Black racer snakes (Coluber constrictor) have been documented on the Vineyard as far back as the early 1800s, but little is known about the Island population. That could soon change.
Oscar Thompson has spent the summer chasing turtles for his senior thesis at college. Not known for their speed, painted turtles can still be elusive in their natural habitat deep within the Vineyard's ponds.
Carefully lifting up a panel of plywood near Oyster Pond in Edgartown on Monday, Liz Baldwin uncovered a rare sight: a black racer, the Island’s largest and least common snake species. It was her first encounter with the species, which has been in decline here since the 1970s.
On the mainland, northern long-eared bats are quickly becoming rare sights as they fall victim to a disease called white-nose syndrome. The disease has never been documented on Martha's Vineyard. The bats here are safe, at least for the time being.
Scouting and tracking willets is considered important seasonal work among Vineyard biologists. The study of the migratory shorebirds may also provide important information about climate change.
The bat detector sputtered and crackled from its post along Middle Cove Loop at Long Point Wildlife Refuge. It hadn’t yet made the telltale repeating noises that occur when an echolocating bat flies by, but by the time wildlife monitor Luke Elder returned to collect the device in the morning, numerous sonar squeaks had been recorded.
At 6:45 a.m. on a Saturday
morning near the Poucha Pond salt marsh at Chappaquiddick, a few fishermen lined the shores and a handful of binocular-bearing biologists and birders walked through the dunes. Otherwise, the land was bare of human activity.
But in the sky a bird with deep black and bright white striped wings swooped nearby. The binoculars went up.
“That’s a willet,” said Luanne Johnson, director of the nonprofit BiodiversityWorks dedicated to wildlife research, monitoring and mentoring.
During winter, when there is significant snowfall, wildlife biologist Luanne Johnson begins the hunt for otter trails.
Only in the snow can she easily track the round-toed trails at Sepiessa Point Reservation or the smooth belly slides along the hills of Cranberry Acres. Otherwise, the elusive otter remains mostly a mystery. This winter has been a good one for observations.
