SCORES & OUTDOORS: Mild winter sets the stage for “perfect storm” of summer pests, expert warns

/0 Comments/in /by
Roland D. Halleeby Roland D. Hallee

This week, this tidbit came in my email inbox. According to Smith’s Pest Management, be ready for a summer invasion of pests in Maine, following the state’s mild winter.

Maine’s mild winter may have been a welcome break from the cold, but according to one pest expert, it came with a hidden cost: a likely explosion in warm-weather pests this summer.

“We didn’t get the sustained cold snaps that normally help knock back insect populations,” says Zachary Smith, pest control expert and founder of Smith’s Pest Management. “That means more bugs survived the winter – and they’re going to come back with a vengeance.”

With above-average temperatures recorded across much of Maine this past winter – and fewer hard freezes than normal – the conditions were ideal for pests like mosquitoes and even cockroaches to overwinter and remain active beneath the surface.

“Winter is nature’s pest control,” Smith explains. “But when it’s too warm for too long, pests that would normally die off or go dormant just keep breeding. That sets the stage for bigger infestations come spring and summer.”

This year, Smith says Maine homeowners should brace for a range of unwanted guests:

Mosquitoes: “They need standing water and warmth – and we’ve already had both,” Smith says. “Expect them to appear earlier and in higher numbers than usual, especially after spring rains.”

Cockroaches: “Roaches love warmth and humidity, and they thrive when winter doesn’t drive them back. We’ve seen them in crawlspaces and basements all winter long,” says Smith.

Ticks and Fleas: Warmer conditions can extend the breeding season for ticks and fleas, putting both people and pets at risk.

Mild Winters: Why They Matter More Than We Think

Many homeowners associate pest problems with hot, muggy summer days, but Smith says what happens in winter often determines what’s crawling around by July.

“Insects and parasites have natural die-off cycles when it’s cold,” he explains. “When that reset button doesn’t get hit, you’re essentially starting the year with a full roster of pests ready to multiply.”

“By the time you start seeing pests in numbers, it’s usually the second or third generation,” Smith says. “It’s not just one roach or mosquito – it’s dozens or hundreds that were born weeks ago and have already laid eggs of their own.”

What Homeowners Can Do to Fight Back

The good news? With the right steps, homeowners can prevent pests from turning summer into a nightmare. Smith offers this advice:

1. Get Ahead of Mosquito Season.

“Walk your property and drain any standing water – gutters, birdbaths, flowerpot trays,” Smith says. “Even a bottle cap full of water can breed mosquitoes.”

2. Tidy Up the Yard.

Ticks love overgrown areas. “Keep your lawn mowed, trim shrubs, and clear debris piles,” Smith says. “It removes hiding spots and nesting grounds.”

3. Watch the Weather.

Warm, wet weeks are a breeding ground for pest outbreaks. “After a heavy rain, monitor for new ant mounds, insect swarms, or an uptick in mosquitoes,” he says.

4. Don’t Skip Crawlspaces and Attics

“Roaches and rodents often hide in dark, humid spaces,” Smith warns. “Do a quick check or call a pro to inspect those hard-to-reach spots.”

Urban and Rural Areas Equally at Risk

While farms and wooded areas may seem more vulnerable, Smith says pests don’t discriminate. “Cities are just as at risk,” he notes. “Urban neighborhoods have storm drains, standing water, and plenty of trash – all prime breeding zones.”

Even high-rises aren’t immune. “Roaches and rodents can travel through plumbing lines and walls. I’ve seen infestations on the tenth floor that started in the basement.”

A Mild Winter Doesn’t Mean a Mild Summer

If there’s one message Smith wants to get across, it’s that Maine’s easy winter shouldn’t lead to a false sense of security.

“Just because you didn’t see pests in January doesn’t mean they weren’t there,” he says. “They’ve been waiting – and now they’re ready.”

He encourages Maine homeowners to act early. “Pest control is a lot easier when you catch issues at the start,” Smith adds. “Wait too long, and it becomes a battle.”

Roland’s trivia question of the week:

In 2018, which former Red Sox outfielder was the first person eliminated on the TV show Dancing With the Stars?

Answer
Johnny Damon.

SCORES & OUTDOORS: The importance of vernal pools in the ecosystem

/0 Comments/in /by
Roland D. Halleeby Roland D. Hallee

While driving through the countryside, you may have noticed some small bodies of water that are there in the spring, but disappear as summer proceeds. These vernal pools are essential to our ecosystem.

Vernal pools provide important breeding habitat for select amphibians and insects, spiders, and crustaceans.

Vernal pools are typically small, temporary wetlands – often less than one acre. Even though vernal pools may only fill with water for a short time in spring and fall, and often dry out by mid-late summer, their ecological significance for wildlife plays a much larger role.

What draws these specialized species to breed in such temporary pools? It’s actually something the pools don’t have: fish and breeding populations of predaceous frogs like Green and Bull Frogs. Relatively isolated from streams and subject to periodic drying, vernal pools provide a breeding haven with greatly reduced predator populations for eggs as they develop into newly hatched frogs and salamanders.

