News and Events for Nantucket Island
This week we’re all about fireworks on-island. We jockey for the best spot and hope the fog that typically coats the Gray Lady takes a break for the festivities. If you look a little closer at the edges of fields and forests this time of year, you might be treated to your own personal light show in nature. We’re talking about fireflies!
There’s a wonderful Walt Whitman quote that had my attention today. The esteemed poet, writer, and all-around observer of his fellow humans said, “Be curious, not judgmental.” Sage advice, right?
There once was a plant from Nantucket
Purple flowers so gorge they would pluck it
Blue-eyed grass is her name
A rare species they claim
So please don’t put in your bucket
Did you know that there once was a tree that spiked an economic bubble in the US? And there are Nantucket ties with a legacy that we can still see (and visit) on the island today?
Right now is the perfect time to go on a hunt for one of Nantucket nature’s treasured beauties, the pink lady’s slipper orchid.
The pink lady’s slipper orchid (Cypripedium acaule) is Nantucket’s most popular orchid (or the one most often seen), likely because it is hard to miss when in bloom. As the name suggests, the bloom resembles a small, pink ballet slipper fit for a squirrel. This orchid is locally common with each plant growing a single f lower. These individual f lowers tend to grow in clusters, so where you see one, you may see several. This grouping lends itself to magical thinking, imagining a dancing troupe of forest creatures. And while this isn’t a fairy tale, there is something magical about orchids and where they grow. It’s nearly impossible to duplicate the conditions necessary to cultivate these lady slippers. That’s why seeing them in the wild along a trail can feel so special.
by Dr. Sarah Treanor Bois, PhDDirector of Research & Conservation at the Linda Loring Nature Foundation Nantucket is home to many rare plant species, but few bear its name. Nantucket Shadbush (Amelanchier nantucketensis) is a globally-rare shrub that was once thought to be limited to our island. This small shrub […]
It’s daffy season once again and Nantucketers and visitors alike celebrate this sure sign of spring. As the weather warms up, however, another sign of the season will emerge. Rather, they will hatch. I’m talking about one of my favorite native species, the Eastern Tent Caterpillar (ETC). I have written about the ETC before explaining the natural history and amazing ecology of the species. However, it’s worth mentioning again since this year will be a boom year.
