Category Archives: cape cod fall

Thankful for Nature

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Hopefully all were able to enjoy a nice Thanksgiving, whether it was quiet or noisy, large or small. We are not big shoppers in my family so Black Friday is not a thing we do. No lines, no crowds–just a quiet day at home catching up on things. Tomorrow is Small Business Saturday. I hope you’ll join me in supporting the many talented artisans and small businesses we have on the Cape. This is the time to say thanks to the independent bookstores, the small, independent markets and coffee shops, the local breweries and wineries and shops and restaurants that stay open on our main streets all year long.

It’s easy to find things in nature to be thankful for, but it can also be easy to forget to look for them…here’s my latest Weekly Nature Watch column.

 

 

Standing in thankfulness

On a day that couldn’t make up its mind, I stood listening to the chatter of a flock of sparrows in a nearby bush. Heavy lavender and gray clouds loomed overhead but from beneath them shone an eerie, almost golden light that topped the now naked branches of trees with its glow.

Leaves tumbled across the grass and around my feet while a squirrel stopped and surveyed the scene, perhaps to see what had me so entranced.

In this world of constant contact that is more and more ruled by screens and electronic communication, I was thankful for a moment outside. I had no reason to be standing there, I just was. A blue jay flew down from higher up in a tree and watched me, cocking its head from one side to the other. A second jay joined it. After a few minutes they seemed to decide I wasn’t dangerous to them and they flew past me to the feeder. A chickadee scolded me as it, too, came to the feeders but the cardinals just sat quietly deep in a bush, no doubt hoping I wasn’t noticing them there.

The longer I simply stood there, the more I could feel myself relax. I took a deep breath of the cool, damp air and I swear I could taste the imminent rain on my tongue. The smell of fallen leaves mingled with a touch of wood smoke from a neighbor’s wood stove. For a moment I lost touch with the world of deadlines, messages and to do lists. I was just a woman standing under a tree while birds and the wind whispered around me.

I am thankful for these little reminders that reality is not virtual or behind a screen. The cardinal hiding in the bush is real. So is the hawk on the top of the spruce in my neighbor’s yard. The clouds moved and changed shape and the ribbon of light disappeared into the gray. Raindrops splatted against the leaves, then against my face. It was cold, refreshing, clean. I felt my hair getting wet as rain dripped down onto my neck. It wasn’t uncomfortable. It was sort of lovely in a way that is hard to describe.

And then it was time to go in before I got soaked. Unlike the chickadees, I couldn’t stay dry hidden in a branch of the holly tree.

It is easy to become overwhelmed these days. We are bombarded with images in an unprecedented way. We hear about crises that we can do nothing about, almost hourly. We learn of deaths that leave us feeling helpless and devastated and often hopelessness feels like the only appropriate response to this relentless bombardment of bad news

And that is why I look for things to be thankful for every day. Nature is an easy anecdote for the pain and suffering in the world. Not that nature doesn’t have plenty of these, but if we choose to look for beauty and peace, it is easy to find. We don’t have to go far. Sometimes just stepping into our own backyards will do the trick.

Being thankful can become a habit. It’s free, it’s easy and it can take place anywhere, any time. Just step outside. Head to the beach, the pond, the meadow or the woods. Take a deep breath. Leave your phone behind. Turn off the car, the music, the chatter in your mind.

Even rain, snow, sleet and wind all have their place. We can be thankful for the ways they nurture the plants, clean out the old and broken and help us feel refreshed and renewed.

Even in times of stress, crisis and unrest, there is always something to be thankful for, even if it is the simple call of a chickadee or a cardinal sitting quietly in a bush.

All content copyright protected by Mary Richmond, 2018

 

When Fall Colors Come to Cape Cod

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Cape Cod always gets her colors a little later than the rest of New England. Blame that warm air coming off the ocean. Eventually, though, cooler temps do catch up with us. Our colors are subtler than those on the mainland, but I love them. Maybe because I grew up with them and they’re what I know…

Last week my column in the Enterprise was about the colors of fall. They no longer allow readers to read online if they aren’t subscribers, so I am posting the column here. Please remember this is a fully copyrighted piece and is not for any other use than reading here. You may share the post, with full attribution.

Changing colors

The changing of the leaves has been a sporadic, duller than usual event this year on the Cape. There have been some bright spots but mostly it’s been lackluster, even depressing. For me, it’s been an example of our physical landscape imitating our political landscape, too full of grief and despair to celebrate much of anything. Many leaves have simply dropped, never changing color at all, leaving their trees naked and gray against the November sky.

The salt marshes never fail to bring a smile to my weary soul, though. They range in color from luminous gold to rusty tones of orange. It’s a fleeting wash of color, as if from a watercolor brush. I stop and take it in while I can, let the richness as well as the delicacy of color settle in me, to help see me through the long winter ahead.

On a sunny, warm day last week I took a quick spin around the loop of my favorite neighborhood beach. A lot of people were out, and many were up to their wader hips in the water, using rakes and clear boxes to find shellfish on the bottom.

