Wild Things
Keep an eye, and ear, out for migrating nighthawks
Common nighthawks (Chordeiles minor) are crepuscular birds that eat flying insects. You’ll spot them swooping and wheeling like aerial acrobats to catch bugs in mid-air. They are closely related to whippoorwills with the same teeny beaks that open wide into surprisingly enormous insect-catching mouths. Read more Cambridge halves participatory budgeting to $500,000 as 13th annual […]
The worm stomping wood turtle is smarter than you think
Once upon a time, the wood turtle was the most common freshwater turtle in eastern Massachusetts. Today it is in severe decline. Naturalists Louis Agassiz and Henry David Thoreau documented their observations of this reptile in the mid-1800s. Read more This Cambridge physical therapist keeps dancers on their toes But these turtles have been around […]
Dragonflies are older than dinosaurs and still thriving
Of the more than 300 in North America, none are more interesting than the black saddlebags dragonfly (Tramea lacerata), so named because of the black patches on its hind wings. When viewed from above, the patches look to be resting on each side of the abdomen, resembling saddlebags draped across the back of a horse. […]
The unusual moth that looks like a hummingbird
We all know that moths are common at night, but there are a few species of moths that fly during the day. One of these is the hummingbird clearwing moth (Hemaris thysbe). Read more Patrick John Filer The name is fitting: This large moth might be mistaken for a hummingbird because it hovers and beats […]
The birds that bounced back
Pileated woodpeckers (Dryocopus pileatus)arethe largest woodpecker in North America — nearly the size of a crow — with a black body, white facial stripes, and a red crest. Pileated comes from the Latin pileatus, meaning “capped,” a reference to the red crest that looks like a cap atop its head. If the bird seems familiar, […]
Resilient red-tailed hawks face new threat
The red-tailed hawk (Buteo jamaicensis) is the most common hawk in the United States, with about three million breeding birds residing in North America today. They are also one of the largest North American birds: up to 24 inches long with a wingspan of nearly four feet. Their excellent eyesight helps them spot movement of […]
Lobsters are smart, except the ones you eat
There’s a good reason lobsters and New England go hand-in-hand. Their presence in the Atlantic waters off our coast goes back millions of years, and the fact that they helped many early European settlers survive means these critters are an essential part of New England history. Read more Cambridge Jazz Fest aims to play it […]
Lobsters are smart, except the ones you eat
There’s a good reason lobsters and New England go hand-in-hand. Their presence in the Atlantic waters off our coast goes back millions of years, and the fact that they helped many early European settlers survive means these critters are an essential part of New England history. Read more Existential philosophy with Jell-O: A recipe for […]
Alpha-gal is in the headlines. It’s no superhero
Ticks, at least here in New England, are synonymous with summer. And now that summer is in full swing, so is the need to be vigilant. The current tick forecast is of particular concern because of a tick-derived syndrome that’s making the rounds: alpha-gal. Read more Is Beacon Hill thinking about nixing single-family zoning? Alpha-gal, […]
A different kind of book-worm
Way back in 1665, Robert Hooker wrote of the “small, Silver-coloured Book-worm” that chews through books and papers. He was writing about silverfish, which despite its name is a silver-grey cockroach-like insect you may have seen scamper across a dark bathroom or basement floor when you switch on a light. Read more Copper Mill developer […]