Author: Kimsmithdesigns

Documentary filmmaker, photographer, landscape designer, author, and illustrator. "Beauty on the Wing: Life Story of the Monarch Butterfly" currently airing on PBS. Current film projects include Piping Plovers, Gloucester's Feast of St. Joseph, and Saint Peter's Fiesta. Visit my websites for more information about film and design projects at kimsmithdesigns.com, monarchbutterflyfilm.com, and pipingploverproject.org. Author/illustrator "Oh Garden of Fresh Possibilities! Notes from a Gloucester Garden."

PIPING PLOVER WEEKLY UPDATE – ONE-DAY-OLD CHICKS AND NESTING AROUND MASSACHUSETTS!

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One-day-old chicks foraging at the shoreline on a foggy Memorial Day Monday

It was a beautiful Memorial Day weekend in more ways than one. Piping Plover chicks have been hatching all around Massachusetts this past week and I was fortunate to observe two nests with a total of six one-day-old chicks zooming around beaches. We’re so blessed that our Good Harbor Beach pair are also on a relatively early track, which greatly increases the chicks chance of surviving.

Mama and Papa spent the weekend on the crowded beach incubating their eggs and foraging. Ironically, I think they benefitted from beach goers picnics (minus the gulls and crows). Papa spent a busy Monday morning pecking at the sand and devouring mouthfuls of large tasty black ants.

Anteater

Many more hatchlings to come!

MEMORIAL DAY SUNRISE

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Monday’s golden sunrise. With today’s temperature hovering in the 40s and 50s, were the blue skies and warm weather of Memorial Day weekend just a dream? 

 

MONARCH BUTTERFLY FILM UPDATE

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A very brief update to let all our Friends know that work is progressing on my documentary Beauty on the Wing: Life Story of the Monarch Butterfly. The new footage from this year’s magnificent migration in Mexico has been added. My amazing team, Eric and Kristen, are plugging in the newly recorded voice over.

For the next several weeks, I’ll be planting my client’s pollinator gardens and getting them underway for the summer. After mid-June, we’ll be back in the editing studio with Eric and Kristen finessing the color correction and audio, with plans for a mid-summer release.

Happy Butterfly Days!

Tree top view – standing at the top of the mountain looking down into the valley below. All the orange bits and flakes in the trees are Monarchs.

In early March, the native wildflower White Snakeroot (Ageratina altissima) was in full bloom at Cerro Pelon and the Monarchs couldn’t get enough of it!

So many Monarchs this early in the season portends a possibly great summer for butterflies in our meadows and gardens. Monarchs have already arrived to the Great Lakes region. This is the perfect time of year to plant Common Milkweed (Asclepias syriaca) seeds and many of our local nurseries carry Marsh Milkweed  (Asclepias incarnata) plants. These two species are the most productive for Monarch eggs and caterpillars in our region.

Monarchs mating in a patch of Common Milkweed.

Monarch drinking nectar from Common Milkweed florets.

Female depositing egg on Marsh Milkweed foliage.


The milkweed we grow in the north supports spectacular migrations such as the one that took place this past winter of 2018-2019.

FLOAT – BARBARA MOODY’S AND KATHY ARCHER’S BEAUTIFUL NEW GALLERY ON ROCKY NECK

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On Sunday Charlotte and I took a trip in her little red wagon over to visit Kathy Archer’s and Barbara Moody’s beautiful new gallery, Float, on Rocky Neck. The gallery is located at 77 Rocky Neck Avenue, #3, on Madfish Wharf. On exhibit are Barbara’s gorgeous paintings and Kathy’s stunning photos, and the two make for a wonderful nature inspired pairing.

Currently the gallery is open on weekends from 12 to 6pm. As of June 15th, Float will be open Tuesday through Sunday from 12 to 6pm.

See more works by Barbara here.

See more works by Kathy here.

Shana Garr and Barbara Moody

While at Float, Barbara introduced me to Shana Garr, curator at Fruitlands Museum. Fruitlands is located in Harvard, Massachusetts, and fairly recently joined the Trustees group of properties (2016). Shana and Barbara thought our readers would like to know of an upcoming exhibit featuring milkweed and hummingbird feeders by artist Esther Solondz titled “Floating Between Two Worlds.”

