The Wrack

I took a hike on a brisk November morning and was surprised to see a man in camouflage preparing to shoulder his bow beside the Muskie Trail entrance. I learned he was a hunter participating in the reserve's annual deer harvest program.

This program was initiated because of ecological problems caused by an overpopulation of deer. Because the reserve uplands are a designated state wildlife sanctuary, no hunting had been allowed for decades. The deer density in the 1990s was estimated at 100 per square mile, while a healthy "carrying capacity" is closer to 15/mi². Locals report having seen the field along the Muskie Trail full of deer in early mornings and evenings.

Restoring Streams and the Pulse of Tides

Three small projects with outsize impact have been focusing the reserve's attention in this latter half of 2015. Completing these minor feats of engineering will improve the ecology of local watersheds for generations to come. Our science and stewardship team planned for months and years to set up these moments of action on Goff Mill Brook, Branch Brook, and the York River.

In the fall 2015 issue of Watermark: Letting it Flow: Re…

We've processed all the catch from another season of trapping green crabs (Carcinus maenas) and have some preliminary results to report.

Between June and October we caught 6,432 green crabs. This is merely half the number of crabs as last year! In the figure below you can see that the catch was not distributed equally across the three trapping sites. Trends in numbers were similar to those seen last year. Again, the most crabs were caught in the Webhannet River, Wells (3,848) and the least in Broad Cove, Yarmouth (284).

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In late September, my fellow research assistant, Tim, and I were given the opportunity to take a biplane ride with pilot Dave Trucksess of Atlas Aero. The experience was phenomenal!

As Amelia Earhart once said, You havent seen a tree until youve seen its shadow from the sky and boy does this ring true. Tim and myself grew up in southern Maine, are avid beach goers, and have been visiting the Wells Reserve since we were young students. However up in the airplane it was like seeing this whole area for the first time. The views of the nearby beaches, dense wooded areas, and the estuaries were just beautiful.

In an attempt to pass on just some of this beauty, here are some photographs from the adventure. I would highly recommend a trip with pilot Dave if ever given the chance!

We had lots of cuties here on Tuesday for our monthly public Preschool Story Hour, featuring Brian Lies' Bats on the Beach. After a reading of the story, the group delved into a bat cookie cutter painting activity and then hit the trails for nature exploration and a bat and mosquito scavenger hunt. Did you know that a little brown bat eats up to 1,000 mosquitoes in an hour? Thank you, bats! You are the be…

Want a wedding spot on the southern coast of Maine? The Wells Reserve at Laudholm features beach, dune, forest, and field.

The following was published in the Biddeford-Saco?Journal Tribune Sunday edition, 10/18/2015.

Welcome to Southern Maine and peak foliage. Those blazing reds and oranges along the Turnpike and our back roads are a sight to behold. Of course, Im talking about brake lights.

All volunteers are honestly appreciated, but some merit special attention for their unusual dedication. Each year, Laudholm Trust and Wells Reserve staff nominate certain volunteers for recognition. Here is our history of selections.

Three years ago I observed a magical happening while on a drive along Ocean Avenue in Kennebunkport. Suddenly I was surrounded by what appeared to be a veritable storm of brightly colored pieces of paper fluttering past me. Upon stopping I saw that these were monarchs gathering in the Rosa rugosa at the waters edge. There was a strong onshore breeze and they were flying about, hesitant to launch over the open water.