SCORES & OUTDOORS: White-tailed herd OK following a mild winter

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Roland D. HalleeSCORES & OUTDOORS

by Roland D. Hallee

While traveling the back roads of Vassalboro the last couple of years, I noticed a drastic decline in the number of white-tailed deer sightings. There was actually one year – maybe the year before last – when I saw none at all.

Well, my hopes have been renewed about the state of the deer herd in this area. The last three days, I have seen deer every day. I truly welcomed sight.

So, what is the condition of the state’s deer herd?

According to figures from the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, the mild winter we just experienced was very kind to the deer. The deer population in Maine is estimated at approximately 210,000, mostly in central and southern Maine. Although there are fewer deer in northern Maine, there tends to be some of the largest bucks in the state in that area.

Male white-tailed deer can weigh between 100 and 300 pounds.

The healthy state of numbers in Maine has prompted the wildlife regulators to increase the number of “any deer” permits they will issue this year to 45,000, up by 60 percent. Approval of the final number should be made next month.

Most of those extra permits will be issued in southern Maine where the white-tailed deer did particularly well to survive the winter. Maine is actually at the northern edge of their range.

I did some research and was a little disappointed when I learned that, according to some “experts,” Maine didn’t even make the top 10 list of the best places in the United States to hunt deer. That is probably due to the fact that deer are at the edge of their range here, and the number of permits issued, along with the large size, area wise, of the state.

White-tailed buck, left, with a doe.

Wildlife regulators in Augusta say its necessary to keep the herd in check to prevent the herds from growing to the point where it becomes a problem. Unchecked growth can lead to deer-car collisions and food competition, which could result in starvation.

Back in the late 1990s, Waterville had a serious deer problem at the municipal airport, and were causing some anxious and dangerous moments when they wandered out on the runway. The herd had grown to large numbers. Since it is illegal to discharge a firearm within the city limits, archers were allowed to enter the area to help harvest the deer and manage the herd. Also, the habitat was altered in an attempt to force the deer to seek food and shelter elsewhere.

Coyotes and black bears are the main predators of fawns. It has helped protect the young deer with the fact that there is open season on coyotes, which means you can hunt them year round, but black bear hunting is restricted. However, today, dogs and humans are their primary predator. Because they don’t have many natural predators, deer populations sometimes grow too large for their environment and can cause death by starvation.

White-tailed dear, Odocoileus virginianus, have a way of protecting themselves during the winter months, like most other wildlife.

In winter, when the snow depths exceed 16 inches, deer will yard in stands of conifers, forming a central resting area with trails packed through the snow. This dense cover with adequate browse is essential for winter survival. They are herbivores and follow well-used trails to their feeding areas.

During the fall, with the coming of hunting season, is the time of year when deer breed. Females have a gestation period of seven months, and will produce one to three fawns, generally born in May and June.

The average hunting success rate in Maine is usually between 14 and 17 percent, with 84 percent of that coming during the firearms season. The firearms season generally attracts approximately 175,000 hunters.

White-tailed deer, sometimes referred to as “swamp ghosts,” are excellent runners, leapers and swimmers.

But, with all that, it is good to see more deer in our area this year than I have noticed over the last two to three years. With a healthy deer herd, the influx of hunters brings about economic benefits.

I’m Just Curious: Just a thought

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by Debbie Walker

# When I made my usual trip into Walmart I noticed people at the self-serve registers. I am disappointed when I see people checking themselves through. To me those self-serve registers are one step closer to a cashier losing a job. Not many stores even have people working enough hours for benefits anymore. I don’t want to be part of the demise of another job if I can help it.

# I am not a very political person. I get disgusted with the process and the arguments (oops, I mean discussions). I am sick to death of hearing about what Russia did or didn’t. Which political figure talked to whom?

# I really wish we didn’t have political parties. Watching from the sidelines it seems there is an awful lot of wasted time and effort for the three-plus parties to argue over any subject out there. It doesn’t matter how important the issue, what one wants the other will fight it. What a waste.