Wood frogs, spotted and blue-spotted salamanders, four-toed salamanders, and fairy shrimp all experience higher rates of breeding success in vernal pools as compared with permanent waters. Other amphibians, such as “spring” peepers and American toads, also sometimes breed in vernal pools, and others use them for resting and feeding, such as gray treefrogs, green frogs, and bullfrogs, along with a myriad of reptiles, birds, and mammals – including garter snakes, great blue herons, raccoons, and even moose. That’s because vernal pools provide a rich assortment of food, including egg masses; adult breeding amphibians, larvae, and emerging young; fingernail clams and predatory diving beetles; and fresh spring vegetation emerging before frozen lakes and ponds even thaw.

In late summer, when the pool is dry or nearly dry, all this life either dies off, becomes dormant, or moves into the surrounding upland. Young wood frogs and spotted and blue-spotted salamanders leave the pool and head into the forest, where they spend most of their life. Wood frogs may move into forested wetlands for the rest of the summer and then to upland areas to overwinter under the leaf litter. Salamanders move into shrew burrows or other tunnels where they sit and wait for food to walk past while they are safely hidden from most predators. The amazing amount of life emerging from these pools each year exceeds that of all the neighboring birds and small mammals combined on a per acre basis, and thus provides an important food source for larger animals from the surrounding forest, including raccoons, coyotes, snakes, hawks, turkeys, and numerous other predators.

The same temporary nature that makes vernal pools unique breeding habitat also puts them at high risk of habitat loss and degradation, especially from development. Without water for much of the year, vernal pools can be easy to miss. They can also fall through gaps in existing state and federal wetland regulations that are better designed to protect larger, more permanent wetlands. The ‘cream of the crop’ vernal pools in Maine qualify as Significant Vernal Pools under the Natural Resources Protection Act (NRPA), and as such there can be no development in the pool itself and limited development around the pool, but the rules don’t protect the full suite of habitats that vernal pool wildlife use, including breeding, summering, and wintering habitats. Many others pools that harbor wildlife don’t receive any protection under the NRPA, and recent changes to federal wetland rules leaves most vernal pools without any protection.

There are many ways to help vernal pool ecosystems. Regulation is just one of them. That’s why Maine Audubon, along with the University of Maine, state and federal agencies, and others, have worked hard over the past 20 years to find multiple ways to help conserve these amazing wildlife havens.

Are you going above and beyond the minimum requirements to conserve vernal pools on your property? Contact Phil Keefe at pkeefe@maineaudubon.org for more information on earning a Stewardship Award.

Roland’s trivia question of the week:

Only two teams have more World Series titles than the Red Sox. Which two?

Answer
New York Yankees with 27, St.Louis Cardinals, 11.

SCORES & OUTDOORS: Watch for those turtles crossing the roads

/0 Comments/in /by

Snapping turtle

Roland D. Halleeby Roland D. Hallee

“It’s that time of year, again.” Probably one of the most over used phrases in the English language, and one that I loathe to hear. Why? Because when you come right down to it, everyday is that time of year for something. Anyway, here we go.

It’s that time of the year again when snapping turtles appear everywhere to lay their eggs. Snapping turtles, Chelydra s. serpentina, range across the eastern United States to the Rocky Mountains, from southern Canada to the Gulf of Mexico, and into Central America.

The snapping turtle can be easily recognized by its dark upper shell with a deeply serrated back margin, and a small bottom shell that does not completely cover all of the animal’s flesh. The upper shell can measure between 8 – 12 inches in length on average in adults, and it can weigh between 10-35 pounds. These turtles have long tails, often measuring as long or longer than the shell, and is covered with bony plates. They also have a large head, long neck, and a sharp, hooked upper jaw. This hard beak has a rough cutting edge that is used for tearing food.

Once turtles mature and their shell hardens, they are virtually predator-free.

If you see a snapping turtle crossing the road, and decide to help it out, always make sure you relocate it on the side of the road in which it was headed. If not, it will only try to cross the road again. It’s obviously headed in a direction that is important to it. Always use caution when picking up one. Place your thumbs in the center of the upper shell, and the rest of your hand on its stomach. Be careful not to make contact with its mouth. It could be painfully uncomfortable if it were to bite you.

Never use a broom or shovel to help it along, as you could injure the turtle.

The female turtle will lay eggs in sandy, soft soil between April and November, depending on its location. In our area, they usually lay their eggs in May and June. That is why the shoulder of a road looks inviting to them. Be on the lookout, and try to avoid the nest. The female will generally lay between 10 and 50 eggs, and they take three to four months to hatch. Interestingly, eggs incubated at 68 degrees will produce only females; eggs maintained at 70-72 degrees will produce both male and female and those incubated at 73-75 degrees produce only males.

The female will dig a nest, lay the eggs, using her back feet to position them, and then bury the clutch. That makes the nest extremely vulnerable, and is usually a target for raccoons who consider the turtle eggs a delicacy. Skunks, crows, dogs and other mammals are also culprits. It is estimated that up to 90 percent of the nests are destroyed by predators. Countless turtles are also killed or injured on roads during their terrestrial treks. Despite this high rate of mortality, snapping turtles are not endangered, although some states have placed a ban on harvesting them.

Despite pleas from Maine top turtle trappers, the advisory council of the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife (MDIF&W) has voted unanimously to outlaw the commercial harvest of snapping turtles. The commissioner has been a consistent supporter of a ban, to ensure the sustainability of snappers, which don’t breed until 20 years of age in the north. Although there seems to be no reason to believe snapping turtles are threatened with extinction in Maine, there is reason to be concerned about the viability of the population,.

