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July 15, 1993 - Boats, Beach Plants, Bunkers and BirdsJuly 15, 1993 • The Suffolk Times • 7A Boats, Beach Plants, Bunkers and Birds By Paul Stoutenburah The temperature's been in the 90s the past three days and the only thing that's made it bearable is the fact that we can get into the water and cool off. This morning the wind was offshore but by afternoon it had swung to its normal quarter, the southwest. As I sit after a swim and shower and relax in the cool afternoon breeze I wonder what could be more perfect. A few speedboats still tow their waterskiers or boogie -board enthusiasts but generally by late after- noon the bay starts to lose its boaters. There'll be a few after - dinner sailors but, by and large, the bay, like my chickens back home, goes to bed as the sun sets. Too bad because that's a magical time of day. Around the cottage are the typical beach plants that seem to go on as if there were no drought or heat at all. The scalding sun is nothing new to them. All are equipped with deep taproots that defy the dry, burning top layer of the sand. Beach plum, that wonderful shrub that yields those marble -size fruits we gather in the fall to make jam, hasn't wilted a bit. Nor does the seaside gold- enrod that's started to show its charac- teristically rugged, green growth. Almost at the foot of the dune their late profusion of yellow will burst upon the scene right up to frost time. There are many others that have adapted to this harsh salt -air environ- ment but none is as important as the dune grass. It persists like no other be- cause its roots seek out the moisture in the sands deep below. Not only does it have the ability to tap the moisture, it also will continue to grow even though the shifting sands of the dunes try to bury it. Beach plum and others also have this ability and like the dune grass are responsible for the creation of our dune system that protects the land be- hind. Other plants and shrubs, like the dusty miller, bayberry, salt spray rose, etc., all do their part in creating dunes but it's the beach grass that is the champion of all. In back of the cottage the three young `As 1 relax in the cool afternoon breeze I wonder what could be more perfect.' Focus on Mature ospreys are now two because the New York State Department of Environ- mental Conservation has taken one to be a part of its program where East End ospreys will be taken to western New York in an attempt to reestablish them there. Some might resent this taking of "our ospreys" but I must side with the DEC in this case. Perhaps some of you can remember when Paul Spitzer and Allan Poole worked so hard to help our staggering populations of ospreys back in the '50s and '60s by introducing young ospreys and fertile eggs from down south where the paralyzing effects of DDT had not yet affected their populations. Surely now we can share a few of our ospreys with our western neighbors so that they too can enjoy this magnificent bird. I've often watched these fish hawks out on the bay in their daily pursuit of food. Once this week when there was barely a ripple on the water I watched one fish over a slick where bunkers had been feeding. Evidently bluefish had ripped into the school and the bunkers, being oily fish, left an oil slick on the water. Ospreys are not the most perfect fishermen for I've often seen them miss their target as they dive from incredible heights into the water. After the dive there is a short period of recovery when this huge bird struggles to free itself from the water. Once aloft, it starts to gain altitude, then it will shake furiously in flight, seemingly stopping in midair, and then continue on until it starts circling again looking for that elusive prey below. Back at the House Let's shift from our cottage by the bay to our inland home where we go back and forth, mainly to keep things watered down in this tremendously dry spell. On one visit out to the garden to water we found a freshly caught bunker on our lawn. How did it get there? Upon close examination we could see distinct claw marks on the fish's body. Evi- dently an osprey had good hunting and was carrying its prize back to the nest when it was attacked by another osprey or more probably a gull. Black- backed gulls, our largest gulls, are real robbers and often chase other birds to secure their prize. In these aerial encounters the OPEN ALL YEAR • 7 DAYS A WEEK, 9 -6 �4 477 -2882 i too - °� GRE to S SEAFOOD Dock & Market - "On The Water" AT THE FOOT OF MONSELL PLACE, GREENPORT • WHOLESALE AND RETAIL LATHAM'SSTAND White Corn & Bicolor Corn Raspberries • Blueberries Watermelon Other assorted vegetables. Excellent quality OPEN 7 DAYS • MAIN ROAD, ON SCENIC ORIENT HARBOR L_ — Photo by Paul Stoutenburgh CEDAR