# Even the reporters are lame as far as I’m concerned. These people are very much opinionated about the winner or the loser. I want to know if they are really trying to play up their own “no favorites” but are showing they are clearly judgmental. Do they really believe people don’t hear their tone of voice or see their body language?

# Another disgusting matter is the deer ticks. I understand this is basically a man-made mess. More and more people are becoming sick with Lyme disease. My mom always told us kids if you make the mess get back in there and clean it up! So… to whoever is responsible: Clean it up!

# Oh yeah, then we have all the mess about insurances. How about if we get everyone on the same insurance as the senators and congressmen? Either that or put them on the insurance we have or don’t have, whichever the case. Oh yeah, and they need to pay for their own. (And stop taking their families on a government business (their vacation) trip. We know who’s paying what!

Okay, you know this is not a reflection on the newspaper; these are my thoughts, such as they are. I really don’t ever intend to offend anyone, I’m sorry if I have.

AND, don’t forget we have the column on the website for The Town Line and you can look up a past printings as well. I really enjoy Roland’s Scores and Outdoors. I love the stuff about our little critters!!

So… I’m Just Curious about soooo many things. How about you? Let’s keep our childlike curiosity! It’s fun!! Contact me at dwdaffy@yahoo.com sub: Curious

Watch for “In Case You Wondered.” It’ll come out soon!

REVIEW POTPOURRI, Week of June 22, 2017

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Peter CatesREVIEW POTPOURRI

by Peter Cates

Bach Suites 2 and 3

Fritz Rieger conducting the Munich Philharmonic- Mercury MG10068, vinyl lp, from 1940’s German radio broadcast tapes.

Fritz Rieger

These two Orchestral Suites of J.S. Bach constitute some of the most joyous, very melodic and quite listenable music, both for newcomers to classical music and experienced connoisseurs who already find them infinitely re-listenable. The Second is scored mainly for strings and solo flute and has been recorded by such gifted tootlers as James Galway and Jean Pierre Rampal. The Third is a festive affair evoking the spirit of a holiday in which the entire orchestra, particularly the brass and percussion, display their wares. However, a special quieter movement is the soothing and delectable Air for the G String.

Fritz Rieger (1910-1978) was conductor of the Munich Philharmonic for over 25 years, beginning in 1941, before he took a position with the down under Melbourne Symphony in the land of duck-billed platypuses and Aborigines. (For those readers who are wondering about Munich, 1941, yes he was a member of the Nazi Party. But there is documentation that he kept his own hands clean and was de-Nazified quickly.)

The performances are very graceful and grandiose, truly living breathing renditions of an exceptional quality while the mono sound is vivid for its day, as German radio had magnetic tape several years before we did !

I have collected other recordings of Rieger and enjoy them a lot – the complete Mozart Magic Flute, Brahms 1st Concerto with pianist Witold Malcuzynski and the Robert Schumann A Minor Concerto with Rudolf Serkin. YouTube has several Rieger items, some of which I have posted recently, including an early ‘70s video of the Maestro rehearsing a Bach Concerto for 4 Pianos with three other now deceased conductors, Rafael Kubelik, Rudolf Kempe and Wolfgang Savallisch.

Against All Odds

Jeff Bridges

Rachel Ward

Soundtrack- composed by Michel Colombier; Atlantic 80152-1-E, stereo LP, recorded 1984.

I have never seen this Jeff Bridges/ Rachel Ward thriller but, having read the Wiki synopsis, am now curious. The soundtrack itself is a first class mishmash of instrumentals underscoring the action and individual tracks by Peter Gabriel, Stevie Nicks, Big Country, Mike Rutherford, Kid Creole and the Coconuts and, last but not least, the sublime Phil Collins hit, Take a Look at Me Now. The instrumentals by Colombier and Larry Carlton are powerful and soaringly eloquent. Recommended listening.

Bennie Moten

Bennie Moten’s Kansas City Jazz- X- EVAA-3004, ep 45 reissue, early ‘50s from Victor shellac 78s recorded December 13 and 14, 1926, in Chicago.