Snapping turtles typically live until between 20 and 50 years of age in captivity, although records are poor as to the actual longevity of turtles in the wild. Some studies have indicated that snapping turtles can live well over 100 years.

However, turtles are not innocent victims. They may cause depredation at privately-owned ponds, fish farms, or waterfowl sanctuaries and control methods may be warranted. They will feed on plants, insects, spiders, worms, fish, frogs, small turtles, snakes, birds, crayfish, small mammals and carrion.

It’s important to be on the lookout for turtles this time of year. By driving defensively and keeping alert to conditions on the road, motorists should be able to avoid hitting a turtle.

Roland’s trivia question of the week:

Which Red Sox shortstop’s .372 batting average (529 at-bats, 197 hits in 2000) is the best in team history by a right handed hitter?

Answer
Nomar Garciaparra.

SCORES & OUTDOORS: The debate over mountain lions in Maine continues

/0 Comments/in /by

Mountain Lion

Roland D. Halleeby Roland D. Hallee

Over the last several months I have been receiving emails, doing research and gathering information on the possibility of mountain lions in Maine.

Of course, the first question is “are there mountain lions in Maine?”

Here is an email I received and published in the September 20, 2023 issue of The Town Line:

It came from Brian and Colby Prescott, of Windham:

“Was reading an article you wrote about mountain lions in Maine from a couple years back and thought I’d relay a sighting from the other day, September 1, 2023.

“My son and I were camping at the Bemis Stream Prospect Camp location just north of Byron off Route 17. It’s right where Bemis Road crosses Bemis Stream.

“We were at the first camp site that’s down lower than the road. The brook was high and the water was fairly loud. We were huddling around the Coleman burner to warm up at about 6:30 in the evening, and my son tapped me on the shoulder. I looked up towards the road and sure enough, a mountain lion walked by. It was unmistakable. The size was approximately 150 lbs. It had giant paws and the tail was absolutely enormous. Thick, and it curved down to almost the ground. We were able to view the large cat for only five seconds or so, so unfortunately, no picture. The color was a sandy brown. Needless to say, I was in shock for several seconds. We waited for 20 minutes in the truck before settling into the tent for the night!

“My son and I looked for tracks early the next morning, but only found bear tracks with five claws. We got pictures of the paw print, but pretty sure it was just a bear.

“I met a neighbor from Mooslookmeguntic Lake walking his dog and immediately mentioned the sighting, although I knew the chances of it being nearby were very slim. He was very interested and said he would look for signs of the cat. Meanwhile, we drove over to Devil’s Den to explore that area.

“This person walked by our camp site later in the morning and mentioned he found some scat and was hoping to get it tested to see if it was from a mountain lion. I unfortunately did not think to get his name or number at the time. Needless to say, my son and I were super excited to have experienced the sighting. I never in my 16 years of camping in that area ever experienced anything like that!”

So, are there Mountain Lions in Maine? Maybe, Maybe Not . . .

The short answer is no. According to a-z-animals.com, at one point, in history mountain lions did actually walk the ground in Maine. Luckily for our smaller pets, they no longer have a place here. They are officially listed as extirpated from Maine, and the state’s last known mountain lion died in 1932.

Mountain lions, also called cougars, catamounts or pumas, are large felines that are native to the Americas. They once roamed from coast to coast in the United States, but today they are mostly found in the western states.

Now, that brings us to recent emails.

Photo of paw print sent by Donalee Dolan.

Donalee Dolan, of Nobleboro, sent along this note, with photos. “ The scat was on the same property in Nobleboro where I found the track I previously sent picture of. My neighbors have reported seeing the cat. I’m fairly sure I heard it one night around 3 a.m.

I have since been sitting outside at 3 a.m. and heard tramping through the brush and a series of cries that gave me a primordial fear. I slowly went back inside.”

There have been occasional sightings of Maine mountain lions over the years, but it is uncertain whether there is a breeding population in the state.

So, are there mountain lions in Maine? One thing is for sure: if there are any cougars in the state, state wildlife experts contend they are most likely solitary animals that are just passing through.

Several years ago, my son, who lives in a remote area of Rome, told me of seeing a large, buff colored cat, with a long, club-like tail, with a black tip, that dragged on the ground, crossed his driveway from the woods on one side, to more woods on the other.

Credible witnesses with lots of outdoor experience insist on the presence of mountain lions in Maine. So, unfortunately, there is no easy definitive answer, yet. Officially, according to state wildlife experts, there are no mountain lions in Maine. However, there has been at least one official sighting and one Class 2 confirmation of mountain lions in Maine.

Picture of scat sent by Donalee Dolan.

Mountain lions were classified as extinct in the 1920s and 1930s across the eastern states. In Maine, the last official mountain lion was shot by a hunter in 1938.

I have researched this subject many times and keep coming up with the same conclusion. Credible eyewitnesses vs. the state biologists: Which do you want to believe? There are photographs out there, but mostly are pooh-poohed by state “experts”. “Inconclusive photos”, hoaxes or staged. Those are the answers you will get from state officials. And now, with AI, will it ever be certain.

I for one, believe there are mountain lions in Maine because, even though I have never actually sighted one, have seen their tracks in snow and mud, in the northern area of Harrington Lake. Unmistakable, feline prints, the size of my hand. That is not a house cat, and too large to be bobcat or lynx.

