A pigeon is admitted after being scooped from the Charles River near Cambridge. He had reportedly been caught by a hawk, who accidentally dropped him into the water below. Luckily a good Samaritan at the Museum of Science saw the incident and fished him out before it was too late. When he arrived he was suffering from several puncture wounds and was quite disoriented to his surroundings. After about a week of cage rest and antibiotics he is ready to rejoin his friends and family in the wild, with instructions to avoid making any more friends with large talons.

Dr. Mertz believes the culprit to be one of the Peregrine Falcons who have made a home on the MIT campus this past year. They are among the fastest animals in the world and have an

   affinity for catching small birds, after all they did  not receive the nickname ”Pigeon Hawk” for nothing.

How grape vines frolic.  This is the underside of a wild fox grape vine.  These tendrils help fix the vine unto the ground or another surface if they touch it.  Until then they remain splayed and frolicsome.

Fox grapes are eaten by foxes, raccoons, squirrels, grackles, cedar waxwings, and me.

This moth visited my house last evening.  He obliged me with a short photo session.

In spite of the rain and fog there is a lot happening on the trails and natural areas of our area.