WELLFLEET — The Cape Cod National Seashore, in partnership with Ducks Unlimited and the National Park Foundation, has begun removing 25 acres of mostly live woody vegetation from around the […]
MORNING FLIGHT
When Birding Opens Up ‘a Whole Huge World’
After getting a birding camp scholarship, Megan Morey explores next steps in environmental science
Some people think birding is something only older people do — people who have time on their hands and an ability to focus that supposedly comes only with age. But […]
WRITERS
Adeniyi Ademoroti’s Characters Are Their Own Worst Enemies
A writer’s subconscious helps him find the voice he wants
When Adeniyi Ademoroti sits down to write a story, there are always two things in his head: the first sentence and the final scene. “If I don’t have anything I’m […]
ARTISTS
In Dialogue With the Past
The cerebral meets the emotional in Micha Patiniott’s work
Micha Patiniott can find the sensuality in a contorted body just as easily as he finds it in the movement of planets. His dreamlike minimalist paintings are united by “this […]
ENVIRONMENT
Cleanup Underway After Oil Leak at the Mid-Cape
So far, no evidence of the plume reaching Duck Creek has been reported
WELLFLEET — Cleanup is underway for an estimated 250 gallons of heating oil that was discovered to have leaked into the ground at Mid-Cape Home Centers on Commercial Street on […]
MORNING FLIGHT
It’s Leap Day for Chickadees but Not for Gulls
Why do some birds hop while other birds walk? The answer is in their arboreality.
There are a lot of ways to categorize birds. Waterbirds versus land birds, flying birds versus flightless ones, and whether birds are nocturnal or diurnal are all important distinctions. Another […]
WASTEWATER
Truro Will Sue 8 Homeowners for Cesspool Inaction
About half the town’s cesspool owners have upgraded; 75 will get extensions
TRURO — Installing a cesspool has been illegal in Massachusetts since 1978. They are considered “failed” septic systems. But people on the Outer Cape have kept on living with them […]
MEANWHILE, IN UKRAINE
How a Whale Biologist Became a War Volunteer
Olga Shpak, who studied whales here, is now defending her home country
PROVINCETOWN — Olga Shpak is as surprised as anyone that she became a war volunteer. Growing up in Soviet Ukraine, Shpak had a hard time collaborating with other kids. She […]
MORNING FLIGHT
New Winter Birds That Are Here to Stay
Climate change has altered the birds we see as ‘ours’
Charles Townsend was an acclaimed ornithologist who lived on the North Shore of Boston. Studying the birds around him, he quickly rose to prominence as an expert on the bird […]
WHALE WATCH
Entanglement Leads to Death of Young Right Whale
Scientists offer facts, but misinformation grows with help from climate deniers
This article was updated on Feb. 28, 2024. PROVINCETOWN — A North Atlantic right whale was found dead near Edgartown on Martha’s Vineyard on Jan. 28. The death represents a […]
SHARK SMART
So Far, Experiments With Shark Barriers Don’t Sway Local Experts
Growing acceptance of sharks’ presence shapes understanding of ‘mitigation’
WELLFLEET — Great white sharks have become as synonymous with Cape Cod summers as lobster rolls and bridge traffic. But as their population has rebounded after decades of decline, so […]
MORNING FLIGHT
The Art of Pishing
When songbirds are nowhere to be found, a scolding call can bring out a mob
Some days, birds just aren’t cooperative. Warblers stick to the crowns of trees, sparrows hide in the bushes, and finches won’t leave the hedges. Birds can be skulky beasts sometimes. […]
PIONEERS
Mayo Will Retire After 48 Years at Coastal Studies
Daniel Palacios will succeed Mayo as director of Right Whale Ecology Program
PROVINCETOWN — The Center for Coastal Studies is set to announce that Charles “Stormy” Mayo III, a cofounder of the organization and director of its Right Whale Ecology Program, will […]
MORNING FLIGHT
Birding in Good Company
On joining Truro’s Christmas Bird Count
Birders will use just about any excuse to fit a little more bird-watching in. So, we add a few days of sunup-to-sundown birding in the freezing cold to an already […]
1859
The Butcher of Eastham
Gustavus Swift, meat magnate
On Route 6 in Eastham, across the road from Buddha Bob’s, sits a plain shingle-sided house. It’s a classic Cape house in many respects: its door faces east, it has […]