WAXWING —A brownish bird that almost looks too trim to be real. Not often seen on our East End, it is even more unusual to find one nesting here. fish is sometimes dropped and the gull swoops down to retrieve its stolen reward. Here the fish was so close to our house the pursuer probably didn't dare to take its treasure and so we wound up with a bunker on our lawn. We left it there overnight and the next morning it was gone. Someone else had reaped the reward, most probably Mr. Raccoon. While we have you back at our place I must relate about a nest I found in the orchard. When I first spotted it there were no eggs in it and I thought a crow or jay had robbed the nest. But no. A few days later a pale, blue - spotted egg appeared signaling the start of egg production. To my delight and amaze- ment I found the tenant to be a cedar waxwing. This bird is not overly com- mon on our East End and it is a rarity indeed to find it nesting here. It's a trim, brown bird with a clear yellow edging across its tail. Later I'd see it sitting on the nest, head erect, crest down, staring at me. I lost track of the nesting activities for a week or so and when I again checked there were two large young that mimicked the adult in every way. An interesting point about these cedar waxwings was brought to my attention by an observant reader who told me about a cedar waxwing that had hit her picture window and was killed. What made this particular waxwing so different was that it had a red band over its tail rather than the conventional yellow. Through some complicated research I found out that if the young of these waxwings were fed certain red berries when they were young they would develop a red band instead of a yellow one across their tail. We never know what will turn up next in this ever - exciting natural world that surrounds us. Mr DEANTA Irish Folk Singers Performing jigs, Reels and Laments on Harp, Flute, Bodhran and Guitar ALSO APPEARING Fiddler Storyteller ED KEENEY DENNIS CLAIRE at the Hallockville Museum Farm and Folklife Center 163 Sound Avenue, Riverhead, NY • 298 -9782, 298 -5292 Wednesday, July 21, 1993 7 -9 p.m. ,:41 �� Anth �1t8tC &Tales & �mtaert (I�n C`�l�e ��t Bring your lawn chairs or blanket and a picnic supper. GATE OPENS 6 PM. General Admission $8 Members $6 This event is supported in part by the Folk Arts Program at the New York State Council on the Arts and by Suffolk County under the auspices of the Office of Cultural Affairs July 15, 1993 • The Suffolk Times • 7A Boats, Beach Plants, Bunkers and Birds 8v Paul Stoutenburah The temperature's been in the 90s the past three days and the only thing that's made it bearable is the fact that we can get into the water and cool off. This morning the wind was offshore but by afternoon it had swung to its normal quarter, the southwest. As I sit after a swim and shower and relax in the cool afternoon breeze I wonder what could be more perfect. A few speedboats still tow their waterskiers or boogie -board enthusiasts but generally by late after- noon the bay starts to lose its boaters. There'll be a few after - dinner sailors but, by and large, the bay, like my chickens back home, goes to bed as the sun sets. Too bad because that's a magical time of day. Around the cottage are the typical beach plants that seem to go on as if there were no drought or heat at all. The scalding sun is nothing new to them. All are equipped with deep taproots that defy the dry, burning top layer of the sand. Beach plum, that wonderful shrub that yields those marble -size fruits we gather in the fall to make jam, hasn't wilted a bit. Nor does the seaside gold- enrod that's started to show its charac- teristically rugged, green growth. Almost at the foot of the dune their late profusion of yellow will burst upon the scene right up to frost time. There are many others that have adapted to this harsh salt -air environ- ment but none is as important as the dune grass. It persists like no other be- cause its roots seek out the moisture in the sands deep below. Not only does it have the ability to tap the moisture, it also will continue to grow even though the shifting sands of the dunes try to bury it. Beach plum and others also have this ability and like the dune grass are responsible for the creation of our dune system that protects the land be- hind. Other plants and shrubs, like the dusty miller, bayberry, salt spray rose, etc., all do their part in creating dunes but it's the beach grass that is the champion of all. In back of the cottage the three young `As 1 relax in the cool afternoon breeze I wonder what could be more perfect.' Focus on Nature ospreys are now two because the New York State Department of Environ- mental Conservation has taken one to be a part of its program where East End