WELLFLEET — A menace stalks the shores of Wellfleet in the thousands: the European green crab, Carcinus maenas, an invasive species that feasts on juvenile shellfish and clips eelgrass to […]
Environment
ON THE WARRANT
Eastham’s Voters Will Decide Whether to Fund a Sewer System
A low-interest loan from the state requires fast action
EASTHAM — There’s only one item up for a vote at Eastham’s special town meeting at 5:30 p.m. on Monday, June 23: a $170-million authorization for a sewer system around […]
THIS WILD CAPE
The Big Appeal of Our Smallest Thrush
The unpredictable outcomes (and predictable responsibilities) of inviting bluebirds into your yard
No matter the season, people are always asking me about eastern bluebirds. Musicians and poets want to write about them. There’s no question that whatever our fondness for birds may […]
NATURAL SELECTION
A-Dime-a-Dozen Daisy
Maybe the cattle of Europe and western Asia, where Leucanthemum vulgare is native, once upon a time had striking yellow eyes with thick white lashes. Otherwise, it’s hard to imagine […]
RARA AVIS
This Week’s Bird Sightings
Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, June 17 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]
RADIOACTIVITY
Hearing on Holtec’s Appeal of DEP Denial Begins
Either way, the decision won’t stop the evaporation of Pilgrim wastewater
PLYMOUTH — The Dept. of Environmental Protection determined last July that the proposed discharge of over one million gallons of radioactive wastewater from the Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station into Cape […]
BIRDWATCHING
The Happiness of the Other Blue Bird
Thanks to fieldwork abroad, a naturalist comes to admire our local tree swallows
It wasn’t yet light out. This was the best time to get hands on the bird. This expert flier certainly wouldn’t allow capture if she could see me coming. My […]
RARA AVIS
This Week’s Bird Sightings
Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, June 10 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]
NATURAL SELECTION
Bare Berries
The pictured shrub, scientifically classified as Viburnum nudum — presumably for the smoothness of its shoots — has endured many a christening. Someone more focused on its fruit than its […]
THE COUNT
Volunteers Track Alewives’ Return and Worry for the Fish’s Future
Recent threats include mid-water trawlers and cuts to NOAA’s data gathering
WELLFLEET — The alewives — also known as river herring — are coming home, though they’re not here to stay. They come to the Cape every spring and stay for […]
THIS WILD CAPE
Birds’ Lives
Considering the least tern’s nesting strategy, a birdwatcher gets beyond his checklist
It’s June, and everybody’s nesting. Or at least everybody who’s here for the season. If you’ve been watching birds, you’ve been busy keeping track of what birds are around and […]
RARA AVIS
This Week’s Bird Sightings
Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, June 3 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]
NATURAL SELECTION
The Way to Groove Me, Cherry
Prunus, the cherry genus, is second only to Quercus, the oaks, when it comes to providing essential wildlife services, as they say, to birds and insects. (Photo by Joe Beuerlein)Prunus […]
GROWING WILD
A Novel Assemblage of Species, at Home on Cape Cod’s Sandplains
Keeping oaks and pines at bay for the butterflies and birds
Not far into the Audubon sanctuary’s Bay View Trail, which skirts the shore on South Wellfleet’s bay side before making a long loop back to its starting point, a side […]
BIRDWATCHING
Drink-Your-Tea, the Towhee Sings, and Don’t Clean Up the Understory
Berries and brambles provide food and shelter for birds and other animals
I wasn’t sure I’d heard it at first. The rustling might just have been a pine cone dropping into the leaf litter. But another rustling sound made me stop in […]