But, unofficially, the jury is still out.

So, now, we’ll take a look at another email I received:

Betsy Jackson, of the Toothaker Road, in Phillips, wrote this:

“Tonight about 8 p.m., my son and I saw something cross the road, neither of us knew what it was. We went back and looked where he went in the woods. I had a flashlight and spotted it. It was quite close to us, maybe 15 feet or so, had a very long tail, and was large. It was just sitting there looking at us, then got up and walked away, so I got a good look at him. He looked like a real lion and was quite large. The thing that identified him was his very long tail, which he dragged behind him on the ground. I’m sure this was a mountain lion.”

But state biologist insist there is no known breeding population of mountain lions (also called cougars or pumas) in Maine. While cougars were once native to the state and were extirpated in the late 1800s, there are no established populations currently. However, there have been reports of cougar sightings in Maine, and some people believe there may be a small, dispersing population, according to University of Maine at Presque Isle..

The Canada Lynx is claimed to be the largest feline in Maine and has been listed in Maine as a federally threatened species.

Now, V. Paul Reynolds, of the Northwoods Sporting Journal, wrote in an article:

“As editor of the official magazine for the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife (MDIF&W), the same question was addressed by me in an article that sought to dig deep and find credible answers.

“At the time, despite a number of anecdotal cougar-sighting reports from citizens, state and federal wildlife biologists and research people remained highly skeptical. On one occasion, a Maine Allagash Waterway visitor insisted that he had seen a cougar crossing the waterway. The “witness” had taken what he claimed was solid evidence: a color 35 mm slide. Biologist and wildlife director Ken Elowe agreed to study the image carefully and render a verdict.

“As information officer for MDIF&W I was included in the effort to carefully study the photo of what was claimed to be a mountain lion standing on the banks of the Allagash Waterway. My recollection is that the Department borrowed a special forensics microscopic device from the Maine State Police. Biologists used the device to really zoom in on the mysterious critter. The device also had an enhancement option that brought some induced clarity to the somewhat fuzzy photo.

“The official verdict? Not a lion, a fisher. My further recollection is that the well-intentioned fellow who saw his “cat” and took the photo was not pleased with the official determination, and left in a huff, and like so many others who have reported to have seen the elusive cats, insisted, “ I know what I saw. It sure as hell was not a fisher, it was a cat!”

“Not a lot has changed in 25 years, at least not in terms of empirical evidence or the official positions of Maine and federal wildlife biologists when it comes to the presence of mountain lions or cougars in Maine.

“Two key players from the biologists ranks are Mark McCollough, the endangered species specialist from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife service, in Orland, and Nathan Webb, wildlife director for MDIF&W. Webb’s Department, lists its cougar position in one short sentence on the MDF&W website: ‘No known cougar populations exist in Maine.’”

The big question is, what will we solve first, the presence of mountain lions in Maine or the existence of Sasquatch?

So, are there Mountain Lions in Maine? Officially, no. Unofficially, ??????.

Roland’s trivia question of the week:

Who was the last Boston Red Sox to lead the American League in home runs, Manny Ramirez or David Ortiz?

Answer
David Ortiz hit 54 home runs in 2006. Manny Ramirez led the league in 2004, with 43 home runs.

SCORES & OUTDOORS: Surveillance report from UMaine Extension Tick Lab highlights tick-borne disease risk

/0 Comments/in /by

deer tick

Roland D. Halleeby Roland D. Hallee

In 2024, University of Maine Cooperative Extension Tick Lab processed 4,776 tick submissions including samples from 398 towns, representing all of Maine’s 16 counties. The majority (3,650) were identified as deer ticks, also known as blacklegged ticks, while American dog ticks accounted for 1,045 samples. Laboratory testing showed that 41.5 percent of the deer ticks analyzed carried Borrelia burgdorferi, the bacterium that causes Lyme disease, while significant proportions also carried Babesia microti (12 percent), Anaplasma phagocytophilum (9.7 percent) and Powassan virus (1.1 percent).

Most tick exposures occurred close to home with 68 percent reported from the submitter’s own property. Yardwork was the most commonly cited activity at the time of tick encounter, accounting for one‑third of all incidents. Despite this, only 16 percent of individuals reported using any protective measures against ticks.

“These data confirm that Lyme and other tick‑borne diseases remain a serious, statewide public health concern,” said Tick Lab Coordinator Griffin Dill, who urged residents to wear protective clothing, apply repellents and conduct tick checks after outdoor activities. The full 16-page report is available on the Tick Lab’s website.

Thanks to ongoing funding supported by the Governor and Maine Legislature, the UMaine Extension Tick Lab keeps its comprehensive tick testing service affordable at just $20 per tick, ensuring that cost is not a barrier to public participation.

Through educational outreach programs including the 4‑H Tick Project, the Tick Lab engages youth and communities statewide, sharing practical prevention strategies through webinars, workshops and print resources.

Lyme Disease

Lyme disease is the most known of the tickborne illnesses. It is transmitted through the bite of an infected deer tick. Cases of Lyme disease have more than tripled since 1993 according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Lyme disease causes a rash that looks like a bullseye. It also causes flu-like symptoms, such as fever, chills, headache, fatigue, and muscle aches.

Lyme disease may evolve through phases, which can overlap and cause ever worsening symptoms that may involve the skin, joints, heart, or nervous system.

