Whoever you are, would you please just stop it!?!  Stop littering and stop throwing your garbage in wild areas.  Be forewarned.  If I see you doing it, I will throw it right back at you.

If I sound like an ‘Upper Canadian with an attitude,’ then that’s too bad.  Ever since I’ve moved to Nova Scotia, I’ve been shocked by the littering behaviour exhibited by some (not all) residents of this beautiful province. 

In the twenty years I’ve lived here, I’ve seen so much disrespect shown to the environment that I often wonder if anything would surprise me anymore.   Well, I was surprised this morning as I entered the parking lot of the Salt Marsh Trail.  This is what I saw:

A boxed Christmas tree was one of the items left…

Home renovators are often culprits for this type of dumping.  I can’t tell you how many mounds of roofing shingles I’ve found in the woods over the years.  But litter doesn’t have to be big in order to be an eyesore on the landscape…

Tim Hortons coffee drinkers are among the worst offenders.  If they’re not allowed in our green compost bins, they’re certainly not as biodegradable as some people seem to think they are.  They’re frequently found in the woods and ditches along our roads along with their plastic lids. 

Plastic cartridges are commonly found in the marsh.  They’ll be around a thousand years after the hunters that left them ate their last duck or goose.

Likely thrown from a boat, the carcass of this large canine was found half out of a green garbage bag along the shore. 

Why do people dump stuff in our collectively owned wild areas that they would never think of dumping in their front yards?  This type of action comes down to a lack of respect, not just for the environment and its wild creatures, but that which we  own together as neighbors. 

It seems to me that the province or the municipality should try to do something to educate young people about the ethics of caring for our environment.  Growing up in Ontario, I saw this message presented over and over again in the media.  I grew up thinking it was totally unacceptable to leave anything in the wilderness or a public place that should be placed in a garbage receptacle.  Ontario license plates drive the message home:  ‘Ontario – Keep It Beautiful.’  I just don’t get that same sense of awareness in Nova Scotia.  Unless we start working towards changing this littering-is-acceptable mindset, maybe our license plate slogans should read Canada’s Dumping Ground instead of Canada’s Ocean Playground.

Note:  In Nova Scotia, ‘Upper Canadians with an attitude’ are typically people from Ontario who seem to think that they know better than Bluenosers (Nova Scotians).

High winds and stormy waves have thrown heaps of marsh grass across the salt marsh trail.  They’ll freeze into ragged mounds that will make passage here more difficult through the winter months.  But grass isn’t the only thing that the storm blew in…

Who would have thought one could find so many different types of sports balls in one morning’s walk?

The trap and skeet club might be missing a rack…

Does the discovery of this vacuum cleaner attachment mean that there’s also a vacuum cleaner out in the marsh somewhere?

The sudden presence of this enormous waste bin is a testament to the power of the winds and waves.  I wonder if someone should call Waste Management and let them know?

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Canada geese rest quietly on the water as the sun begins to rise.  It’s colder this morning than it’s been since last winter.  Some days, you can tell just by looking at the colour of the trees and the sky that you’re going to have to need mitts in order to walk outside, especially in the salt marsh, where there’s always some sort of wind.

There are no hot pinks or warm oranges in this morning’s sunrise.  Everything looks cool and barren.  Of course, nothing looks as cold as the water…

Except perhaps this poor duck…

At least someone’s sense of humour hasn’t frosted over.  Yet.   

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Most branches are already bare of the snow that fell early Sunday, but there’s no doubt about it.  There’s a bite of cold in the air that wasn’t present last week, and the waves of snow on the lawn confirm the inevitable.  Winter is here. 

This snow is crunchy this morning.  Underfoot, this isn’t a sound that’s experienced until after winter has set its claws into the landscape.  Ice has bonded the snow to the leaves and grass lying beneath it. Its hard surface is of the variety that makes it difficult to track the movements of small animals. 

Resting on the surface of these ripples of icy snow is a dusting of tiny bright white snow pellets.  This isn’t the type of snow that children delight in playing with.  It’s simply a tease to them and a promise of bigger snowfalls yet to come.  For adults, it’s an indicator that spring is closer than it was last week.

