Diario de lynnharper

Hello, everyone! We had so much fun at last year's get-together on top of Mt. Watatic that I've been meaning to organize another time to meet this summer, so mark your calendars for Sunday, September 15th at Tully Lake in Royalston, Massachusetts.

This is a casual opportunity to meet other iNaturalists in a spot with lots to explore. This isn't a bioblitz, although of course we'll be excited to make observations of everything we see! Please come even if you're new to iNaturalist, or feel like you know hardly anything about the natural world, or are a shy introvert who really would rather fade into the forest - this get-together is for everyone. Dogs are welcome on leashes; ditto children - they don't even need a leash.

The Details:
Tully Lake is a 1300-acre Army Corps of Engineers flood-control site; here's a link to a map of the site: https://www.nae.usace.army.mil/Portals/74/docs/Recreation/TUL/TULParkMap2013.pdf). The dam holds back at least 200 acres year-round. The Trustees of Reservations run a tent-only campsite (https://thetrustees.org/place/tully-lake-campground/) at the north end of the lake and they rent canoes and kayaks for use on the lake at the campsite as well. The 22-mile Tully Trail runs through the Army Corps property and there's also a trail around part of the lake. There's a boat launch for small motorboats near the dam and a canoe launch just north of the lake, off Doane Hill Road, for paddling upstream along the East Branch of the Tully River. In other words, there are many different habitats we can explore here.

If you're thinking of making this part of a weekend trip, there are many other conservation areas in the vicinity, as well - the Tully Mountain, Millers River, and Birch Hill Wildlife Management Areas; the Arthur Iverson Conservation Area owned by the Mount Grace Land Conservation Trust; and the Trustees' Royalston Falls, Doane's Falls, and Jacobs Hill Reservations, among others. If you're curious about these other areas, just ask; I've probably been there.

Importantly, for our purposes, there are picnic tables and toilets on and near the dam and boat launch, which brings me to...

Times and Places:
Come for whatever part of the day you like; don't feel that you need to participate in everything.

Noon: Bring your lunch and let's all meet to eat at the picnic tables near the boat launch, just north of the dam, off Rt. 32. If it's convenient for you, bring a folding chair in case there isn't enough bench space to go around. I'll have (totally unofficial) iNat bumperstickers to hand out, plus whatever other printed materials of interest I can round up - maps of the Tully Trail, MassWildlife magazines, brochures from the Athol Bird and Nature Club, and the like.

9 AM: Meet at the parking areas on top of the dam (over which Rt. 32 runs) and I'll lead a very casual walk, just to see whatever we can find. The habitats here will be the lake itself, a boggy shoreline, a damp-to-dry meadow, and mostly coniferous woods.

2 PM: Meet at the canoe launch parking area off Doanes Hill Road, just north of the lake, and we'll walk north along part of the Tully Trail that follows the East Branch of the Tully River. Habitats here include wetlands bordering the river, mostly deciduous woods, and (if we walk far enough) small streams falling down the steep slopes of Jacob Hill.

If anyone else wants to organize a walk, let me know and I'll add it in here. If (CORRECTION: Saturday night!) Friday night is not rainy, I will probably set a moth trap or two and check them early Saturday morning. If you're interested in seeing the moths, let me know and I'll work out how we can meet.

Important!
Rain will cancel the events. Also, because Tully Lake is a flood-control site, if the region gets very heavy rain (like a hurricane) in the preceding week, there's a chance the Army Corps will have to flood much of the areas we might want to visit. If that happens, we will cancel and I'll post something here, but also feel free to message me on iNat to ask what's up.

Here I'm going to tag everyone I think might be interested; please invite anyone else you think might be interested. Let's hope for good weather and I'll see you on the 15th!