Antibiotics are effective treatments for Lyme disease when detected early.

Protect Yourself

Remember, ticks can typically be found in grassy, brushy, or wooded areas, or on animals. They typically wait on the tips of branches, leaves, or tall grasses for prey to walk by.

A tick’s saliva has anesthetic properties, so you may not even realize you’ve been bitten.

When spending time outdoors, be aware of your surroundings and the possibility of ticks in the area. Wear insect repellent with DEET. If you must be in a grassy or wooded area, wear long sleeves and long pants. Tucking your pants into your socks for extra protection. Shower immediately after being outside. Ask someone check your body for ticks. If you find a tick on your body, time is of the essence!   Use fine-tipped tweezers to grasp it by the head as close to the skin as possible. Gently pull the tick upward, making sure not to twist or squeeze it. Wash and disinfect the area with rubbing alcohol or soap and water.

Save the tick!

Take a photo of the tick and submit to a tick identification website which can inform you of the potential pathogens it could be carrying and whether you might want to have the tick tested as a further assessment of disease risk.

Protection is the key, however, if you do come in contact with a tick, don’t wait. If you’re not sure, seek professional medical help.

More information on ticks in Maine and how to submit tick samples to the lab is available online at ticks.umaine.edu or by contacting 207.581.3880; tickID@maine.edu.

Roland trivia question of the week:

Which NBA team has won the most championships?

Answer
Boston Celtics, with 18.

SCORES & OUTDOORS: One in three Mainers admits they have lost interest in playing sports

/0 Comments/in /by
Roland D. Halleeby Roland D. Hallee

Recently, LiveSportsonTV.com sent along this statistic. It’s truly disturbing that Americans have gone to couch surfing as their national pastime.

I used to participate in many sports in my younger years – softball, golf, tennis, table tennis, hockey, volleyball – to name a few. One of the more interesting games was walleyball, where you play volleyball in a handball court using the walls – pretty intense.

Today, I only play golf, for various reasons. As you can see, it’s a matter of not having the stamina and dexterity I once had. Also, the facilities are not what they used to be. Outdoor tennis facilities have diminished, and the softball and hockey leagues have been long gone for quite some time. (I played softball and hockey into my 50s.)

So, here is what the survey had to say:

Americans are increasingly trading sneakers for screens, as the rise of technology has made it easier than ever to watch sports instead of play them. With live games, instant replays, and highlight reels available on phones, tablets, and every social media platform imaginable, the thrill of the game now comes in bite-sized, bingeable formats. While stadiums still fill up, backyards and parks are quieter – people are far more likely to stream a game than join one. The convenience of watching has outpaced the effort of participating.

LiveSportsonTV.com set out to measure just how much this trend has shifted, polling 3,024 adults to find out how many have lost interest in actually playing sports.

The findings paint a telling picture. Over 1-in-3 (36 percent) of Mainers say they have lost interest in playing sports. This compares to a national average of 36 percent. LiveSportsonTV.com also asked, “If you had an hour to spend on sports, would you rather play or watch?” In Maine, 73 percent picked watching over playing – a stat that might make gym teachers everywhere wince.

Losing the Love – and What Might Bring It Back

So, what’s stopping people from playing – and what might get them off the couch and back in the game? The survey paints a clear picture of both the practical and emotional hurdles standing in the way of participation.

A significant portion of respondents said they’d be far more likely to play if they had friends or a group to join, highlighting the deeply social nature of sports. In fact, nearly half of all participants pointed to this as their main barrier, suggesting that loneliness – or simply lacking a go-to crew – may be benching more would-be players than we realize.

Time was another major obstacle. Over a quarter of people surveyed admitted that their schedules just don’t allow for regular play. Between the demands of work, family obligations, and the ever-present lure of streaming platforms, carving out even an hour for something like pickup basketball feels increasingly difficult.

Access was also a recurring theme. About one in six respondents said they simply don’t have enough local options or facilities nearby. If the nearest court requires a long drive or if the local league folded years ago, it’s no surprise that motivation starts to wane.

Roland’s trivia question of the day:

With Garrett Crochet flirting with a no-hitter last Sunday, who was the last Red Sox pitcher to hurl a no-hitter?

Answer
Jon Lester, May 19, 2008.

SCORES & OUTDOORS: The advantages of having Bobolinks around

/0 Comments/in /by

Bobolink

Roland D. Halleeby Roland D. Hallee

A couple of weeks ago a friend asked me about the songbird, Bobolink, and are there any in Maine. Well, bobolinks and other grassland birds are true agricultural allies to central Maine farmers – they eat large quantities of insects that damage crops.

The Bobolink is one of the world’s most impressive songbird migrants, traveling some 12,500 miles to and from southern South America every year. Throughout its lifetime, it may travel the equivalent of four or five times around the circumference of the earth.

The species name of the Bobolink means “rice eating” and refers to this bird’s appetite for rice and other grains, especially during migration and in winter.

A migrating Bobolink can orient itself with the earth’s magnetic field, thanks to iron oxide in bristles of its nasal cavity and in tissues around the olfactory bulb and nerve. Bobolinks also use the starry night sky to guide their travels.

