Hello everyone!
Thanks for reading the March 4 EwA highlights.
📸 EwA’s biodiversity projects had a five-way tie for the most-observed species this week, with one of them being the hemlock wooly adelgid (Adelges tsugae). Many Highlights readers will be familiar with this invasive pest of hemlock trees that has steadily advanced up the Atlantic coast over the last half century. This observation was recorded by Meghan on Monday; those fuzzy whitish spots are evidence of adelgids.
EwA iNaturalist Record (© Meghan Cahill · Ashland, MA · Feb. 27, 2023)
Dan photographed this northern shoveler (Spatula clypeata), an infrequent visitor to Middlesex County, at Horn Pond on Monday. I think the genus name Spatula fits the big-beaked northern shoveler wonderfully, and that very beak hides an amazing tool inside. All ducks have tooth-like serrations called lamellae on the insides of their beaks, and most use them to help grip and tear their food. The shoveler, though, has specialized lengthened lamellae that it uses almost like a baleen whale to sift tiny arthropods out of the water. I don’t know that I would have expected any duck to be a filter feeder, but when you think about their ability to trawl the surface of a pond, it starts to make a lot of sense!
EwA iNaturalist Record (© Daniel Onea · Woburn, MA · Feb. 27, 2023)
📊 Thanks to everyone for your great biodiversity records this past week, totaling 149 observations of 114 distinct species. If you’re curious about the records from this week that have been validated by the iNat community so far, you can find them » here.
🏆 Running tally: To date, we have recorded 135,733 observations of 9,166 distinct species! Check out our EwA umbrella project, see the details per site/observer, and more » here.
📅 EwA Upcoming Public Events
Ewa Field Events » Check the EwA Winter [ Event details and registration » ] Don’t miss some great opportunities to follow the rhythm of the season in our local habitats and in the local wildlife! Space is limited for all our field events. Wildlife ethics is important to us and we seek to avoid putting the pressure on natural habitats which large gatherings unavoidably do. We are asking our audience to register-and-commit (or cancel when you know you can’t come) to avoid no-shows.
EwA Fieldwork (and Resources)
Peak schedule: Winter is still a great time to join our monitoring programs. Check EwA’s Volunteer Program Calendar 📅 to know when things happen. And if a session is of interest to you, don’t hesitate to reach out to get the rendezvous location.
📅 EwA Sites Map | 🌱 Site Protocols and Guides · Field Rosters · Field Notes » All here! | ℹ️ More about EwA’s Citizen Science Program » Here
❓ Do you have any questions? Don’t be shy. Just email me or reply to this thread.
That’s all for this week—hope you have a good one!
-Mike
