Monthly Natural History Columns
For many years I have written a monthly natural history column for the local papers, starting out in 2004 writing for the CAMDEN HERALD, then moving to VILLAGE SOUP. I’ve most recently written for the online news site PENOBSCOT BAY PILOT. Here are links to the most recent columns that have been posted in this venue. (I have been on hiatus since spring 2020.)
I’ve also included here “Creature Features” I’ve written for the Natural Resources Council of Maine.
My column for July 2018 was awarded third prize for outdoor writing by the Maine Press Association, and my column for March 2020 was awarded another third prize, in the Critics’ Choice category!
NRCM Creature Feature, January 2024: Black-capped Chickadee
NRCM Creature Feature, May 2021: Piping Plover
NRCM Creature Feature, April 2021: Eastern Bluebird
NRCM Creature Feature, February 2021: Common Redpoll
NRCM 2020 Earth Week poetry reading and conversation
NRCM Creature Feature, April 2019: Harbor Seal
May 2020: Tales from my backyard
April 2020: The poetry of the harrier
March 2020: On Millay and Mount Battie
February 2020: The season when ducks choose their mates
January 2020: Consider the Mourning Dove
December 2019: Feeding birds in winter
November 2019: Fall’s bounty of berries on Mt. Battie
October 2019: Masses of monarchs on Monhegan
September 2019: A resurgence of monarch butterflies?
August 2019: Goldfinches make the most of late summer
July 2019: Pondering a pocketful of periwinkles
June 2019: Planet Jupiter, near and bright on a summer’s night
May 2019: Spring’s avian virtuosos
April 2019: The everyday miracle of the bird egg
March 2019: What to watch for now that it’s (nominally) spring
February 2019: Pussy willows, spring’s first flowers
January 2019: Who-hoo-hoo’s nesting in the winter?
November/December 2018: Celestial lights for the holidays
October 2018: The inner life of the pitcher plant
September 2018: The Merlins of Pearl Street
August 2018: Fall shorebirds on the move
June 2018: The season of bullfrogs
March 2018: Growing your natural literacy, one Maine symbol at a time
February 2018: Snow buntings—Bringing winter to life
January 2018: Happy birthday, Gray Seals!
November 2017: Winter life inside a beaver lodge
October 2017: In praise of Blue Jays
September 2017: Migrating flickers and falcons
August 2017: Introducing the Ladies
July 2017: The hidden world of moths
June 2017: Orchids—they’re not just in the tropics
Mary 2017: Spring comes to Mount Battie
April 2017: Notes from my backyard—Ducks in trees
March 2017: Another early bird—the American Woodcock
February 2017: Turkey Vultures—Unlikely Harbingers of Spring
January 2017: Meditations on Snow Geese