The strange common name is frequently traced back to a 19th century poem by William Cullen Bryant in which he refers to the bird as “Robert of Lincoln.” The name comes both from the Bobolink’s “reverse-tuxedo” pattern of mostly black with a white back, as well as 19th century English speakers’ insistence they heard the name within the bird’s song, not something that is easy to do. That mouthful was eventually shortened to “Bob of Lincoln”, and then again to “Bob o’ Linc”, giving us the bird’s modern name. They were also often called “ricebirds” thanks to their propensity to consume and live near the crop, which provided an excellent addition to their typical diet that includes a heavy dose of grass seeds.

Today, Bobolinks can still be found near farmland provided it includes unkempt edges for nesting, but their preferred habitat is in the pockets of native grassland.

Perched on a grass stem or displaying in flight over a field, breeding male Bobolinks are striking. No other North American bird has a white back and black underparts (some have described this look as wearing a tuxedo backwards). Added to this are the male’s rich, straw-colored patch on the head and his bubbling, virtuosic song. As summer ends he molts into a buff and brown female-like plumage. Though they’re still fairly common in grasslands, Bobolink numbers are declining.

It’s easiest to find Bobolinks if you look for males giving their display flights during spring and early summer. In grassy or overgrown fields and pastures, listen for a long, burbling song punctuated with sharp metallic notes. The male Bobolink often sings this song while flying in a peculiar helicopter-like pattern, moving slowly with his wings fluttering rapidly. Outside of the breeding season, look for these in rice fields and listen for their sharp pink call notes.

If there’s breeding habitat of grassy pasture or overgrown fields near your home, Bobolinks may visit open yards to forage on seed-bearing weeds.

Bobolink molt twice a year, completely changing all their feathers on both the breeding and wintering grounds. When the male grows new feathers on the wintering grounds they all have yellowish tips, so he still looks like a nonbreeding bird. Eventually the pale tips wear off to reveal his striking black-and-white breeding colors.

Normally a daylight forager, the Bobolink sometimes feeds after dark on bright nights during migration, to build fat reserves for its long flight over the Gulf of Mexico.

Bobolinks are related to blackbirds, which are often polygynous, meaning that males may have several mates per breeding season. Bobolinks are polygynous, too – but they’re also often polyandrous: each clutch of eggs laid by a single female may have multiple fathers.

The oldest Bobolink on record was a female known to be at least nine years old.

The Bobolink was immortalized by nineteenth-century American poet William Cullen Bryant, in a poem titled Robert of Lincoln. The poem recounts the events of “Bob-o-‘Link’s” nesting season, describing the male’s flashy coat and song, the female’s modest attire and subdued voice, and the six purple-flecked eggs that hatch into nestlings.

Roland’s trivia question of the week:

Who is the only defenseman in NHL history to lead the league in scoring? Hint: He did it twice.

Answer
Bobby Orr, of the Boston Bruins. He registered 120 points in 1969-70 and 135 points, in 1974-75. He recorded over 100 points in a season six times.

SCORES & OUTDOORS: Starling population the third most abundant in North America

/0 Comments/in /by

European starling

Roland D. Halleeby Roland D. Hallee

Last week while looking out my kitchen window, I observed a flock of starlings that had settled in a nearby tree. There were so many, it looked like the tree was completely leafed out with its summer dress. There had to be dozens of them. It reminded me of many years ago when I had some thick brush in my backyard. Dozens of starlings would show up to feed.

The common starling, Sturnus vulgaris, also known as the European starling, or in the British Isles just the starling, is a medium-sized bird about eight inches long and has glossy black plumage with a metallic sheen, which is speckled with white at some times of year. The legs are pink and the bill is black in winter and yellow in summer; young birds have browner plumage than the adults. It is a noisy bird, especially in communal roosts and other gregarious situations, with an unmusical but varied song. Its gift for mimicry has been noted in literature including the Mabinogion and the works of Pliny the Elder and William Shakespeare.

The common starling has been introduced to Australia, New Zealand, Canada, United States, Mexico, Peru, Argentina, the Falkland Islands, Brazil, Chile, Uruguay, South Africa and Fiji.

Large flocks typical of this species can be beneficial to agriculture by controling pests; however, starlings can also be pests themselves when they feed on fruit and sprouting crops. Common starlings may also be a nuisance through the noise and mess caused by their large urban roosts. The species has declined in numbers, despite this, its huge global population is not thought to be declining significantly, so the common starling is classified as being of least concern by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. The European starling ranks third, behind only the red-winged blackbird and the American robin, as the most abundant species in North America.

After two failed attempts, about 60 common starlings were released in 1890 into New York’s Central Park by Eugene Schieffelin. He was president of the American Acclimatization Society, which tried to introduce every bird species mentioned in the works of William Shakespeare into North America. The original 60 birds have since swelled in number to 150 million, occupying an area extending from southern Canada and Alaska to Central America.

The global population of common starlings was estimated to be 310 million individuals in 2004, occupying a total area of 3,420,000 square miles.

Although flock size is highly variable, huge, noisy flocks may form near roosts. These dense concentrations of birds are thought to be a defense against attacks by birds of prey such as peregrine falcons. Flocks form a tight sphere-like formation in flight, frequently expanding and contracting and changing shape, seemingly without any sort of leader. Each common starling changes its course and speed as a result of the movement of its closest neighbors.