Esther Solondz: Floating Between Two Worlds

June 1, 2019 to November 3, 2019

Esther Solondz, Milkweed Towers, 2019

Esther Solondz’s new art installation is an open, translucent structure filled with fragile milkweed sculptures and crystalline hummingbird feeders that create a give and take between what is outside and what is inside. The sculpture is situated in the field beside the Fruitlands Farmhouse, and the artist is inspired by its Transcendentalist associations. This work explores the overlapping relationship between the natural world and the art world.

HAPPY MEMORIAL DAY WEEKEND FROM BEAUTIFUL GOOD HARBOR BEACH!

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Good Harbor Beach on a busy Memorial Day Sunday

FYI, last we checked on Sunday afternoon, both Mama and Papa Plover were in the safety zone of the roped off nesting area, Papa on the nest, and Mama hanging out nearby behind one of the mini hummocks.

GRAND STATUESQUE HERON OF THE FROG POND

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Migrating Great Blue Herons have arrived to Cape Ann, where they join the small number of Great Blues that overwinter in New England. Look for them in marsh, pond, and along the shoreline.

American Bullfrog hunting insects, Great Blue Heron hunting frogs

CRANE BEACH PIPING PLOVER UPDATE FROM TRUSTEES OF RESERVATIONS JEFF DENONCOURT

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Trustees of Reservations ecologist Jeff Denoncour kindly shares information about the Piping Plovers at Crane Beach and he wrote two days ago with an update for us on their Piping Plover population. “Unfortunately the weather has been pretty inclement this year making it tough to monitor and really nail down the number of pairs. That mixed with an abundance of birds and a lot of loss due to storms and high tides and a bit of predation its really hard for me to get an accurate pair count right now. I am estimating that we have more than 33 plover pairs.

So far we have discovered 36 plover nests, but right now we only have 19 active nests. 3 of the 36 nests are renests, which is why I’m saying we have 33 or more pairs. Some pairs have been scraping consistently in areas but have not laid eggs.

Our first nest is due to hatch tomorrow.”

I sent him an email this morning and hopefully we’ll have news of hatchlings!

If you would like to learn more about the outstanding work of the Trustees of Reservations Shorebird Protection Program go here.

Least Tern (left) and Common Tern Crane Beach

REMINDER: ANNISQUAM VILLAGE PLAYERS MAMMA MIA TRYOUTS SUNDAY NIGHT!

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AUDITIONS ARE ON SUNDAY, MAY 26, AT THE ANNISQUAM VILLAGE HALL.

CHILDREN ARE AT 6 PM, ADULTS ARE AT 7 PM. 

MORE MONARCH BUTTERFLIES SPIED AROUND CAPE ANN!

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Monarch Butterfly on native Buttonbush blossoms

David Rhinelander had one two days in a row at his garden on Pine Street, Heather Hall spotted a Monarch at the Hamilton Library, Jennie Meyer had one in her garden and sent along some photos, Donna Soodalter-Toman had one in her yard, Jen in Rockport has them, and Susan Donelan Burke saw a Monarch in Magnolia. This is very early and thank you so much to Everyone for writing!

Keep your eyes peeled for Red Admirals and Painted Ladies, too.

Red Admirals nectaring at lilacs. The last time we had so many Red Admirals in our garden in May was in 2012 and that was a banner year for butterflies of many species.

Painted Ladies

In the above photo compare the Monarch to the Painted Lady. If you see a “small” Monarch, it may be a Painted Lady or a Red Admiral.

 

AMAZING!!! MONARCH BUTTERFLIES HAVE ALREADY ARRIVED TO CAPE ANN

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There are Monarchs on Cape Ann, and they are laying eggs!!! Check your milkweed Friends! This is nearly a month earlier than usual.

Jane Danekis had a female several days ago in her garden on Revere Street and she deposited over 100 eggs on shoots of newly emerging milkweed.

Michele Del Vecchio saw a Monarch at Good Harbor Beach today, too!

Please let us know if you have seen a Monarch recently, and take a snapshot if you can. Thank you 🙂

A Monarch egg is pale golden yellow in color and shaped like a tiny ridged dome. The egg is no larger than a pinhead.

Morgan Faulds Pike spotted a female Monarch nectaring on her lilacs. Photo courtesy Morgan

STELLAR LUMINOSITY

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Luminous
1. emitting or reflecting glowing or suffused light. Also, clear, enlightening.

Spring Ephemeral garden at the Mary Prentiss Inn, Cambridge

One of the ‘blue’ lilacs, both heavenly and heavily scented.