Bennie Moten

Bennie Moten (1894-1935), led an outstanding Kansas dance band that was, arguably, the most popular one in that burg for much of the 1920s and early ‘30s until Moten’s tragic 1935 early death from a botched tonsillectomy. The four numbers on this 45 – Kansas City Shuffle; Yazoo Blues, Midnight Blues, and Missouri Wabble – make for compelling listening. Every note is alive, every texture well articulated and the variety of sounds coming from my speakers, ranging from the spunky banjo picking of Sam Tall to the brass shadings of cornettists Ed Lewis and Lamar Wright; trombonist Thamon Hayes; and Abe Bolar on tuba, etc., gives this record its status as a classic.

IF WALLS COULD TALK, Week of June 22, 2017

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Katie Ouilette Wallsby Katie Ouilette

WALLS, you know very well that I used to own Lakewood-On-Lake Wesserunsett and because you know me well, you realize that I will tell you more about Lakewood’s history, but, right now, I just want to tell you about attending a Spiritualist meeting with a resident of Maplecrest, in Madison.

Oh, she was thoroughly enjoying every minute of what was being said. Yes, you are right that Spiritualists met in Lakewood’s Shanty when the Denis family were owners, but the new owners thought it best to give the Spiritualists one of the Lakewood cottages. So, you know why my Maplecrest resident wanted to “go home,” just as the speaker said that she had a message for me “from the unknown.” I was eager to hear who had a message for me, but Maplecrest’s rules dictated that, unless visiting the doctor, we accommodated the resident. Oh, well, so be it, but I shall always wonder who was sending me a message.

Y’know, WALLS, my grandfather Russell never missed a Spiritualist’s meeting and, though I have never been a believer, I thought about the messages that are referred to those attending the Spiritualists’ meeting, but, today, I was preparing all of your columns, WALLS, for the History House, in Skowhegan, and lo-and-behold, I had an October 2015 issue of The Town Line and the headline read, “Locals deal with paranormal activity.” Now, WALLS, you know I had read this, at the time, but my memory went to the Spiritualist meeting. There were people who had had “ghosts” appearing in their homes. What’s more, when I read, again, of the ‘piano playing’ and the house’s owner seeing a girl playing, I thought of my friend in New Jersey hearing someone playing the piano and singing in a second-story room of an antique home her family had purchased.

Then, memory broke my spell, WALLS. Do you remember when I was cooking and a coffee mug fell off the hook and landed straight up without breaking? Now, that mug remains where it landed and, for sure, that cup didn’t remove the hook that was keeping it in place, until plop!

Am I now a believer? No, but I’m sure curious about these strange things that happen to many of us, without warning and, for sure, without
reason.

Well, Walls, we sure have a long time to wait for The Town Line’s October issue, but, just in case our faithful readers have more paranormal experiences, remember that you read a bit about their existence. After all, do WALLS really talk?

SOLON & BEYOND, Week of June 22, 2017

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Marilyn Rogers-Bull & Percyby Marilyn Rogers-Bull & Percy
grams29@tds.net
Solon, Maine 04979

Good morning, dear friends. Don’t worry, be happy!

The Stewart Public Library, in North Anson, will hold its annual book sale on Saturday, June 24, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., at the North Anson Fire Station, rain or shine. Books, magazines, audio books, DVDs, and CDs will be available for sale. New this year is a small area hosted by the volunteers, of collectible and newer books at higher prices. This area will only be open 9 a.m. to noon. Come and stock up on your reading needs.

The monthly supper at the Embden Community Center will be held on Saturday, July 8, at 5 p.m.

There are many public meals being offered in North Anson during the month of July. Every year the North Anson Congregational Church does a public breakfast every Saturday morning from 7 – 10 a.m.,; this year the dates are July 1, 8, 15, 22 and 29.

The North Anson Methodist Church is having their baked bean, casserole and salad suppers on the following dates at 5 p.m. June 24, July 22, and July 29.

