Discussion: Constructions on the Water

Yes those nests look doomed. But off Martha's Vineyard, new constructions are planned that I guess carry the hopes of many in New England. The challenges are kinda similar to Big Down Marsh.

I love spending an afternoon on those south-facing beaches of Nantucket and The Vineyard; I hate to think that perfect seascape will be marred. What do you think of Vineyard Wind?

Yeah, it's important to preserve the smoky hazy view so that we can sit on the shrinking beach as the ocean level rises and watch the oil tankers come in.

Especially since, at 15 miles from shore, they'll be so in-your-face.

Yeah, it doesn't concern me a lot, certainly at least for the reason Cristina mentions.

If the Big Down Marsh were actually mine, I would have considered putting up some artificial nesting platforms. Those were extremely successful for osprey on the Vineyard. But it is more or less just across my boundary. The marsh was dammed some 60 years ago with assistance from the state DEEP, with the idea of promoting wood duck habitat. Years ago there were some wood duck boxes out on the marsh, but I think they have all fallen in by now. There certainly are wood ducks, wherever they are nesting. I put up a box along the edge on my property next to the Little Down Marsh about 5 years ago, but haven't peeked in there in a while to see if anybody has used it. The Little Down Marsh got flooded by beavers around 2003 or 2004, and now has quite a few snags that might make for nesting platforms, but I don't think the herons view it favorably - too narrow. They like their nests away from the edges.

We have lots of dead trees around here that could serve as replacements.

You can have as many as you like.

If anyone asks who gave you permission, just mention my name. But maybe it would be best to mangle the spelling, and have it come out as something like "Tom Brady" or "Curt Cobain" or "Dan'l Boone" or something like that.

That is a fine offer. Of course, the difficult part is the installation - driving them into the bottom enough that they will stand up. But if there is a substantial supply, as you say, I could do a little trial and error to see if some of them will just land the right way and balance themselves. They might feel right at home. The Big Down Marsh is some of the Wyomingest parts around here. There is usually a bracing wind that comes out of the north and piles up all the snow along the south edge.

These trees would be the perfect complement then (bracing wind, snow piles, osv.)

Perhaps the bottom tip of each tree could be shaped into a point, hardened with fire, and then the whole thing dropped by helicopter from above. John Rogers style, you know.

Well, there must be other methods. For instance, growing a tree in place, cypress fashion. It does take time, obviously, but that way you get a genuine cypress tree, which would have the ancillary benefit of being something of a marvel in NW Connecticut. And as a side benefit to the main benefit, there is no science to indicate cypress trees improve the reproductive success of the deer tick, or that of the deer either.

Anyway, you are a Yankee and surrounded by numerous other Yankees, well known for some good amount of inherent ingenuity. You will figure it out, or someone else up there will. Maybe building a stone wall will help. I have heard that gives a man a lot of quiet time to think about things.

If Swampfox ever makes it to New England again, I hope he finds the time to pay a visit to Ratlum Mountain, a marvelous place where I don't believe he's ever been.