November 8, 1988 ~ From the edge of Plymouth Harbor Breakwater. Clair’s Island beyond the long sand spit.

then lots of ruddys, wigeon &  coot

Read the 2 news articles about the reconstruction of this lighthouse in the next post (posted Monday 19)

FMBG ~ 11/04/88

Frantic Snow Buntings at Horned Lark/Lapland longspur parking lot

                                                               North Hill ~ FMBG ~ 10/28/88

Far Away because the Wood Ducks especially are so shy.We saw 4 – 1 male & 3 females

Wood Ducks and further to the left floats of Ring Necks and 1 Bufflehead …

~ winter is coming ~

Paskamansett Bird Club FMBG ~ Fridat MOrning Bird Group 10/28/1988 (mostly another stand up writing and drawing)

What A Sharpie/Kestral war war war ~

What Spitfire WWII type flying  Phoom!!  Phew – Missed

Starlings crowding the Sharpie

Meadow Lark on Ground, Field Bright Cream, Rusty Foloage

Ospray in tree, 2 Harriers swooping

Priets carrying items needed in the after life by spirit

a ceremonial vase and incense burner

a basket of grain

a duck in right hand and beer jars and a chest in left (shoulder)

a mirror in case

looks like Ann found a little friend at the museum and share her sketch pad with her.

Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, Mass.

bead dress

Tuesday in October at the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston

model of “Flying Cloud” out in hall through the glass doors

10/14/88 ~ FMBC

Common Yellow Throat in Pine above yards and yards of Bitersweet scoters low over the water and Fany missed the Goshawk

… and a Phoebe

… from Lapham’s Bird Banding Station ~ Rhode Island Audubon ~ 10/02/88

I know the grand-daughter of the Laphams. Erica would tell me great stories of her family and friends getting together to band the migrating birds at her grandparent’s place in Rhode Island. As I came to this entry in Mum’s sketch book and began researching the Banding Station and I came across this video  created by Curt Milton (see link above). I recognized my friend’s mother in the video because they look so much alike. I sent this image of the view from the Banding Station to Erica, the following text is our correspondence.

Erica is at her grandparents land in Rhode Island at the moment and this is her email to me this morning (October 2, 2011).

“Hi there Nancy,

I’m up at Block Island, just arrived yesterday.  Turns out today (October 2, 2011) is the anniversary of your Mum’s visit 23 years ago!  Pretty amazing.  I looked in our log of happenings for that day and what it says is “People here again early and kept coming.  Must have been 100 people in the lawn listening to Hugh Willoughby.  Still very few birds to show but picked up in the P.M. after the crowds had gone.”  In the other log my grandfather wrote- “More hordes of birders and very few birds.  Hugh gave his geology lecture to about 100 people sitting on lawn.  Barbara Lawrence, friend from my Sachelles trip, here as well as Bobby McPherson and her guests including a brother of Bob Anderson, one of FDL’s classmates at Yale.  Ann Shepard Stevens also here with a friend.”  Didn’t know if your Mum was here with any of the people mentioned, although I know the McPhersons were friends of my grandparents from New Canaan.  Still, pretty fun to be here on the same day and all……. “

I just have returned from a visit with my mother (Ann Carter) who lives in New Hampshire now. I told her that I know the grandchild of the keepers of the Banding Station that she visited 23 years ago. She was so interested in hearing some of the details of her visit and was just  astonished with this connection . “Small World” she says

Below are pages 1 and  2 of the “Block Island Weekend ~ 96 Species ~ Sept 30 – Oct.2, 1988 report from their excursion.

Crystalis of monarchs emerging like jeweled christmas stockings in miniature

I inquired about the crystalis in Ann’s drawing and she writes: “I saw that the date on your Mum’s sketch was 1988 which means my grandmother was in full swing running the station, my grandfather was still alive and the sketch of the monarchs on the mantel is from inside the house. I asked her, “was there an actual miniature fireplace for the chrysalis to be in?” She answers,” The fireplace wasn’t miniature.  It is the fireplace we use to this day.  The mantel is pretty thick and the jars would sit on top of it with the cocoon, then when they were close to hatching, they got pulled out and attached somehow.”

