Vol. 2, no. 3 Tuesday, January 21, 1997
Quick jumps: | This week's reports | From the Press | Downeast Birdline -- discontinuation announcement | Meeting of new group: Greater Portland Naturalists Forum | Publication announcement: Biological Diversity in Maine: An Assessment of Status and Trends in the Terrestrial and Freshwater Landscape |
You are invited to participate. Your reports are always welcomed!
Please e-mail Frank Wihbey, Editor: menature@maine.maine.edu
This week's reports
Report format = Day, date, time. Location (Maine Atlas Map number) Report text. Initials of correspondent
Thursday, January 16. E. Orland (Map 23) Toddy Pond near the dam: Four wading crows dipped and pecked at the rainwater accumulating on the 3 acres of new ice. Few birds were seen once the rain started horizontally. The barometer dipped to 29.4 and the mercury pecked at 44 degrees. The new ice did not thaw. Instead, by day's end, the rains left a surface good for iceboats to fly through the cold to come. W.D.
Saturday, January 18. Alfred (Map 2) It is 7 degrees below zero. Isn't it great to get up at 5 AM and find all the pipes frozen and when you go to plug in the Ready heater, it is frozen too?! J.L.
Saturday, Jan 18. Milford (Map 33) Sunkhaze Wildlife Refuge was absent of any animal activity except chickadees. Saw some unidentifiable tracks (coyote maybe) that were old, but I think the frigid weather was taking its toll on the animals- not even a squirrel. Earlier in the day, was driving to Milo (Map 32) and saw a coyote standing in plain view in a corridor cut into the woods. B.D.
Sunday, January 19. Otis (Map 24) While walking in the frigid cold with a brisk wind in my face, I was rewarded with the sight of four Bohemian waxwings feasting on winterberries along the edge of a marshy area. B.G.
Sunday, January 29. E. Orland (Map 23) Toddy Pond near the dam: The pristine ice, co-laid by Thursday's rain and subsequent cold, dulled under the present scourge of the biosphere: Human activity--in this case the species' locomotion--hid the ice near the highway under dust and dirt. Sunday's modest wind blew to widely disperse this dulling of brilliant reflection. W.D.
From the Press
"Acadia, COA help in 'Ribbet Report'; frog, toad survey part of
broader compilation"
by Kathy Holliman
Bangor Daily News Tuesday, January 7, 1997, pages B1, B3
ACADIA NATIONAL PARK&emdash No American toads raised their monotone trills this summer on Mount Desert Island, at least not when a team of frog listeners had their ears tuned.
But spring peepers peeped and woodfrogs quacked their way through a cold spring and cool summer, their lusty calls recorded in the backyard frog and toad survey coordinated jointly by Acadia National Park and College of the Atlantic.
In a project that began last spring, about 15 trained volunteers tramped out to backyard ponds and vernal pools&emdasheven on 30-degree May evenings&emdashto monitor which species they heard and when. Three nights each week for four months, volunteers listened at selected spots across the island, hoping to hear the distinctive voices of the American toad and six types of frogs believed common to the area.
The "Ribbet Report," issued by the park last month, said the prolonged peeper season indicated a cool and rainy spring and summer. They were heard into July, well past their traditional breeding season.
Other species were also affected by the cool weather, perhaps because water temperatures were slow to warm. Six species were reported &emdash peepers, woodfrogs, green frogs, gray treefrogs, pickerel frogs, and bullfrogs&emdashbut the bullfrog and pickerel frog were heard infrequently and in low numbers.
With reports about deformed frogs surfacing from various parts of the country, data compiled from backyard surveys such as the one on MDI will attain more importance in the accumulating pool of information. How amphibians are handling the global warmups, pollutants and ozone spikes may mean vital information for the rest of life on the planet, biologists believe.
Since frogs and toads move through two different worlds&emdashthe water and land&emdashthey are exposed to it all. Park biologist Bruce Connery has said amphibians "are viewed as the early warning indicators since they live in two habitats. Since they absorb moisture and air through their skin, they are thought to be more susceptible to toxins, pollution and habitat destruction."
Volunteers will be needed again this year, with a training workshop anticipated in March. Park and COA officials provide a recorded sampling of MDI's frog and toad songs, plus other material. All data will be merged into a frog and toad atlas for MDI.
Downeast Birdline has ceased -- discontinuation announcement
Downeast Birdline -- transcript of current telephone message
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