O Wind, if Winter comes… can Spring be far behind?

~Percy Bysshe Shelley

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The word cemetery has its roots in the Greek, meaning ’sleeping place.’  In Cow Bay, this place is the Bowes Cemetery located just off Cow Bay Road. 

Typical of many outdoor surfaces in Cow Bay, both the cemetery sign and several headstones are covered with lichens.

The ones on the sign include usnea hirta, also known as Old Man’s Beard. The lichens on the headstones are particularly bright in colour.  This provides an especially striking contrast on the dark stones.

Yellow lichens contain usnic acid.  Some German scientists have researched the site preferences of different types of lichens and concluded that the yellow varieties are most likely to prefer sub-strata that is also more acidic.  

This cemetery is the only place in Cow Bay where I’ve noticed yellow-coloured lichens.  Most are the dull greenish grey characteristic of the Old Man’s Beard.

Jessica at Jessica’s Nature Blog has photographed several bright varieties of lichens in her neck of the woods in the UK.  When I first saw them, I wondered why these brighter varieties were less common here in Cow Bay.  Perhaps the sub-strata is more acidic in her area.

Regardless of the science behind their preferences, these lichens add their own distinct beauty to this special sleeping place overlooking the ocean.

A grave is braced not just by a tombstone but by angels as well.
~Adabella Radici

For more information on the Bowes Cemetery in Cow Bay, see This Life of Mortal Breath.

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For ages humans have wondered about the effects of a full moon on the planet.  If tides are at their highest (and lowest) during this phase, wouldn’t anything that has a high water content, such as plant and animal life, be affected too?

Supposedly, timber isn’t harvested in tropical rainforests during a full moon as sap rises in the trees at that time.  This phenomena attracts death-watch beetles, insects known to destroy timber.  Does sap rise in the trees here too during a full moon?

There are nights when the wolves are silent, and only the moon howls.

~ George Carlin

Since a full moon is ten times brighter than a crescent moon, one would assume that nocturnal wildlife has more light with which to forage and hunt during the night hours.  However, raccoon hunters often find their prey less active on full moon nights and some deer hunters believe that deer are actually more active at noon during a full moon.  Despite all the research that’s been done, animal and human activity during this moon phase is still a mystery.

The two photos above were taken at 6 am this morning while the photo below was taken an hour later, half an hour before sunrise.  It looks more like the sun than the moon is peeking out from behind the trees. 

Full moons occur every 29.5 days and the next one will be on New Year’s Eve.  Since it will be the second full moon of the calendar month, it will be what’s known as a ‘blue moon,’ an event that occurs, on average, once every three years.

When I admire the wonder of a sunset or the beauty of the moon, my soul expands in worship of the creator.

~ Mahatma Gandhi

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What is it about reflections of clouds in the water that make ominous weather seem less dreadful?  In the salt marsh, the mirrored effect opens up the landscape and brings light between the grasses.

Although the water was still during high tide this morning, ripples created by ducks managed to fragment the light on the water. 

From a vantage point along Rosemary’s Way, the mist made the mirrored sky and trees seem even more enchanting. 

Of course, the sunrise itself gave the most beautiful reflection of all.  Clouded days have never seemed so fair.

Clouds symbolize the veils that shroud God.

~ Honore de Balzac

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How would you like to give or receive a little something from nature this Christmas? Wouldn’t the shopping be easier? Wouldn’t the gift seem more unique?

In response to a suggestion from Sahlah to give one another virtual gifts from nature this season, Centria at Opening the Door, Walking Outside, has already offered up some excellent choices from Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. Yesterday was Black Friday in the US, a day known for crazy Christmas shopping. Wouldn’t a walk in the woods or along the beach seem a more fitting way to begin the holiday season?

So here are some virtual gifts from nature in Cow Bay to all Flandrum Hill readers and especially the regular commenters. Hopefully you’ll find something you like among these treasures.

