We are delighted to share these stunning photos by Larry Mingledorff, a photographer from Palm City, Florida, who spends time each summer in Maine, photographing its beauty. Do you have beautiful Maine photos to share? If so, please send them to us at nrcm@nrcm.org. To learn more about how to submit your photos, visit www.nrcm.org/our-maine/my-maine-this-week/share-photos/
birds
Wildlife Habitat Design in a Wounded World
“If we continue to damage our ecosystem, we damage ourselves. Can our intelligence save us?” — David Attenborough We are living in a wounded world. If you dwell on the state of things too much, you can feel paralytic, helpless, and angry. But we must keep calm and carry on. We owe it to ourselves, Read More
How and Why We Invested in Bird-friendly Glass at the University of New England
In the breathtaking closing scene of the 2015 documentary, The Messenger, children and adults visiting the Royal Ontario Museum sort and organize thousands of birds that died after flying into windows in Toronto, Canada. The colors, shapes and sizes—of both birds and people—are striking. I show this film to the Avian Ecology and Conservation class Read More
Robin Hunting—and Eating—and the Year of the Bird
You may know that the early settlers to North America named the American Robins we know and love today. But did you know they also ate them? When the first European settlers saw the bird, they named the species “robin” based on the robins they knew back in Europe. That species, now called the European Read More
Athens Community School Middle School Students Learn about Local Wildlife
At Athens Community School, we have a unique Friday afternoon program called Learning Power. In this mock community, students choose a group to join for the year where they learn and practice real-life skills. This year, my group is a 4-H Club. In 4-H, children “learn by doing” while applying life skills, strengthening the fundamentals Read More
The Littlest Goose
Every winter, a few of the tiniest of geese spend the winter along the Maine coast. These geese, called Brant, are another of the species that we celebrate in the Year of the Bird because, if not for the passage of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act in 1918, they might not be with us anymore. Read More
My Maine This Week: David Small
“Celebrating the end of December with back yard snow, light and simple little critters.” These photos were shared by NRCM member David Small of Old Town, Maine. All of the photos were taken at the end of December in his backyard. Thank you, David! Two of Dave’s photos feature Dark-eyed Juncos. Did you know that Read More
Celebrating the Year of the Bird
This year, 2018, marks the 100-year anniversary of the signing of our own Migratory Bird Treaty Act. It’s because of this treaty that many bird species—including some for which Maine is well known—are still with us. In fact, without the MBTA, species such as the Common Eider and Wood Duck likely would have disappeared from Read More
Creature Feature: Common Eider
Common Eider (Somateria mollissima) Cool Fact: Female eiders often combine their chicks together into larger nursery groups called “crèches” and collectively watch over them. As noted in a recent blog post, 2018 has been designated The Year of the Bird in celebration of the 100-year anniversary of the enactment of the historic Migratory Bird Treaty Read More