My thanks to all who sent me the news to share with all of you.

The other good news was the Solon School News which started out with, “Best Wishes to Fifth Graders.” We want to extend our best wishes and good luck to our fifth grade students who will enter sixth grade at Carrabec Community School in the fall.

The students attended a Step-Up-Day activity at CCS on June 6 with the other fifth graders from across the district. They met their teachers, saw the school, and did some team-building activities run by the high school’s JMG students.

“We will miss our fifth graders. We wish them the best of luck in the next step of their educational journey. Goodbye and Good luck to Emily Baker, Tehya Caplin, Jayden Cates, Dusty Corson, Sarah Craig, Cooper Dellarma, Sascha Evans, Reid Golden, Levi Hills, Nevaeh Holmes, Elisha Ireland, William Lawrence, Summer Lindblom, Jackson Pease, Alyssa Schinzel, Lucas Vicneire, Hailey Wyman and Dystany Young.

“The Solon Masons sponsored the second annual Bikes for Books program in the Solon Elementary School this spring. This program promotes reading among the K – 5 students. The program kicked off on April 24. Students read books and filled out a form on each book they read, putting the forms in large envelopes in their classrooms. On June 7, an assembly was held to do a drawing for a boy and a girl from each class. Each of those students won a new bike, helmet, and T-shirt provided by the Masons.

“At the assembly, Deputy Mike Pike went over bike safety with the students, especially the importance of wearing a bike helmet every time you ride.

“The students did a lot of reading in this second year of this great program. The total for the K through 5 readers was 410 books. Congratulation to these bike winners and the top readers in each class who received $ 15 Walmart gift cards.

“We appreciate the support of a community organization like the Masons to promote reading and fitness with our students.

“The winners were K students Maxx Caplin and Charlotte Hamilton; Grade 1, Amelia Cooper and Colton Enos; Grade 2 Riley Pelkey and Brice Agren; Grade 3 Macie Ploude and Aaron Soosman; Grade 4,Ciara Myers-Sleeper and Nick Wildes and Grade 5, Elisha Ireland and Dusty Corson. The Top Readers were David Dixon, Karen Baker, Charlotte Hamilton, Ciarrah Whiiemore, Delena Cabral, Amelia Cooper, Jayden Cates, and Dystany Young.”

And now for Percy’s memoir entitled: Love’s Laughter. “There is a place within each of us from which laughter springs. I think it must be somewhere awfully close to the heart. The thrill that leads us to laugh is surely connected to that which leads us to love. Each is as intertwined with the other as music and dance or prayer and devotion. Whether brought on by the candid honesty of a child or the wit of a sweetheart, laughter expresses love and appreciation for that person. And as it bubbles from within and rises to the surface, laughter becomes a manifestation of love.” How very true!

Bible study group holds last meeting of season

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On June 15, the Margaret Stotsenburg Bible Study group from the China Baptist Church had their last meeting until fall. It was a lovely breakfast with fruit, homemade breakfast casseroles and muffins. The group meets every Thursday morning at 9:30 a.m. in the church vestry for a time of Bible study, sharing and prayer. Any woman interested is invited to join when they resume in the fall, Thursday, September 7. This group began in the early 1970s and was named for the pastor’s wife who started it. It has been an important part of the church for over 45 years. Contributed photo

Give Us Your Best Shot! Week of June 15, 2017

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BUSY, BUSY, BUSY: Michael Bilinsky, of China Village, has been busy with his camera lately.

A great blue heron wades through the water near his home.

 

As a red squirrel chomps away on some food, a bird in a nearby nest watches carefully.

 

Two gold finch perch at a feeder, almost looking like a mirror image.

SCORES & OUTDOORS: Titmice taking over the feeders

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Roland D. HalleeSCORES & OUTDOORS

by Roland D. Hallee

It has already been a month since my wife and I moved to camp for the summer. With the annual trek comes the installation of the bird feeding stations that are all around us. We get the usual local congregations of chickadees, nuthatches, gold finches, blue jays, woodpeckers and occasional wanderers like the house finches, purple finches and grosbeaks.

