Blue Goose ~ Day 87

August 26, 2014 ~ Fishermen's Memorial State Park, RI to Lisbon, CT

After what is becoming my morning routine of coffee, blogging and getting ice or whatever else I need, I went to Trustom Pond, NWR, one of the five RI refuges. Good for them...some states like Vermont and Connecticut only have one.

A cute little cedar-shake cottage was the "Contact Station" where I interrupted a conversation between an attractive woman in her 60s or 70s and a gentleman of like age. They were talking real estate, as she was about to move...again. It seemed it was into some place that was a good deal as long as one didn't OWN any property. He asked her if she was packed and she said, "I'm always packed; I never unpack..."

The trails were through cool woods, a relief as it was 85 degrees.

WWW.FWS.GOV

This refuge is one of five national wildlife refuges in Rhode Island. In 1974, Mrs. Ann Kenyon Morse donated the first 365 acres of the refuge. In 1982, the Audubon Society of Rhode Island donated 151 acres. Today, the refuge includes 787 acres of various wildlife habitats including fields, shrublands, woodlands, fresh and saltwater ponds and sandy beaches and dunes. Approximately 300 bird species, more than 40 mammal species, and 20 species of reptiles and amphibians call Trustom Pond refuge home during the year. Trustom Pond is the only undeveloped coastal salt pond in Rhode Island, making it even more valuable to wildlife.

How generous to donate 365 acres of coastal property. Thank you Mrs. Kenyon and the RI Audubon Society. Again, these woods along the coast truly are "lovely, dark and deep" and blessedly, insect-free right now. I don't know why, but it makes a huge difference while hiking. I find that if I stop in certain areas, there ARE birds, almost all flitting in the canopy and hard to see, but my best bird was a gorgeous Blue-winged Warbler.

Trustom Pond NWR - RI

I hung out at the Farm Pond overlook for 30 minutes, just watching, and saw two frog species, a turtle and small fish.

Farm Pond on Trustom Pond NWR - RI

I took many photos of the stone walls in RI, as they were everywhere. Even in this refuge, they were in the woods but a sign explained that this wasn't always woods and was a farm at one time. I came on an old water tower in a dark corner of the woods.

Signs constantly warn visitors of ticks and possible Lyme disease so I sprayed Esther's good-smelling tick spray on exposed skin and my clothes and did not stray into the weeds.  This is a "tick hot spot" apparently.

Ninigret NWR was just down the road, but not easily found. Eventually, after U-turns and false turns, I came to Kettle Pond which is sort of a part of Ninigret. WhateVer... There were two volunteers: a gentleman reading a Jeffrey Archer paperback and a woman who was eager to give me information. They always offer a "short film" to visitors, probably because it must be so boring hanging out in these centers for days or even hours at a time. Many of the larger ones (like Kettle Pond) are impressive buildings with all kinds of information (visual interactive displays, hands-on activities for kids, reading material, dioramas, films, bird specimens) about the ecology and raison d'être for a particular refuge. Since not many people seem to visit, a volunteer jumps at the chance to interact. I don't like watching films, but always feel I should so they can feel needed. And, while they are friendly and helpful in general ways; they don't know specific information, about birds, for instance, or the details of projects on a particular refuge.

Ninigret NWR (Kettle Pond Visitor Center) - RI

I was lucky in that an USFW employee came by and I half-jokingly asked what my chances were of seeing a Sharp-tailed Salt Marsh Sparrow which bird is featured in full color on the main pamphlet for the five RI refuges. He immediately said, "Too late..." and explained they have probably moved south already and that one almost always would need to be in a canoe or kayak. DHC and I heard the same advice at a Virginia refuge last fall. I learned that RI refuges band Saltmarsh Sparrows using mist nets which they set up and then move through the marsh clapping hands, thereby flushing and driving the sparrows into the nets where they are then fitted with "nano tags" which transmit data to a radio tower.

WWW.PRESSHERALD.COM

Data go to a central repository managed by Dr. Philip Taylor at Acadia University in Nova Scotia. Taylor is a pioneer in the use of radio towers to gather transmitted data. The tags are extremely lightweight and transmit on a single frequency. Each transmission tower has three antennas, each pointing in a different direction to determine the bird’s location based on the strength of the signal received. While using the same frequency, each uses a different burst rate so birds can be individually identified. “It’s like an individual pulse,” O’Brien said. “We record the pulse rate and send in the data.”

We talked about Hurricane Sandy and how severely coastal RI was affected and that the few undeveloped barrier islands protected the mainland better than those with structures. The refuges have benefitted from the money available after Sandy and are implementing projects not otherwise possible. This gentleman was knowledgeable and friendly and willing to take 10-15 minutes to talk to me. I loved that their bird feeders were full and actively attracting birds. There are noticeable difference in these refuges: some just seen to be doing what is minimally required as far as the public, and some actively try to engage and inform the public, like Sachuest Point and Ninigret here in Rhode Island.

I walked to a wonderfully designed, wheelchair-accessible overlook and could see Block Island in the distance, a NWR one can reach only by boat. I watched a bird feeding on the weedy flora in front of the overlook and finally figured out it was a Scarlet Tanager, probably a nonbreeding male, certainly not with the very distinctive and stunning scarlet and black of mature males.

I lingered in this lovely little place. It was late afternoon when sunshine is magical and still warm and here on the coast, sea breezes were gently blowing.

And then took a lesser road scenic route to Lisbon, CT where I stayed in a decent 24-hour Walmart, moving my vehicle at least four times to get an optimal spot.

Trustom Pond NWR - RI