me I had to see the view from the top…so I flew over Katahdin in a chartered plane. Maybe this year I’ll climb. Maybe.
• Take more photos. Taylor (my youngest daughter) and I are going to paint the 15′ x 30′ livingroom. I have a lot of wall space to fill. Rather than rehanging the pictures I’ve taken down I’ll replace them with our outdoor photography.
• Spend time in my tree stand while writing about the outdoors. Tree stands aren’t just for hunting.
• Hike. I’ll spend more time hiking in 2012.

What will you be doing outdoors in 2012?

A mourning dove (Zenaida macroura) resting in a balsam fir.

PRESS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT:  SUSAN HAYWARD
STANTON BIRD CLUB
782-5238

The Stanton Bird Club is asking “Would you like to help the wildlife of Maine?”  There are numerous opportunities in Maine for ordinary citizens to observe the wildlife in their area and report information to an agency.  This practice of “citizen science” is easy, fun, and very helpful to wildlife biologists, conservation scientists, and policy makers.

On Monday, January 9 from 6 PM to 8 PM at the Auburn Public Library on Spring St. in Auburn, the Stanton Bird Club will host a panel discussion among three agencies offering opportunities for you to get involved in wildlife watching in the Androscoggin County area.

Speaking that night will be Susan Gallo from the Maine Audubon Society, Roberta Hill from the Maine Volunteer Lake Monitoring Program, and a trained volunteer with the Signs of the Seasons program of the University of Maine Cooperative Extension.

Susan Gallo remarked that “There are three programs that I think would interest folks in your Club and in your region. Two of them are brand new so they’re not even yet on our website.”  Gallo will talk about Wildlife Road Watch where volunteers to get out and record their sightings of wildlife crossing the road;  Important Bird Areas for people willing to travel to remote these sites to get bird sightings reported back via e-bird (a national website with a separate Maine  portal); and  Bat Conservation.  Gallo reports that “there’s been a huge crash in bat populations and federal endangered species listing is likely for several Maine bat species.”

Volunteers would locate maternal roosting colonies of bats to do counts of adult and juvenile bats.  These are often found in old homes, attics, garages and sheds.

Roberta Hill is an aquatic ecologist and environmental educator who has been active in the field of lake water quality protection and community outreach in Maine for the last sixteen years. Roberta will focus will focus her presentation on two primary monitoring programs: water quality and invasive plant monitoring.

For ten years she has been a major force in the establishment and development of VLMP’s Center for Invasive Aquatic Plants.  There is a core of trained volunteers with this program across the state, but Ms. Hill said “There are still many, many opportunities for folks to engage, at a variety of levels and filling a variety of important roles.”

Signs of the Seasons is a fairly new program in Maine that is seeking volunteers to record seasonal changes for elements as simple as the forsythia in your yard, all the way to the seaweeds along the beaches in the summer.  Phenology is the study of seasonal events in the lives of plants and animals and you could help Maine gather important data to protect the wildlife and plants we enjoy every day.  Everyone is invited to attend this free presentation, explore the possibilities, and sign up to be a citizen scientist.