Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Sept. 8, included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]
Environment
WILDLIFE
Kerry Reid’s World of Birds
In-depth knowledge is what makes wild animal rehabilitation work
EASTHAM — Three years ago, several Eastham residents began noticing a small flock of blue jays making the rounds about town. These birds weren’t just poking around yards and bird […]
RARA AVIS
This Week’s Bird Sightings
Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Sept. 1, included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]
ENVIRONMENT
Spotter Pilots Help Scientists Study Sharks
In the skies, a remarkable dance across the fishing-science divide
On a hot summer day in 2008, Wayne Davis was flying his Citabria, a single-engine two-seat propeller plane, off the shores of Cape Cod, looking for bluefin tuna. With nearly […]
NATURAL SELECTION
Outer Cape Outage Revives Osprey Debate
Audubon and Eversource disagree on how to keep nests off power lines
Over 100 years ago, in an agrarian Massachusetts, farmers began training ospreys to nest — not in trees, but on man-made platforms. The intent was to use the birds of […]
SHARK WATCH
Is Awareness Just a Sometime Thing?
New technologies are adopted, but they still have a long way to go
WELLFLEET — A familiar foe still lurks in the summer waters, but the unfamiliar foe floating in the air may be distracting from it. With Covid-19 keeping beachgoers vigilant about […]
RARA AVIS
This Week’s Bird Sightings
Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Aug. 25, included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]
CLEAR CUT
Truro Trust Sues Singer for Clearing Its Land
Nonprofit group seeks damages to restore two defiled acres
TRURO — The Truro Conservation Trust filed suit on July 1 against a local resident for allegedly clearing trees and creating an illegal dump on two acres of conservation land […]
ENVIRONMENT
Shoreline Management Is a Four-Town Effort
Adding layers to a geodatabase, and making it user-friendly
Protecting the Outer Cape shoreline is a continuous project, so much so that “there is no end goal” to the work, said Rex McKinsey, Provincetown’s marine coordinator. “These are living […]
Right Whales Are Now ‘Red Listed’
Scientists fear the worst as whales are designated ‘critically endangered’ by IUCN
Population trajectory is very simple, so simple a fourth-grader could calculate the formula, according to Center for Coastal Studies scientist Stormy Mayo. Take the number of animals born and subtract […]
RARA AVIS
This Week’s Bird Sightings
Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Aug. 18, included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]
ENVIRONMENT
Withering Heights: Dying Pines Tell a Complex Tale
With heathlands lost, forest die-offs aren’t always a bad thing
TRURO — From her house on a hill near Higgins Hollow and Longnook Beach, Melinda Krasting has a clear view of a patch of pitch pines that are slowly turning […]
RARA AVIS
This Week’s Bird Sightings
Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Aug. 11, included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]
HYPERSHARKTIVITY
Swim at Your Own Risk
The Atlantic White Shark Conservancy reported 25 separate ocean beach closures because of shark sightings on the Outer Cape in the week ending Tuesday: 5 in Provincetown, all at Race […]
ENVIRONMENT
Blue-green Algae Blooms Again, but Only Up Cape So Far
Warming and nutrients bring on toxic bacteria in kettle ponds
With summer well underway, higher temperatures coupled with nutrient overload in kettle ponds and lakes brings the dangerous return of cyanobacteria blooms, also known as blue-green algae. As of Tuesday, […]