@adamkohl, @agave6_tomwalker, @allison_smnr606, @anyiki, @berkshirenaturalist, @btk, @bvanney, @cbuelow45, @ceiseman, @cpellegrini, @danlharp, @davidhsmall, @dcr_dwsp_nr, @deparia1950, @er1kksen, @ginny-d, @jackcadwell, @jcarm, @jformanorth, @jljones, @julie_richburg1, @jwhitney0986, @karolina, @karro_frost, @landfrog, @maygrz, @mcharpentier @mikeakresh, @mohale, @mtjones, @mushroompride, @natemarchessault, @naturalist2073, @pat_huckery_masswildlife, @patswain, @radbackedsalamander, @ryanwilliams27, @selise, @stevemirick, @stevetobin, @tarpinian, @threepogonias, @tmurray74, @trustees_ecology, @tsn

It may only be the end of February, but Wood Frogs were sighted moving in Amherst and Groton, MA, last night, according to iNat observations. So it's spring already!

And that means it's just eight weeks to the City Nature Challenge, which is Friday, April 26th, though Sunday, April 29th, this year, plus the upload and ID period afterwards. I'm telling you this so you can clear your calendars for those four days, of course, but also because I'm lining up field trip leaders for the Western Mass CNC (https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/city-nature-challenge-2024-western-mass). If anyone wants to lead a field trip somewhere in the four western counties of Massachusetts on any of those days, let me know. Thanks!

(I'm not ready for spring yet. I'm still not finished with everything I wanted to get done this winter!)

We had a wonderful time up on Mt. Watatic yesterday, at least till the rain started. Thank you to everyone who came!

Some of the highlights, at least for me: The young Bald Eagle circling overhead before anyone else showed up. The Eastern Milk Snake, unfortunately dead. All the grasshoppers @stevetobin and @flamingninetales77 caught (three species, do I have that right?). The cool rock tripe @mohale showed us and the Peregrine zooming by that she pointed out. That goldenrod growing in the cracks of the ledges that @tsn identified as Squarrose Goldenrod. And meeting people I've only known from iNaturalist, like @radbackedsalamander and @bkatzenberg . I didn't know my cousin @danlharp was going to show up, but it was great to see you, Dan!

So, let's do this again some time, yes? I was thinking that it might be fun to go to Burrage Pond WMA in Hanson and Halifax, or to Muddy Brook WMA in Hardwick, or to the Trustees' Bart's Cobble in Sheffield, or hey, why not Mt. Greylock? I haven't been to the top of Greylock in decades. Where would you all like to go? How often would you like me to set up a get-together like this?

The weather looks good for a meeting of any and all iNaturalists on top of Mt. Watatic in Ashby/Ashburnham, MA, this Sunday at noon - hooray! If you're just seeing this, see my previous journal post for details.

I hope to meet many of you there!

Since we got rained out over the 4th of July weekend for an iNaturalist gathering, @radbackedsalamander, @pat_huckery_masswildlife, and I thought we'd try again for August 27th. Please join us - and let's hope it doesn't rain! Here's a repeat of much of what I said before the July date:

You all are invited to climb Mount Watatic in Ashby/Ashburnham, MA on Sunday, August 27th. The plan is to meet at the eastern summit (the big ledges with a view to the east) around noon, eat our lunches, meet each other, and make loads of observations. There might be dragonflies hill-topping, for example. Or interesting grasshoppers. Certainly there will be Sibbaldiopsis and Red Spruce and Turkey Vultures (maybe Black Vultures?) and grasses I'll never be able to identify. I'll figure out some way to make it obvious where exactly to meet - maybe an iNaturalist flag?

Whatever organisms we find there, it's a beautiful view from a mountain that's now mostly protected by a coalition of conservation groups; take a look at the map at the bottom of this article to see what's protected there: https://www.mass.gov/news/land-protected-at-mount-watatic

Logistics: This isn't an organized hike where we all start at the same place at the same time; you are free to start whenever and wherever you want to. Depending on which way you go up, it can be a steep hike, but a relatively short one. To my knowledge, there are no facilities like porta-potties at any of the trailheads. Dogs are permitted on leash. There are four parking spots I know of:

DCR Ashburnham State Forest, off Rt. 119, more or less opposite Old Pierce Road. This area has limited parking for about 15 cars, which often fills up quickly. Sometimes, people park on Old Pierce Road itself.