Hundreds of sanderlings ran back and forth, grabbing little morsels from incoming waves. Gulls floated near the folks hunting for scallops, hoping to snag a free handout, no doubt. The farther I went, the more people I left behind until I was the only one standing on the rock jetty overlooking a sparkling sea.

A small group of ruddy turnstones ran back and forth, doing their turnstone thing. Some were in full winter plumage while others were sporting an in-between sort of look. I wondered as I watched them if they will spend the winter here or move on. They are late for migrants but there are always stragglers at this time of year. Some stay for most, if not all, of the winter so I guess only time will tell. I do find myself wishing I could have conversations with some of these birds, but alas, so far that is not happened out loud.

The snow buntings were right where I’d left them a week or so ago. A few horned larks, perhaps the same ones that nested there this summer, were foraging in the grasses. Hundreds of dune mushrooms spotted the ground as I walked through what at first appeared to be a barren land of sand and rugged grasses. This is a mound of sand left by the dredging of the harbor a dozen or so years ago. It has lost the poetic quality it had before its sudden and rather horrible transformation, but it has its own charm, if I look close enough.

I turned a corner to head towards the bay and what I saw nearly took my breath away. The whole foot of the dunes was covered with gold that glimmered in the afternoon light. The buntings flew over, their underwings and breasts bright in the reflected light. The rosa rugosa leaves, so lush and green all summer long, had taken on a rusty orange hue that was so delicious and wonderful that no photograph I took could capture it. So, I drew and painted it instead. Sometimes art does what the heart and mind see when the camera cannot.

A song sparrow stood tall on a spindly branch and watched me. I couldn’t help but think it is the same one that watched me last winter, spring and summer. I have no way of proving that, just a feeling. Song and Savannah sparrows are prevalent here and nest at the base of the rose bushes each year. They have some of the best real estate in town, though the winters can be brutal there.

As I walked back down the beach, the water sparkled a brilliant blue. The sky was clear and the sun off the opposite shore shone white and bright. As a gull called out overhead I couldn’t help but think the change of colors was often sad, but also sparked with a glimmer of joy and hope.

 

All those brown birds of a Cape Cod fall

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Hi all–lots of time has passed without a post but those of you who follow me on Facebook and Instagram know I’ve been super busy. While posting some photos on FB this week I realized that many people are easily mystified by all those LBJs of the bird world. LBJ was a president but it’s also the code for LIttle Brown Jobs and you’ll hear birders refer to these a lot, especially in the fall.

Most of you probably have noticed tons of blackbirds all over. These flocks are mixed, full of grackles, starlings, cowbirds and red-winged blackbirds. Look at the two birds on the feeder (I apologize for the blurriness–taken through a window and at a distance). On the right is a female house sparrow. The larger bird on the left is a female red-winged blackbird. You can see that the red-wing is larger and has a different shape than the smaller, stockier sparrow. Their beaks are different and so are the striping patterns.

This little bird was traveling with a pair of song sparrows  in my yard this week. It isn’t a song sparrow, though. It is an immature cowbird. It’s a late one so it fooled me–fortunately Sue Finnegan, master birder and banding expert, was able to ID it for me. Many of us have house finches at our feeders but check out this trio. Their markings are much more distinct than the drabber house finches. They have distinctive eye patterns as well. These are immature or female purple finches. I’ve yet to see a male in my yard this fall, but I check often.  Have you seen these scrappy guys around? These are starlings in their winter plumage. The glossy guy on the bottom left is a grackle. Here’s another shot of a house sparrow(L) and a female red-winged blackbird (R) And then there’s this little guy. Hiding in the grasses, feeding on seeds is its favorite thing to do in the fall. This is a song sparrow. Stripey with a noticeable dark spot on its chest, these are small sparrows often found on the ground, rarely at or on feeders. And, these are only a few of the LBJs you might find on the Cape in the fall. Identifying these birds can be challenging and fun. Keep your guidebook handy and study the size, shape, markings and behavior of the birds you are watching to help you identify them. I hope this helps! Each link will take you to a page with much more information.

Beautiful fall on Cape Cod

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I know that many of us simply love the fall just about anywhere but fall on Cape Cod is pretty special. We get a late frost which means a lot of late bloomers are still around. The trees are colorful longer into November than many othe places and the marshes are just gorgeous.

We also get some exceptionally high and low tides around the full moon…  Beautiful reflections abound,,,,
  Red maples put on a beautiful show….  Even the swans look majestic in this sort of light….
  Can’t get enough of this lovely shade of red….  or this yellow orange of rosa rugosa leaves in the dunes….
  A few dragonflies are still around….  And scads of mushrooms like these honey mushrooms….
  More color against the autumn sky…  and the golden color of the marshes….
  Some yellows in the woods are always nice….  and at the beach, it’s all about that autumn light!
 I hope you are getting out and enjoying the wonderful weather here this week!

Horseshoe crab sheds, not deads!