However, this year, we have observed a noticeable influx of another species of bird that would, in the past, and at home also, be occasional visitors. That would be the Tufted Titmouse.

They have dominated the feeders, and we can hear their unmistakable calls from the cover of the woods. It is a resounding peter-peter-peter.

What has caused this increase in their numbers? Populations have boomed between 1966 and 2015, according to the North American Breeding Bird Survey. Partners in Flight estimate a global breeding population of 8 million with 100 percent living in the U.S. They are not on the 2016 State of North America’s Birds Watch List. The most probable reasons for the range expansion include a warming climate, reversion of farmlands to forests, and the growing popularity of backyard bird feeders. It’s a story we have heard over and over about these different species of birds that are migrating further north.

It is generally thought that tufted titmice, as of late, have become year-round residents of their range rather than migrating south.

The Tufted titmouse is a small bird with gray upper-parts and white underparts with a white face, a gray crest, a dark forehead and a short stout bill, with reddish-brown flanks.

Tufted titmice, Baeolophus bicolor, live in deciduous woods or mixed evergreen-deciduous woods, typically in areas with a dense canopy and many tree species. According to this, our camp is a haven for this species of bird. They are indiscriminate eaters. They eat mainly insects in the summer, and include seeds nuts and berries in their diet. Experiments with tufted titmice indicate they always choose the largest seeds they can when foraging. They typically hold the seed with their feet and hammer it open with their beaks. In fall and winter, they often hoard these shelled seeds in bark crevices.

tufted titmouse

tufted
titmouse

Like the chickadee, they can only take one seed per trip and usually shell the seeds before storing them.

While foraging, they hop among branches and twigs of trees, often hanging upside down, sometimes hovering momentarily.

The female will lay from five to six eggs, with sometimes as many as nine. The eggs are under an inch long and are white or cream-colored with brownish or purplish spots. The incubation is done by the female only. They will hatch is 12-14 days. The male will feed the young during the early days, but both parents will feed the chicks as they get older. The young will leave the nest in 15-16 days following their hatching.

Tufted titmice nest in a hole in a tree, either a natural cavity, a manmade nest box, or sometimes an old woodpecker nest.

The oldest known wild Tufted Titmouse was at least 13 years, three months old. It was banded in Virginia in 1962, and found in the same state in 1974.

There is always something going on with Mother Nature.
CHICKADEE UPDATE

If you recall, a couple of weeks back I told of a chickadee that had taken up residence in a long-abandoned bird house behind our camp. We hadn’t seen it in a couple of weeks, thinking the worse, after seeing a blue jay in the area. Well, she was spotted this weekend, in the bird house. We didn’t want to approach the house causing a disturbance. We can only assume there are eggs in there. We will continue to monitor the situation.

I’m Just Curious: Safe summer fun

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by Debbie Walker

It’s that time of year again. It’s the time of year when children want to play in the water. It is always intended to be wrapped up in fun and hopefully some learning.

Children reach a certain skill level in the water. It is somewhat different with each child even if they attended the same classes.
Please remember that children are never completely safe. They still make the wrong choices sometimes, even your teens (even adults sometimes!)

Part of all this I know because I was mom and dad’s water rat child. I loved the water, still do. There was one day when my cousin and I decided to see how far we could swim, we could swim out and then come back. We had gotten to the lake, across the road from my home, without knowledge of either mother. (We were tweens at this point) We were lucky that day. We thought turtles were nipping at our toes and we headed back to shore. Had it not been for the turtles (?) we might have stroked till we went as far as we could and might have used up our strength, oh maybe, mid-lake. There was no raft, etc. to rest on, just the other half of the lake. It might not have turned out well for us.

Please parents, grandparents and friends, remember children of all ages need careful supervision. Don’t rely on them hollering for “Help.” Drowning is usually ‘silent’ despite what some folks think. Please don’t leave them even for a minute. It’s just not safe.

