Elizabeth McCance From the President I’m not the only one preparing for an exciting summer at Fishers – so are the ospreys! Watching an osprey lay an egg at night courtesy of an Osprey Cam recording is a treat to behold, and one that was unimaginable a few decades ago. Technology aside, this year promises to
Black Cherry (Prunus serotina) Have you noticed the bizarrely-twisted trunks of so many of the Black Cherry trees on the Island? Their distorted shape is a result of natural pruning caused by a fungus, Apiosporina morbosa, known, quite descriptively, as Black knot. Black Cherry tree with Black knot disease taken along Treasure Pond
Horsetails (Equisetum sp.) Species in the genus Equisetum are living members of a group of plants, the sphenophytes, that dominated the landscape during the age of dinosaurs. Some grew up to 100 feet tall but today's plants of the Equisetum family are much smaller, even though some species in South America may reach 15
These century-old beech trees are dying. (But there is hope for a remedy.) Beech leaf disease (BLD) was first recognized in Ohio in 2012. American and European beech trees in the areas around New York City, western Connecticut, and Long Island, including Suffolk County, were showing the symptoms of BLD as early as 2019.
Beechdrops (Epifagus virginiana) As described by its scientific name, Epifagus lives exclusively on the roots of beech trees, specifically American beeches. Beechdrops found on the eastern leg of Island Pond Trail. Photo by Jack Schneider Beechdrops are an annual plant that lacks leaves and chlorophyll, relying on energy derived
Tracking Avian Activity on Fishers Island, Month by Month The Henry L. Ferguson Museum holds intermittent bird observation data for Fishers Island that date back to the 1920s, initially recorded by Alfred L. and Henry L. Ferguson, Sr. and later in the 1950s and 1960s by Museum Curator H. Lee Ferguson, Jr. The scope
2022 Reported Bird Sightings on Fishers Island (There were 181 different species reported by observers this year. Of those, seven were new and added to our overall list of historic sightings. That list now contains 252 species.) The data are collected by a group of knowledgeable Fishers Islanders. eBird reports and Audubon Seasonal Bird
The third osprey egg was laid at Middle Farms nest shortly before midnight on May 2, 2022 – three days after the second egg.
6. Kettle Hole Trail Kettle Hole Trail is a short but challenging point-to-point trek that begins across the road from the “Glass House,” formerly Hooverness, where there is a small pull-off for a couple of cars (or several bicycles). The
The second osprey egg was laid at Middle Farms nest shortly after 10 PM on April 29, 2022 – three days after the first egg. The above screen capture showing two eggs was provided by Vicki Rafferty, who was watching from California on May 1st and first noticed that a second egg had been
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F.I. Sketchbook 2005
