Gray Whale Comeback Questioned

There's a good article on CNN.com which looks at the recovery of the Gray Whale. The story highlights how difficult it is to determine if an endangered species has "recovered" if no historical data on the species exists. Without a baseline, researchers can't tell if the population is at 50%, 10%, or 5%. Unfortunately many times the only hints at the historical size of a population are anecdotal records. I feel that a lot of these reports are exaggerations. But, if they are accurate, it just shows the extent that humanity has affected these animals.

Cape Cod Day 3: Nauset Marsh (7/30)

On our third day at the Cape we tried to get up early and see what birds were feeding at Nauset Marsh. The tide was just perfect when we got to the boardwalk. Unfortunately the weather wasn't. It was dark and humid and it felt like the skies could open up at any minute.

We quickly set up the scope and started looking around. All of the common birds were present. We saw Semi-palmated Sandpipers, Dowitchers, a few Egrets, a Great Blue Heron, and an Osprey on the platform.

It was hard to identify the birds thru the growing fog. But we just enjoyed the morning. Eventually we moved from the boardwalk onto the trail the encircles the marsh. My Mom and I wandered a bit down the trail looking for butterflies. But, most of them were in hiding. It turns out that they were the smart ones. We watched as the sky got progressively darker. Then a bolt of lightning struck unbelievably close to us. The thunder clap was enough to take your breath away. Needless to say, we high tailed it back into the wood and got to the car just in time to avoid getting soaked.