A majority of starling predators are avian. Their ability in flight are seldom matched by birds of prey. Adult common starlings are hunted by hawks. Slower raptors tend to take the more easily caught fledglings or juveniles. While perched in groups by night, they can be vulnerable to owls.

Common starlings are hosts to a wide range of parasites. A survey of three hundred common starlings from six U.S. states found that all had at least one type of parasite; 99 percent had external fleas, mites or ticks, and 95 percent carried internal parasites, mostly various types of worm. Blood-sucking species leave their host when it dies, but other external parasites stay on the corpse.

Common starlings introduced to areas such as Australia or North America, where other members of the genus are absent, may have an impact on native species through competition for nest holes. In North America, chickadees, nuthatches, woodpeckers, purple martins and other swallows may be affected. For its role in the decline of local native species and the damages to agriculture, the common starling has been included in the IUCN List of the world’s 100 worst invasive species.

Common starlings can eat and damage fruit in orchards such as grapes, peaches, olives, currants and tomatoes or dig up newly-sown grain and sprouting crops. They may also eat animal feed and distribute seeds through their droppings. Agricultural damage in the U.S. is estimated as costing about $800 million annually. This bird is considered to be damaging to agriculture the United States.

The large size of flocks can also cause problems. Common starlings may be sucked into aircraft jet engines, one of the worst instances of this being an incident in Boston in 1960, when 62 people died after a turboprop airliner flew into a flock and plummeted into the sea at Winthrop Harbor.

Starlings’ droppings can contain the fungus Histoplasma capsulatum, the cause of histoplasmosis in humans. At roosting sites this fungus can thrive in accumulated droppings. There are a number of other infectious diseases that can potentially be transmitted by common starlings to humans, although the potential for the birds to spread infections may have been exaggerated.

The common starling’s gift for mimicry has long been recognized. In the medieval Welsh Mabinogion, Branwen tamed a common starling, “taught it words,” and sent it across the Irish Sea with a message to her brothers, Bran and Manawydan, who then sailed from Wales to Ireland to rescue her. Pliny the Elder claimed these birds could be taught to speak whole sentences in Latin and Greek, and in Henry IV, William Shakespeare had Hotspur declare, “The king forbade my tongue to speak of Mortimer. But I will find him when he is asleep, and in his ear I’ll holler ‘Mortimer!’ Nay I’ll have a starling shall be taught to speak nothing but Mortimer, and give it to him to keep his anger still in motion.”

Mozart had a pet common starling which could sing part of his Piano Concerto in G Major (KV. 453). He had bought it from a shop after hearing it sing a phrase from a work he wrote six weeks previously.

After all of this, I wonder where the starling fits in our ecosystem. Is it beneficial, is it destructive to agriculture, is it a carrier of disease, or is it smart enough to learn Mozart? Whatever the outcome, I hope the sweet peas make it to fruition.

Roland’s trivia question of the week:

Who won the Rumble in the Jungle, Muhammad Ali or George Foreman?

Answer
Muhammad Ali, in Kinshasa, Zaire, October 30, 1974.

SCORES & OUTDOORS: The frightening and harmless earwigs

/0 Comments/in /by
Roland D. Halleeby Roland D. Hallee

Recently, someone showed me a photograph of an insect they alleged bit one of their children. They wanted to know what it was and whether it was harmful. It didn’t take long for me to identify it as an earwig.

Earwigs are a relatively small group of insects. Earwigs often upset people when discovered indoors. Their forcep-like tail appendages make them look dangerous, but they are quite harmless. Earwigs run rapidly around baseboards, and they may emit a foul-smelling, yellowish-brown liquid from their scent glands when disturbed or crushed. Earwigs are mainly active at night, usually hiding during the daytime. They’re often found in clusters hiding in dark crevices like door or window frames.

Earwigs normally live outdoors and do not establish themselves indoors, though the ringlegged earwig is a common resident in greenhouses. Earwigs are harmless to humans and animals, though if picked up and restrained, adult earwigs can give a slight pinch with the forceps. While mainly predaceous on other insects, earwigs often feed on flower petals, soft vegetables and fruits, or seedling plants when hot and dry conditions persist.

The name earwig actually comes from an Old English name, which was derived from the superstition that earwigs can enter your ears at night and burrow into your brain to lay eggs. This belief is totally unfounded, though earwigs will occasionally seek out ear canals of campers as dark, moist hiding places. This can obviously be a traumatic experience!

Adults of the European earwig are usually winged, while the ringlegged earwigs are wingless. If wings are present, the first pair are hard, short, and scale-like, while the second pair are membranous, fan-shaped, and folded under the hard first pair of wings. Tips of the second pair of wings usually protrude from under the first pair. The European earwig ranges from 1/2 to 3/4 inch long, with banded legs and a reddish head. The ringlegged earwig ranges from 1/2 to 3/5 inch long and is black-yellowish underneath with legs having white crossbands at the joints. Young earwigs (nymphs) are similar to adults except the nymphs lack wings and the cerci are short.

Earwigs develop from egg to adult through gradual, or incomplete, metamorphosis with four to five nymphal instars. Generally, most earwigs lay eggs in late winter into early spring in chambers in the ground, under logs, or under stones. Usually, 20 to 50 smooth, oval, pearly-white or cream-colored eggs are produced. The female moves, cleans, and provides maternal care by protecting the eggs and new young until the first molt.