Maine 2 nights 1 day. 10/11/88 ~ Visit to Lincoln to see Uncle Elverson (90) and Aunt Noni (89) Doing pretty well!!(Aunt Noni lived to 100 years old!)

the pair of Loons (common) Rt. 157 from East Millinocket

Behind D.J.’s in Scituate ~ Oct/14/88

How ’bout those long long claws on Pipet FEET ……

in perspective: Look at our Feet with water pipit feet

Butcher Bird ~ First saw him in Rose on ground at Fox Hill 3rd pole to the NE

Loggerhead Shrike 

Merlin soaring right above in land yard of house and the Dove into the nets set up in the pines

ZOOM !! WHAM!! which we didn’t see. Suspect near mist nest strung in the area

(The Merlin (Falco columbarius) is a small species of falcon from the Northern …. striatus) tocatch birds that escape from this ambush predator into the open air. … birds such as those snared in the mist nets used by ornithologists)

Bank Swallow nests (top left)

Still on way to lighthouse, almost at its level

sea-side marigold on Clay Cliff far below

Button Bush by road toward lighthouse

2 Rusty Blackbirds too in same area

Turtle in front of bright green tuft of grass

“Turtle in Tree to the Left” exclaimed D.C

North End of Block Island

laundry next door ~ couldn’t resist drawing the laundry

Black against the sun lit sky

High on the Bluff

Orange sulphur butterfly on slope of Goldenrod

Road Island Audubon Society Weekend ~ the pin ball or video game

The Yawn

steer lore, geese,bakings,’chinkins’ (chickens), Hay rides, Flowers, Cider, weaving, Hooking, REAL Balloon rides – too windy to lift off,

Ken Ludlow, Avis Ludlow and Ann Carter (in skirt) summer 1988

you wouldn’t believe the Marsh was that bright!

Fog coats the distant base of the islands and coasts far across the bay

~ 9/10/88

A deer came very close and crossed the path right below us.

September 8, 1988

Western Duck Island

Don Candy who delivered the bags used to be a fisherman. Jimmy Benstow, Captain of the Laura B. (white boat in background) the mail boat. Magee Benstow at the P. Clyde comes down to every boat landing

The most beautiful day imaginable ~ Clear crisp with spectacular fair weather cloud formations. September 7, 1988

Ugly Amy and Laura B and a duck resting on the shore

FMBG ~ September 2, 1988

Kestral baby, Lopsided, he is just learning.

Black Crowned Night Heron

Friday Morning Birding Group ~ Gammons Road Cohasset, Mass.

Wampautack Pond

The Gurnet Plymouth Lighthouse ~ 8/20/1988

Here is the whole picture of this blog’s header. It is one of her favourite images she painted.

7/30/88

Only beach open on South Shore Because of widespread pollution. Raw sewage from Nut Island plant which was supposed to be cleaned up 10 years ago. Overflow from protracted days of rain

Old North Bridge in Concord Massachusetts where the shot that was hear around the world was fired. The beginning of the American War of Independence.

Her grand childern playing on the monument.

The old Hingham shipyard of World War #2 … in the rain

again m not a birding image but charming none the less, This is about Glass but this cat seems to be stealing the show

Mum had a lovely little dog whom she adored named Flora. I almost passed this page over as it didn’t relate to birds until I saw the drawing of this sketch of Flora (bottom L). That’s how her mind works.. a sketch within a sketch… brilliant, charming.. love the bare foot with toe nail polish…..

and regarding her note “But let me tell you what happened BEFORE!! Turn page…”

You can imagine my anticipation to find out what she had drawn… but alas… she must have ripped that page out because there was nothing … nothing there of any note. Must have been so spectacular she needed to keep it private.

Black Pond

“EL BANDITO” common yellow throat

sheep laurel, lambkill swamp azalea, Arum? cotton grass, grass pinks, pitcher plants, round leafed sundew, 7 varieties of sphagnum, royal fern, cinnamon fern

arrow wood

FMBG ~ July 1, 1988

those Red Spots aren’t flowers!  6 in one nest!