The ring-necked pheasant feathers shown above were found in my yard where male pheasants often strut.  You could stick one in a hat or place a few in a vase. 

If you’re into novel fashion accessories, the mermaid’s purse shown at left might be just the thing for you even if you’re not a mermaid. 

Or perhaps a green sea urchin is more to your liking.  Found on the beach but sometimes in the woods where they’ve been dropped by seagulls, up close, each one reveals a five pointed star design.  They are delicate so don’t usually ship well, but seeing as these are virtual gifts, that’s not a problem.  Arranged in a bowl, they’d make a beautiful holiday centerpiece. 

If you’re into practical gifts, the opalescent sheen on this razor clam is bound to make any other shaver seem dull in comparison.

Still haven’t found anything you’d like?  Perhaps money is the gift for you then, in which case these sand dollars are sure to please! 

I sincerely hope you managed to find something you like.  And, if you’re Christmas shopping this weekend, you might want to reconsider that trip to the mall.  Maybe your perfect gifts are already waiting for you to find under the trees.

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 In the past week, pheasants with a death wish crossed my path twice on separate occasions while I was driving.  The first time, the corner of the vehicle caught a female who continued her flight into the woods after leaving a flurry of feathers in the air.  The second time, an enormous male came within inches of the windshield as he flew to safety across the road.  

Female Ring-necked Pheasant

There is an amazing wildness to the look of these large ground birds when seen up close.  Feather patterns are strikingly beautiful and eye and beak colours assumed to be a dull grey from a distance, are anything but.  

Although pheasants are visible year-round in Cow Bay, and are often seen crossing the roads in a leisurely manner, they seem even more out in the open at this time of year.  I don’t recall seeing so many females along the side of the road in years past.  I’m either getting better at spotting them or they’re getting bolder.  Maybe they’re just trying to get out of the woods where hunting season is in full swing for their species until December 15th.

Earlier this week I noticed a male working very hard at directing a female’s movements in the front yard.  I’m not sure what that was all about.  Mating season is over and males usually congregate by themselves as the winter approaches.   Maybe he was trying to tell her to stay here where it was safe, instead of wandering into the more dangerous woods.

Yesterday a ruffed grouse that didn’t want its picture taken suddenly appeared in the yard.  They are much more secretive than pheasants and quick runners.  Their feathers certainly help them stay well camouflaged, so it may have been hanging around for some time before I managed to see it. 

November’s shorter daylight hours bring about a change in the colour of snowshoe hares, making them easier to spot on the landscape.

Snowshoe Hare in November

A favorite resting area for them during the day is under the spruce and fir trees.  Although they’re visible year round, their lighter fur in the fall is more eye-catching than usual, even on grey rainy days such as this one. 

This particular one looks quite rounded and ready for the winter.  But if the snow doesn’t fly soon, it will have to be extra careful to keep itself hidden from predators.

Snowshoe hares, ring-necked pheasants and ruffed grouse are all hunted in Nova Scotia at this time of year. 

For more information on regulations regarding hunting small game in Nova Scotia, see http://www.gov.ns.ca/natr/hunt/smlgame.asp

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There’s no stop these days to sights of geese flying south.  I continue to see flocks heading out in the morning, but today’s numbers baffled the mind.  Where are all these birds coming from?  Who would have thoughts there were so many Canada geese living north of here.

Some appear to be flying in V-like formations but most seem to be in strands that look like ribbons of smoke at a distance.

Wherever they are headed, in such large numbers they are bound to have an effect on the locations where they rest for the night.  How do so many large birds find food in one spot?  Seeing so many this morning, I could only stand in awe of their numbers and wonder. 

As numerous as they are, their existence, like everything else on the planet, is fragile.  In the 1500s, Canadian explorer Jacques Cartier noted that the flocks of passenger pigeons he saw flying overhead blackened the sky.  They’re now extinct.

There is symbolic as well as actual beauty in the migration of the birds… There is something infinitely healing in the repeated refrains of nature — the assurance that dawn comes after night, and  spring after the winter.

~ Rachel Carson

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