On Rt. 119 itself, a little east of the DCR lot. This is a paved pull-off with maybe 8 spots.

MassWildlife Ashby WMA, off Rt. 119 to the east of pull-off right on Rt. 119. This spot is shown as a P on the map I linked to above; there's a blue MassWildlife sign there. Parking for probably 8 cars.

MassWildlife Ashby WMA, at the end of Watatic Mountain Road in Ashby. This is at the end of the woods road at the end of the paved road, and there's only parking for 2 cars here.

While everyone is invited, here I'm going to mention people I think might be particularly interested: @adamkohl, @agave6_tomwalker, @bkatzenberg, @btk, @cbuelow45, @ceiseman, @cpellegrini, @davidhsmall, @deparia1950, @jackcadwell, @janice22s, @jcarm, @julie_richburg1, @karro_frost, @maygrz, @mohale, @mtjones, @naturalist2073, @stevemirick, @stevetobin, @threepogonias, @tmurray74.

It looks both Sunday the 2nd and Monday the 3rd will be mostly rainy and beset by thunderstorms, so I am cancelling the iNaturalist gathering on Mt. Watatic. Darn it! Stay tuned for another gathering later this summer, but I haven't decided when or where yet.

A few months ago, I was chatting with @radbackedsalamander - I don't even remember the context - and we thought it would be fun to organize a field trip for iNaturalists in our area. Somehow, that stuck in my head, so...

You all are invited to climb Mount Watatic in Ashby/Ashburnham, MA on Sunday, July 2nd, with a rain date of July 3rd. The plan is to meet at the eastern summit (the big ledges with a view to the east) around noon, eat our lunches, meet each other, and make loads of observations. There might be dragonflies hill-topping, for example. Or interesting grasshoppers. Certainly there will be Sibbaldiopsis and Red Spruce and Turkey Vultures (maybe Black Vultures?) and grasses I'll never be able to identify. I'll figure out some way to make it obvious where exactly to meet - maybe an iNaturalist flag?

Whatever organisms we find there, it's a beautiful view from a mountain that's now mostly protected by a coalition of conservation groups; take a look at the map at the bottom of this article to see what's protected there: https://www.mass.gov/news/land-protected-at-mount-watatic

Logistics: This isn't an organized hike where we all start at the same place at the same time; you are free to start whenever and wherever you want to. Depending on which way you go up, it can be a steep hike, but a relatively short one. To my knowledge, there are no facilities like porta-potties at any of the trailheads. Dogs are permitted on leash. There are four parking spots I know of:

DCR Ashburnham State Forest, off Rt. 119, more or less opposite Old Pierce Road. This area has limited parking for about 15 cars, which often fills up quickly. Sometimes, people park on Old Pierce Road itself.

On Rt. 119 itself, a little east of the DCR lot. This is a paved pull-off with maybe 8 spots.

MassWildlife Ashby WMA, off Rt. 119 to the east of pull-off right on Rt. 119. This spot is shown as a P on the map I linked to above; there's a blue MassWildlife sign there. Parking for probably 8 cars.

MassWildlife Ashby WMA, at the end of Watatic Mountain Road in Ashby. This is at the end of the woods road at the end of the paved road, and there's only parking for 2 cars here.

While everyone is invited, here I'm going to mention people I think might be particularly interested: @adamkohl, @agave6_tomwalker, @btk, @cbuelow45, @ceiseman, @cpellegrini, @davidhsmall, @deparia1950, @jackcadwell, @jcarm, @julie_richburg1, @karro_frost, @maygrz, @mohale, @mtjones, @naturalist2073, @pat_huckery_masswildlife, @stevemirick, @stevetobin, @threepogonias, @tmurray74.