I’m just curious if you would be comfortable asking me any water safety questions. I’m here at dwdaffy@yahoo.com.

I would like to tell you that we will be starting a new column: “IN CASE YOU WONDERED.” The plan is for it to be about a favorite subject of mine and I hope you will enjoy it. I am doing it on ‘uses’ of ordinary products used for surprising results. Some of it will be me answering questions others ask about the uses, feel free to e-mail me at dwdaffy@yahoo.com with any questions you may have or any odd-ball uses of things that you have found in the past. Lately one that surprised me was using “glow-in-the-dark” nail polish to mark a light switch that is difficult to find in the dark. It works! I found the nail polish on Amazon. I am going to paint my nails with it to show my little first graders tomorrow! (Some days I just have too much fun!)

I am hoping you will be looking for it every other week. Oh, and don’t forget we have an online version of The Town Line. You can read current copies and past columns in the archives.

Hope you enjoy the paper and your summer!

Composer: Ludwig von Beethoven; Dance Band: Russ Morgan; Vocal group: Peter, Paul and Mary

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Peter CatesREVIEW POTPOURRI

by Peter Cates

Beethoven

String Quartet No. 13, Op. 130 – Quartetto Italiano Angel 35064, 12-inch LP, recorded early ‘50s
.

Ludwig von Beethoven

Ludwig von Beethoven

The 16 String Quartets of Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) constitute some of the composer’s most powerful and beautiful music, especially the last five. 12, 13, 14, 15 and 16 were composed between 1823 or 1824, during a time when Beethoven was plagued by total deafness, a parasitic nephew, bad health, money, personality conflicts, the filth of his living quarters and other manure piles of aggravations, once in a while alleviated by a good day or two.

These Quartets mirror the manic ups and downs, victories and defeats and sideways in a most compelling, stirring manner. Among the paradoxes of Beethoven were the obstacles of his daily life, ones in which he either lacked the ability or willingness to confront; versus the discipline to compose not only the above Quartets, but also such creations as the 9th Symphony and Missa Solemnis while totally deaf.

The 13th Quartet is as good an example as any to begin with; I would suggest, especially to beginning listeners, to just turn on the music, sit back and let it happen. One can do the studying up later.

The Quartetto Italiano played this music totally by memory for the recording. And it is a very good performance, while the early ‘50s LP
sound is exemplary for its time.

Russ Morgan and his Wolverine Band

Everest SDBR 1095, stereo LP, recorded 1960.

Russ Morgan

Russ Morgan

Russ Morgan (1904 -1969) led one of the best dance bands during the ‘40s, ‘50s and ‘60s, until his death. The above LP, however, is a bit more animated than his usual standard. Wolverines being a clue, Morgan assembled a group of some of the finest sidemen active in ‘50s recording sessions, including trumpeter Dick Cathcart, clarinnettist Matty Matlock, guitarist George Van Epps, saxist Eddie Miller, etc. The rousing program includes such oldies as Mama’s Gone, Goodbye; Baby, Won’t You Please Come Home; That Da-Da Strain; Squeeze Me; etc., while the jacket is provided with informative notes by Morgan’s wife, Shirley, and son, David. Worth the search.

Peter, Paul and Mary

Warner Brothers, WS1449, stereo LP, recorded 1962.

Peter, Paul and Mary

PPand M were, arguably, one of the finest musical vocal groups in any genre. This first of several great albums during their initial seven- or eight-year run (followed by solo outings and intermittent reunions) still holds up incredibly well as a listening experience, even for myself who is no longer a folkie. My personal favorites are, and will always most likely be, 500 Miles, Its Raining, Cruel War and If I Had My Way, especially with the late Mary’s eloquent, haunting gifts of both phrasing the melodic line with both P’s deploying their own harmonies or vice versa.

Finally, their gifted music director, Milt Okun, who whipped the Chad Mitchell Trio into pristine shape for their own several Mercury albums, carefully and methodically honed, nurtured and led them to a level of success they would most likely have never achieved if they had been on their own.