by Luanne Johnson | Jul 22, 2022 | Beach-nesting birds, Birds
Black skimmers began nesting in Massachusetts in 1985, but always in low numbers (fewer than seven pairs). They first nested on Martha’s Vineyard (MV) in 2010 at Norton Point beach in Edgartown; however, they failed to fledge chicks that year. When a few pairs... 
by Luanne Johnson | Mar 4, 2021 | Nuisance Wildlife
It’s that smelly time of year when amorous male skunks roam the island in search of mating opportunities and some have close encounters of the vehicle kind. For much of the winter our striped skunk population has been snoozing in underground borrows in groups of two... 
by Luanne Johnson | Nov 30, 2020 | Bats
While COVID-19 did not impact our other wildlife work this spring and summer, it did halt most of our bat research. We were not able to handle any bats for fear of transmitting COVID-19 to them when North American bats are already struggling with a devastating... 
by Luanne Johnson | Nov 30, 2020 | Turtles
Over the summer, we documented 12 spotted turtles at four sites across the island. Two of these records were images people shared with us of spotted turtles they had found – one at a historic site on Chappaquiddick, and another in a historic site of... 
by Luanne Johnson | Apr 4, 2020 | Turtles
Spotted turtles are a Species of Greatest Conservation Need (SGCN) in all 21 states in which they occur. The Status Assessment and Conservation Plan for the Spotted Turtle in the Eastern United States, a collaborative effort among biologists from Maine to Florida, is...