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The Wrack

The Wrack is the Wells Reserve blog, our collective logbook on the web.

Posts tagged microscopic marvels

  • Tiny but Mighty

    | May 1, 2020 | Filed under: Observations

    Plankton, pollen, and the tiniest seeds—myriad little things can be a really big deal.

  • Mapping Our Reach

    Wells Reserve Contributor | December 14, 2015

    In recent years, we've been excited to see a rise in the number of students visiting the Wells Reserve to participate in guided and self-guided programs. Last year, I wrote about how remarkable the increase was between 2013 and 2014, and this year the trend continued steadily. In 2015, our skilled team of volunteer docents led a total of 1,291 students on guided program on our estuarine trails, up slightly from last year's 1,219. Additionally, 533 students visited the Reserve with their teachers to explore the estuary on self-guided trips, up from 435 in 2014.

    While the increases are not the giant leaps they were from the previous year, 2015 saw a significant shift in the ratio of docent leaders to students thanks to a cohort of new docents who attended our successful Volunteer Fair back in February. With more leaders, we were able to lead students in smaller groups, allowing for more individualized discovery and time to explore all of their curious questions!

    The numbers are great to see, but until this year we were missing an opportunity to tell another story about our reach: where in the world are all of these students coming from (literally!)? Here's part of the answer:

  • Group On

    | July 18, 2015

    Ick.

    The following was published in the Biddeford-Saco?Journal Tribune Sunday edition, 7/19/2015.

    The Fuligo septica, or dog vomit slime mold, as it is picturesquely known, appeared in our front garden after a particularly humid day last week. The five-inch-wide, bright yellow splatter was impossible to miss on the black mulch. To the touch, it felt like scrambled eggs. My son declared it ick. I was delighted.

  • Spring Leading: Thank You, Docents!

    Wells Reserve Contributor | June 17, 2015

    Last week, we wrapped up one of the busiest school program seasons to date. Beginning the last week of April, school kids and teachers from Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, and Vermont (!) explored the trails here at the Wells Reserve. Some came for self-guided discovery, but many more learned from our team of volunteer docents a wealth of information about estuaries, wildlife, habitats, water quality, and much more. Today we celebrated their hard work leading these students in temperatures that ranged from 45F to 85F, in drizzle and shining sun, and learned just how big their impact was with a candy guessing game during our end-of-season potluck!

  • A Year of Field Trips to the Estuary

    Kate Reichert
    | December 4, 2014 | Filed under: Program Activities

    Some 1,200 students participated in 49 field trip programs during spring and fall this year. Thank you, docents and teachers!

  • Fall School Programs By the Numbers

    Wells Reserve Contributor | November 21, 2013
    In early November, we wrapped up the last of our fall school programs here at the Reserve. The season was packed with field trips, with students from all over visiting to learn about our estuaries, plankton, water quality, forest ecology, and much more. We couldn't provide these programs without the dedication of our enthusiastic crew of volunteer docents who lead them, so thank you, thank you to all of them! Cong…