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Right about this time of year everyone gets a little worried about the horseshoe crabs. They see dozens, even hundreds, of what appear to be dead horseshoe crabs washed up on the beach.

They might see them lined up in a wrack line, tossed about in piles of seaweed or just a few here and there as the tide recedes.

  As disturbing as this may seem, it’s perfectly normal for all these old shells, which are the outgrown exoskeletons of the horseshoe crabs to wash ashore. The horseshoe crabs are growing fine new shells that will accommodate their growing bodies. As a friend of mine likes to say, these are sheds, not deads!
  It’s the time of year when birds are molting feathers, mammals are molting summer coats and animals that have exoskeletons may be molting as well. This is why we are seeing all those crab shells on the shore and in the marshes as well. Pick one up. If it is as light as a feather, it’s a molt. If it is heavy and stinky, it is indeed a dead animal so don’t take that one home.  One of the things that fools people is that the sheds have legs, gills and all those important parts. When the crab leaves its shell it takes its actual legs, gills and other parts with it but leaves the old coverings behind. It’s pretty amazing when you stop to think how a horseshoe crab crawls out of its old shell and yet leaves it intact!
  So, if you’re walking the beach this weekend, don’t be surprised to find lots of horseshoe crab shells washed up. This shows that there’s a good population in your area and that’s a good thing for the horseshoe crabs, whose numbers have been dwindling in recent years. And pass the word along when you can….there are a lot of worried people out there thinking that hundreds of horseshoe crabs have died instead of just having molted their shells.

Enjoy the long weekend and get outside!

Beach rose hips are NOT beach plums and other things

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Happy September!

It’s that time of year when everyone gets all confused about beach plums and beach rose hips. The rose hips are big, fat and juicy orange and red at this time of year and you’ll find them on those same bushes along the beaches and dunes where you saw the beach roses, Rosa rugosa earlier in the summer.

They are edible but quite tart! Some people make tea, jam or jelly with them but it seems to be harder than I want it to be so no jam for me. Jelly and tea, maybe….

Anyway, the photo below shows a beach rose hip.

 

  Beach plums have been ripe for a few weeks now and look quite different. They are small, hard purplish fruits and are much desired for making beach plum jelly. These photos were from the Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary where the crop was lush and is always left for the wildlife to consume.
    Did you know beach plums were related to cherries? Check out their leaves. Below are some that are not quite ripe but these are desired by those that make jelly as well as the unripe fruit helps the rest of it set, especially if the jelly maker is not using pectin.
  Below is a choke cherry and you’ve probably been seeing lots of these around. The birds and many mammals go crazy over them! Note to all! Do not park under a choke cherry tree or you’ll be sorry!  Below is a photo of a wild lemonade I made using staghorn sumac. I know, crazy, huh?
  I have heard about it for years but this is the first year I actually made some and it was delicious! You add about 8 fully seeded heads to a pitcher full of cool water and let it steep for at least 4 hours. Do not heat!  Here are the seed heads before adding them to the water.
    And here is the seedhead on the staghorn sumac bush. These are all over the Cape but before eating, do make sure your ID is correct! Not all sumacs are good for you…. Anyway, that is just a little wild food inspired post for today…..enjoy!

November days

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November is such a bittersweet month here on Cape Cod. It starts out like this

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And ends like this

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There is much in between of course

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It is still nice enough to just go out the door for walk without too much fuss about warm clothes but on some days we need to be prepared for a lot of wind. I don’t take many selfies but Arlo and I were feeling pretty blown away on this day at the beach and thought we’d share.

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Wild bird food on Cape Cod

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Many of us love to feed and watch the birds that come to our feeders. We dutifully fill feeders with sunflower seed, thistle seed and suet. Some also add safflower seeds and other goodies.

What many of us forget is that wild food is better for the birds and many of us actually have wild bird food right in our own yards. Goldfinches are especially fond of evening primrose seeds so I always leave some stalks in the yard for them.

024Goldfinches have pretty good camouflage for the fall and winter. Look how nicely they blend into the landscape against the seed stalks.

027 032Many gardeners and yard lords really, really want to clean up the yard and gardens until there is nothing for the birds at all. I understand not wanting to leave piles of leaves and weed seeds in certain areas but surely there is a place or two in your yard where you can leave some leaves on the ground for the birds to forage in and some weeds and wildflower stalks with seeds that the birds can feed on.

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You will make some little birds very happy and it will make you happy to watch them as well. Look how lovely these sweet goldfinches were today. I do offer thistle but they prefer the natural seed at this time of year and some days I have several dozen feeding on various seed stalks. Other birds like them, too.

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Weekly Nature Watch is now online!

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Weekly Nature Watch, the column I write for the Enterprise Newspapers on the upper Cape, began back in January 2012. I write two other columns now but this one will always have a soft spot in my heart.

Just this past week my column was added to the online version of the Enterprise at CapeNews.net which is very exciting and fun!

Last week I wrote about moving on in the fall and here is the link to the Weekly Nature Watch column.

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