If you can't make it on the 2nd (or 3rd) or don't want to hike up a mountain, I'm hoping to organize another get-together in a month or two. Suggestions for locations are welcome - maybe a pond or lake with a picnic pavilion somewhere?

I've had great fun learning about galls over the last couple of years vis iNaturalist, largely because of Adam Kranz, @megachile. Now he's going to give a Zoom talk to my local Athol Bird and Nature Club. Here I'll quote from the club's newsletter. You all are invited!

Oaks and Wasps: Shaping Novel Organs in the Seasonal Round
Adam Kranz, via Zoom

Join us in person at the Millers River Environmental Center in Athol, MA, to watch the Zoom presentation together. Oak gall wasps take advantage of the annual flow of resources throughout an oak tree to produce beautiful and distinctive novel plant organs to feed and protect them. With an estimated 1000 species in North America, each producing two different galls per year, this symbiosis is one of the most engrossing puzzles in nature. Adam Kranz would like to equip you to help him put it together.

Adam Kranz is one of the co-founders of www.Gallformers.org an online database for amateur and academic naturalists studying plant galls in North America. He lives in Austin, TX.

You are invited to a Zoom webinar.

When: May 10, 2023 07:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)

Topic: Oaks and Wasps: Shaping Novel Organs in the Seasonal Round

Register in advance for this webinar: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_eHhPGrokR4mspgwFJ7-jcQ

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.

My local nature club is offering what should be a fascinating talk this Wednesday night, and luckily it's via Zoom, as well as in-person, so you all can attend. Here are the details from the Athol Bird and Nature Club's email newsletter:

Wednesday April 12, 2023, 7:00 PM “The Guests of Ants” Christina L. Kwapich, PhD

This talk will explore the hidden biodiversity inside ant nests, and the behavioral mechanisms diverse parasites employ to infiltrate ant societies. Some intruders tickle ant mouth parts to steal regurgitated meals, while others use specialized organs and glandular secretions to entice ants or calm their aggression. Once able to “speak the language,” these outsiders can masquerade as ants. Suddenly colony members can no longer distinguish friend from foe.

Christina L. Kwapich, PhD, is an Assistant Professor of Ecology at the University of Massachusetts, Lowell, and the co-author of the book The Guests of Ants: How Myrmecophiles Interact with Their Hosts (2022, Harvard University Press). Her laboratory examines the organization of labor in seed harvesting ant societies, subterranean ant nest architecture, and ant guests. In person at the Millers River Environmental Center, 100 Main Street, Athol, MA 01331, or by Zoom.

Register in advance for this webinar: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_Z-Y4dR2sTkS3Ta-8BeGBng After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.
.......

I hope to see some of you there! By the way, next month's talk for the Athol Bird and Nature Club is about oak gall wasps, given by Adam Kranz, who is megachile here on iNaturalist. It will also be available on Zoom. I'll post more about that talk in a few weeks.

Guess what starts four weeks from today? The world-wide City Nature Challenge, of course! Clear your calendar for Friday, April 28th, through Monday, May 1st, because we are going to have fun!

This year, I'm helping to organize the Western Massachusetts City Nature Challenge, so I'm inviting all of you to join that project and help out. We're nailing down the final details on 15 workshops and field trips for you; in two weeks, we'll publish that list as a journal post in the project.

If you've never participated in the annual City Nature Challenge before, you should know that everyone is welcome to help out in this global bioblitz, whether you're an expert in some obscure taxon or you're completely new to learning about the natural world. The real aim of the CNC is to connect people with the natural world around them, whether in cities or the smallest rural towns. Sure, we'll keep track of how many species we find, but even more importantly, we hope to encourage the most people possible to post the highest number of observations possible during those four days. And you don't even have to figure out how to add your observations to the Western Mass CNC project; iNaturalist will automatically add any observation you make on those four days, within the four western counties of Massachusetts, to the project.

So start thinking about your favorite places to visit in spring, and join us for the Western Mass CNC!