My all time favorite narcissus, mostly for its fabulous fragrance, but also because it is super long blooming.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BxucyUoHtHVXIUyXgPstinnuhaX1k27Fbl429Y0/

MISSING: ONE BEAUTIFUL BLUE-EYED MR. SWAN

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Friends, If you have seen a solitary swan in your neighborhood, please write and let us know in either the comments or at kimsmithdesigns@hotmail.com. We haven’t seen him in his usual places since Easter. He sometimes takes off for an extended rendezvous, but this one seems unusually long.

If close enough, you can see that Mr. Swan has very distinct blue eyes. Most of the Mute Swans in our region have black eyes.

FLOWER MOON OVER EASTERN POINT

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Saturday night’s Full Flower Moon was beautiful, glowing pink as it was rising through a soft haze of clouds before gradually turning gold, and then white, as it rose higher in the sky.

PIPING PLOVER WEEKLY UPDATE -SIX PLOVERS AND THREE WILLETS! Plus Semi-palmated Plovers, Yellow Legs, a Least Sandpiper, and More Black-bellied Plovers

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Six Piping Plovers (Saturday morning 5/18/19)

Five Semi-palmated Plovers (Monday morning 5/20/19)

Four Piping Plovers (Sunday night, Monday morning 5/19/19)

Three Willets (Saturday morning 5/18/19)

Two Black-bellied Plovers (Monday morning 5/20/19)

Two Yellow Legs (Tuesday morning 5/13/19)

One Least Sandpiper (Monday morning 5/20/19)

Sometime during Friday night, three additional Piping Plovers and three Willets arrived to Good Harbor Beach.

The three new PiPls made for a total of six spotted at sunrise on Saturday morning–our mated pair, the Bachelor, two new boys and a new girl. While Mama was on the nest, five foraged at the tidal flats. There were several territorial skirmishes before two flew off. I wasn’t able to wait to see if they returned.

Winsome Willets

Saturday morning also found three Willets foraging at the tidal flats. Although I didn’t see them later in the day, I did hear their wonderfully distinct calls. I wonder if they will stay. Willets breed in our area and I am fairly certain there was a nesting pair at the Good Harbor Beach salt marsh last summer, the first time I have ever seen Willets regularly there.

New girl on the scene

New boy on the scene

Sunday late afternoon/early evening four PiPls were at Good Harbor Beach. One on the nest, and three were foraging at the flats. More smack downs between the boys and I didn’t see the pretty female.

Papa Plover defending his nesting territory

Early Monday, and the four PiPls are still here, plus five Semi-palmated Plovers, one Least Sanderling, and two Black-bellied Plovers. The two Black-bellied Plovers were not the same as the two we saw last week. They  were frightened off by a flock of seagulls in flight and didn’t stay long. The Least Sandpiper, Black-bellied Plover, and Semi-palmated Plover breed in the tundra across extreme northern North America. Yellow Legs breed in the boreal forests, wetlands, and meadows of the far north. All four species are finding lots to eat at their Good Harbor Beach stopover.

Yellow Legs

Black-bellied Plover

Least Sandpiper

Semi-palmated Plover

Good eating at Good Harbor

May’s Full Flower Moon brought several very high tides, but our PiPl nest is tucked up safely near the dune edge. In the photo you can see how close the seaweed came to the nest.

High tides and beautiful sunrise Saturday morning

OUR NEW ARRIVALS AT THE MARY PRENTISS INN – ROBIN NEST AND HATCHLINGS!

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Welcome to the Mary Prentiss Inn little Robin Family!

 

Mama on the nest

Mouths to feed

 

WHAT TO PLANT TO ATTRACT ROBINS TO YOUR GARDEN

The garden designed to attract nesting pairs of summer resident robins, as well as flocks of winter travelers, would be comprised of trees and shrubs for nest building, plants that bear fruit and berries that are edible during the summer and fall, and plants that bear fruits that persist through the winter months. Suburban gardens and agricultural areas provide the ideal habitat, with open fields and lawns for foraging insects as well as trees and hedgerows in which to build their nests.

The following plants, suggested with robins in mind, will also attract legions of songbirds and Lepidoptera. The list is comprised primarily of indigenous species with a few non-native, but not invasive, plants included.

Trees for nesting ~ American Holly (Ilex opaca), Eastern Red Cedar (Juniperus virginiana), Red Maple (Acer rubrum), Sugar Maple (Acer saccharum), Flowering Dogwood (Cornus florida).