When spring weather is suitable, the female makes an opening to the soil surface where the young nymphs can leave the nest and forage for food. The small nymphs often return to their burrow during the day, but soon they are large enough to fend for themselves without a burrow. Earwigs are active at night and are often found around lights preying on other small insects that come to lights. During the day, earwigs hide in moist, shady places beneath stones, boards, sidewalks, and debris. They are rapid runners and feed on mosses, lichens, algae, fungi, insects, spiders, and mites, both dead and alive.

Earwigs rarely fly and are unable to crawl long distances, but they often hitchhike in laundry baskets, cut flowers, luggage, newspapers, lumber, baskets of fruits and vegetables, automobiles, etc. They prefer moisture and may migrate indoors during periods of prolonged heat and drought. Forceps at the end of the abdomen are used to defend the nest, capture prey, probe narrow crevices, and fold or unfold wings.

If earwigs are persistently invading a home or building, one should first attempt to control the earwigs outdoors. Since earwigs breed in soil chambers and spaces under landscape stones and timbers, reducing mulch layers and landscape structures can help reduce populations.

During dry, hot weather, earwigs sometimes migrate indoors in search of cool and moist habitat. They are easily killed by residual insecticide treatments in cracks and crevices, along baseboards, beneath cabinets, along door and window sills, and in other hiding places during the day. Unfortunately, control will be short-term due to new earwig entry from outdoors. Therefore, the best strategy is to better seal around doors and windows, which serve as the major entry points.

They are plentiful, ominous looking, but they are harmless to humans. I just don’t care to be pinched by one.

Roland’s trivia question of the week:

Which major league players were known by these nicknames. 1. The Splendid Splinter. 2. The Bambino. 3. Charlie Hustle. 4. The Say Hey Kid.

Answer
1. Ted Williams, 2. Babe Ruth. 3. Pete Rose. 4. Willie Mays.

SCORES & OUTDOORS: Arrival of the Red-Winged Blackbird sure sign of spring

/0 Comments/in /by

Red-winged Blackbird

Roland D. Halleeby Roland D. Hallee

More and more in recent days, I have seen and heard of the return of the red-winged blackbird. It is the first of migrating birds to return in the spring. A sure sign that spring is near.

The red-winged blackbird is one of the most abundant birds across North America, and one of the most boldly colored, the red-winged blackbird is a familiar sight atop cattails, along soggy roadsides, and on telephone wires. Glossy-black males have scarlet-and-yellow shoulder patches they can puff up or hide depending on how confident they feel. Females are a subdued, streaky brown, almost like a large, dark sparrow. Their early and tumbling song are happy indications of the return of spring.

You can find red-winged blackbirds in the breeding season by visiting cattail marshes and other wetlands, or simply by watching telephone wires on a drive through the country. Driving in and around China’s wetlands, the bird can be seen perched on small trees in the marshes. Where there’s standing water and vegetation, Red-winged Blackbirds are likely to be one of the most common birds you see and hear. Listen for the male’s conk-la-lee! song.

Red-winged blackbirds may come to your yard for mixed grains and seeds, particularly during migration. Spread grain or seed on the ground as well, since this is where red-winged blackbirds prefer to feed. Find out more about what this bird likes to eat and what feeder is best by using the Project FeederWatch Common Feeder Birds bird list.

Different populations and subspecies of Red-winged Blackbirds vary markedly in size and proportions. An experiment was conducted that moved nestlings between populations and found the chicks grew up to resemble their foster parents. This study indicated that much of the difference seen between populations is the result of different environments rather than different genetic makeups.

The Red-winged Blackbird is a highly polygynous species, meaning males have many female mates – up to 15 in some cases. In some populations 90 percent of territorial males have more than one female nesting on their territories. But all is not as it seems: one-quarter to one-half of nestlings turn out to have been sired by someone other than the territorial male.

Male Red-winged Blackbirds fiercely defend their territories during the breeding season, spending more than a quarter of daylight hours in territory defense. He chases other males out of the territory and attacks nest predators, sometimes going after much larger animals, including horses and people.

Red-winged Blackbirds roost in flocks in all months of the year. In summer small numbers roost in the wetlands where the birds breed. Winter flocks can be congregations of several million birds, including other blackbird species and starlings. Each morning the roosts spread out, traveling as far as 50 miles to feed, then re-forming at night.

One California subspecies of the Red-winged Blackbird lacks the yellow borders to the red shoulders (epaulets) and has been dubbed the “bicolored blackbird.” Some scientists think this plumage difference may help Red-winged Blackbirds recognize each other where their range overlaps with the similar Tricolored Blackbird.

The oldest recorded Red-winged Blackbird was 15 years, 9 months old. It was banded in New Jersey in 1967, and found alive, but injured in Michigan in 1983. It was able to be released after recovering from its injuries.

Bruins slumping

For those of you who watched the Boston Bruins embarrassing loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning on Saturday, March 15, here is something you probably didn’t see on television. I attended that game, and after the Bruins were outshot 20-0 in the second period, and at the end of the game, when they were outshot 39-12 in a 6-2 loss, the team was vociferously booed off the ice by the fans. Oh, the fickle finger of fans.

Roland’s trivia question of the week:

Who was the last MLB player to win the triple crown (batting average, home runs, RBI)?

Answer
The last MLB Triple Crown winner was Miguel Cabrera, of the Detroit Tigers, who achieved the feat in 2012