ospreys will be taken to western New York in an attempt to reestablish them there. Some might resent this taking of "our ospreys" but I must side with the DEC in this case. Perhaps some of you can remember when Paul Spitzer and Allan Poole worked so hard to help our staggering populations of ospreys back in the '50s and '60s by introducing young ospreys and fertile eggs from down south where the paralyzing effects of DDT had not yet affected their populations. Surely now we can share a few of our ospreys with our western neighbors so that they too can enjoy this magnificent bird. I've often watched these fish hawks out on the bay in their daily pursuit of food. Once this week when there was barely a ripple on the water I watched one fish over a slick where bunkers had been feeding. Evidently bluefish had ripped into the school and the bunkers, being oily fish, left an oil slick on the water. Ospreys are not the most perfect fishermen for I've often seen them miss their target as they dive from incredible heights into the water. After the dive there is a short period of recovery when this huge bird struggles to free itself from the water. Once aloft, it starts to gain altitude, then it will shake furiously in flight, seemingly stopping in midair, and then continue on until it starts circling again looking for that elusive prey below. Back at the House Let's shift from our cottage by the bay to our inland home where we go back and forth, mainly to keep things watered down in this tremendously dry spell. On one visit out to the garden to water we found a freshly caught bunker on our lawn. How did it get there? Upon close examination we could see distinct claw marks on the fish's body. Evi- dently an osprey had good hunting and was carrying its prize back to the nest when it was attacked by another osprey or more probably a gull. Black- backed gulls, our largest gulls, are real robbers and often chase other birds to secure their prize. In these aerial encounters the OPEN ALL YEAR • 7 DAYS A WEEK, 9 -6 477 -2882 GREG'S .ley -- SEAFOOD Doclk & Market -"On The Water" AT THE FOOT OF MONSELL PLACE, GREENPORT - WHOLESALE AND RETAIL LATHAM" S STAND White Corn & Bicolor Corn Raspberries • Blueberries Watermelon Other assorted vegetables. Excellent quality OPEN 7 DAYS • MAIN ROAD, ON SCENIC ORIENT Photo by Paul Stoutenburgh CEDAR WAXWING —A brownish bird that almost looks too trim to be real. Not often seen on our East End, it is even more unusual to find one nesting here. fish is sometimes dropped and the gull swoops down to retrieve its stolen reward. Here the fish was so close to our house the pursuer probably didn't dare to take its treasure and so we wound up with a bunker on our lawn. We left it there overnight and the next morning it was gone. Someone else had reaped the reward, most probably Mr. Raccoon. While we have you back at our place I must relate about a nest I found in the orchard. When I first spotted it there were no eggs in it and I thought a crow or jay had robbed the nest. But no. A few days later a pale, blue - spotted egg appeared signaling the. start of egg production. To my delight and amaze- ment I found the tenant to be a cedar waxwing. This bird is not overly com- mon on our East End and it is a rarity indeed to find it nesting here. It's a trim, brown bird with a clear yellow edging across its tail. Later I'd see it sitting on the nest, head erect, crest down, staring at me. I lost track of the nesting activities for a week or so and when I again checked there were two large young that mimicked the adult in every way. An interesting point about these cedar waxwings was brought to my attention by an observant reader who told me about a cedar waxwing that had hit her picture window and was killed. What made this particular waxwing so different was that it had a red band over its tail rather than the conventional yellow. Through some complicated research I found out that if the young of these waxwings were fed certain red berries when they were young they would develop a red band instead of a yellow one across their tail. We never know what will turn up next in this ever - exciting natural world that surrounds us. DEANTA Irish Folk Singers Performing Jigs, Reels and Laments on Harp, Flute, B6dhran and Guitar ALSO APPEARING Fiddler Storyteller ED KEENEY DENNIS CLAIRE at the Hallockville Museum Farm and Folklife Center 163 Sound Avenue, Riverhead, NY • 298 -9782, 298 -5292 Wednesday, July 21, 1993 7 -9 p.m. ;4jrl-S4 c�Xa �atsic & C`�axles Bring your lawn chairs or blanket and a picnic supper. GATE OPENS 6 PM. General Admission $8 Members $6 This event is supported in part by the Folk Arts Program at the New York State Council on the Arts and py Suffolk County under the auspices of the Office of Cultural Affairs