Summer and autumn fruit bearing trees, shrubs and vines for robins ~ Black Cherry (Prunus serotina), Blackberry (Rubus spp.),Flowering Dogwood (Cornus florida), Gray Dogwood(C. racemosa), Red-osier Dogwood (C. sericea), Silky Dogwood (C. amomum), Elderberry (Sambucus canadensis), Apple (Malus pumila), Virginia Rose(Rosa virginiana), Highbush Blueberry (Vaccinium

JOEY’S JANKY PODCAST SET-UP

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Ever wonder what kind of awesome super high-tech set-up we use for our Good Morning Gloucester podcasts?

OFFICIAL 2019 ST. PETER’S FIESTA SCHEDULE!

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St. Peter’s Fiesta 2019 Schedule

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Wednesday, June 26th
7:00–10:00 p.m.
Musical Entertainment….St. Peter’s Park:
Entertainment featuring “BARRY MOONEY”

                                                                              

Thursday, June 27th                   
6:30 p.m.
Fiesta 5K Road Race – with Cape Ann YMCA
Starting location Stage Fort Park,

Finish line at St. Peter’s Park.

For further details, contact the Cape Ann YMCA.

 

8:00–11:00 p.m.
Entertainment, Live Music and Dance at St. Peter’s Park
Featuring ….. “WILD FIRE” 

 

Friday, June 28th
4:45 p.m.
Greasy Pole Contest…and…Women’s  Seine Boat Races
Pavilion Beach

 

6:30 p.m.
Entertainment….Before Opening Ceremony

 

7:30 p.m.
Formal Opening ….St. Peter’s Square
Entertainment immediately following

 

8:30 – 11:30 p.m.
featuring  “MORENO FRUZZETTI”

 

Saturday, June 29th

10:00 a.m
Pavilion Beach… Seine Boat Race:
U.S. Coast Guard vs Gloucester
Fire Department and Gloucester Police Department 

 

10:00 a.m.
Gloucester Stage Company Playtime performance
of our Children’s story book

“Nonna, What is St. Peter’s Fiesta?”

(267 E.Main St., Gloucester, http://gloucesterstage.com/playtime_stories/)

 

3:00 p.m.
Children’s Games…. Beach Court

 

4:45 p.m.
Sports Events… Pavilion Beach
Seine Boat Races & Greasy Pole Contest

  

8:00–11:30 pm.
Musical Entertainment…St. Peter’s Square
featuring “FRANCO CORSO”                                            


Sunday, June 30th
10:00 a.m.
Celebration of MASS OF ST. PETER
at St. Peter’s Park

                                   

12:00 noon
Procession following the Celebration of Outdoor Mass

 

3:00 p.m
Blessing of the Fleet… Stacy Boulevard.

 

3:00 p.m.
Concert…St. Peter’s Park
Musical Entertainment …Performers To Be Announced

4:45 p.m. 
Sports Events…at Pavilion Beach
Seine Boat Races & Greasy Pole Contest

  

6:30 p.m.
Children’s  Pinata Contest
Pascucci Court

 

7:15 p.m.
Awards Ceremony
Trophies awarded to winners of the Sports Events

 

8:30 p.m.
Musical Entertainment
St. Peter’s Park featuring
“ GRAZIANA LAZZARO  and  AARON CARUSO”

 

11:00 p.m.
Raffle Drawings and Closing Procession

 

St. Peter’s Fiesta Children’s Book   Nonna, what is St. Peter’s Fiesta” will be on sale at the Main Stage Altar throughout the Fiesta weekend. To purchase a copy before Fiesta, email http://www.stpetersfiesta.org

All proceeds benefit St. Peter’s Fiesta.

Save the Date: Next Year….

St. Peter’s Fiesta, June 24 – June 28, 2020

2018 Saturday, Sunday, and Friday Greasy Pole Champs, left to right, Michael Sanfilippo, Randy Sweet, and Frankie Taormina

“St. Peter’s Fiesta ™ ”

Copyright © 2019 St. Peter’s Fiesta Committee.  All Rights Reserved.

APPLE BLOSSOM SUNRISE

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The view out our bedroom window at sunrise this morning, before all was overtaken by (more) rain clouds.

BTW, the RTHummingbirds and Orioles are loving the nectar from our crabapple and flowering fruit tree blossoms 🙂