‘Tis the season for Christmas carols, and every time I hear the classic Twelve Days of Christmas, it has me wanting to go on a birdwatching adventure.
The song features six birds, and while most aren’t native to Rhode Island – the song originated in England, after all – that doesn’t mean that they’re difficult to find nearby. At least some of them.
Let’s start with the easy ones.
You’ll have little trouble finding seven swans a-swimming in the winter months around here. Just stop by any of the larger ponds or calm coves, like Easton’s Pond in Newport, Trustom Pond in South Kingstown, St. Mary’s Pond in Portsmouth, or Apponaug Cove in Warwick. Almost all of the swans you see will be mute swans, a European species introduced to New England in the late 19th century. But there’s a slim chance you may stumble upon a native tundra swan as it migrates through to the Mid-Atlantic States. They look very similar.
Six geese should also be easy, though they won’t be a-laying. Even seeing 600 won’t be a problem. Canada geese have become a nuisance in some parks, golf courses and turf fields, and winter is when they are at their most abundant in Rhode Island. Look for them at the same places as the swans, though also check the Slocum turf fields, the corn fields near Trustom Pond, Newport Country Club and Fort Adams State Park. And note that several other species of goose can also be found in Rhode Island in winter, including snow goose, brant and occasionally cackling goose, white-fronted goose and pink-footed goose.
Although most birds sing primarily during the breeding season in spring and summer, finding four calling birds in December should be a breeze. Since the lyrics don’t mention a particular species, you could count any number of species that make noise in winter, like chickadees, titmice, nuthatches and sparrows. But note that the original lyrics to the song referred to four “colly” birds, which is believed to be an archaic reference to the European blackbird. In that case, you’re out of luck without a plane ticket.
Three French hens are another story. It likely refers to Faverolles chickens, a French breed now primarily found in poultry exhibitions, though perhaps any domesticated chicken will do the trick in a pinch. Or better yet, search for wild chicken relatives, like wild turkeys, which can be found just about everywhere these days. Pheasants fit the bill, too, though the only place to find them in Rhode Island is Block Island.
While there are plenty of mourning doves that come to bird feeders, finding two turtle doves will be especially difficult. Your best bet would be finding a Eurasian collared dove, a member of the turtle dove family that has been expanding around the country but hasn’t quite made it to Rhode Island in any numbers. If you happen to be traveling to Florida for the holidays, you’ll find them perching on utility wires throughout suburbia.
Finding a partridge will also be challenging. No native partridges visit Rhode Island, but a few local game farms raise two species, gray partridges and chukars, to release for hunters. Occasionally a few escape and wander the area. A friend in North Smithfield had a chukar visiting his yard almost daily for a few weeks in September and October.
But finding one in a pear tree is next to impossible.
This article first appeared in the Newport Daily News on December 20, 2021.
Thursday, December 23, 2021
Wednesday, December 22, 2021
Scientists assessing how waterfowl interacts with aquaculture facilities
As aquaculture operations expand in Narragansett Bay and Rhode Island’s salt ponds, questions have arisen about how ducks and geese are affected by the facilities. To begin to answer these questions, a University of Rhode Island doctoral student is tracking the movements of local waterfowl.
“There haven’t been any Rhode Island studies yet, but studies on the Pacific Coast have found issues with diving ducks getting tangled up in netting used by aquaculture, and birds that have been deterred from areas that might otherwise be good habitat because of the activities of aquaculture operations,” said Tori Mezebish, a native of Maryland who is collaborating on the project with URI
Professors Peter Paton and Scott McWilliams and officials from the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management.
She noted that previous studies have also observed sea ducks like eiders and scoters, which feed on shellfish, preying on oysters and other shellfish being grown by aquaculturists.
“There’s also been some positive associations, like ducks and geese eating some of the aquatic vegetation that accumulates on the cages,” Mezebish said. “It’s a mixed bag of how the birds might interact with aquaculture.”
Last winter, Mezebish attached transmitters to 30 black ducks and 30 brant, a species of goose that lives in salt water. This winter she will deploy an additional 30 transmitters on common goldeneyes, a diving duck. All three species are common during winter in Narragansett Bay, the salt ponds, and adjacent salt marshes.
Most of the brant have returned from their breeding grounds in the Arctic, and several of them spend every day with dozens of other brant on the lawn at Colt State Park in Bristol. Others are spending most of their time in the Upper Bay and Providence River. The black ducks are just beginning to return to the area from Maine and southern Canada, and the early arrivals have been tracked to the salt ponds and the Galilee area.
Mezebish is tracking the movements of each bird using a GPS unit on their transmitters to see how much time they spend near aquaculture facilities. She is also observing the birds in the field to validate the GPS data and see what the birds are doing around the shellfish farms.
“The goal is to understand what is important to these species outside of the aquaculture facilities,” she said. “Maybe brant need shallow areas with submerged vegetation, so that may not be the best place to put an aquaculture lease.”
In addition to Mezebish’s study, URI postdoctoral researcher Martina Müller is conducting land-based surveys throughout the year to see what other kinds of birds may be interacting with the aquaculture facilities.
“Ultimately we want to provide recommendations about the good and not so good places for aquaculture leases to be placed,” said Mezebish, who became interested in waterfowl research as an intern at the Pawtuxet Wildlife Research Center in Maryland, where she hand-reared ducklings used in the center’s research activities.
When the project is complete, Mezebish hopes to use the study as a springboard to study related questions about other conflicts and interactions between waterfowl and humans.
“There haven’t been any Rhode Island studies yet, but studies on the Pacific Coast have found issues with diving ducks getting tangled up in netting used by aquaculture, and birds that have been deterred from areas that might otherwise be good habitat because of the activities of aquaculture operations,” said Tori Mezebish, a native of Maryland who is collaborating on the project with URI
 |
| Tori Mezebish with black duck |
She noted that previous studies have also observed sea ducks like eiders and scoters, which feed on shellfish, preying on oysters and other shellfish being grown by aquaculturists.
“There’s also been some positive associations, like ducks and geese eating some of the aquatic vegetation that accumulates on the cages,” Mezebish said. “It’s a mixed bag of how the birds might interact with aquaculture.”
Last winter, Mezebish attached transmitters to 30 black ducks and 30 brant, a species of goose that lives in salt water. This winter she will deploy an additional 30 transmitters on common goldeneyes, a diving duck. All three species are common during winter in Narragansett Bay, the salt ponds, and adjacent salt marshes.
Most of the brant have returned from their breeding grounds in the Arctic, and several of them spend every day with dozens of other brant on the lawn at Colt State Park in Bristol. Others are spending most of their time in the Upper Bay and Providence River. The black ducks are just beginning to return to the area from Maine and southern Canada, and the early arrivals have been tracked to the salt ponds and the Galilee area.
Mezebish is tracking the movements of each bird using a GPS unit on their transmitters to see how much time they spend near aquaculture facilities. She is also observing the birds in the field to validate the GPS data and see what the birds are doing around the shellfish farms.
“The goal is to understand what is important to these species outside of the aquaculture facilities,” she said. “Maybe brant need shallow areas with submerged vegetation, so that may not be the best place to put an aquaculture lease.”
In addition to Mezebish’s study, URI postdoctoral researcher Martina Müller is conducting land-based surveys throughout the year to see what other kinds of birds may be interacting with the aquaculture facilities.
“Ultimately we want to provide recommendations about the good and not so good places for aquaculture leases to be placed,” said Mezebish, who became interested in waterfowl research as an intern at the Pawtuxet Wildlife Research Center in Maryland, where she hand-reared ducklings used in the center’s research activities.
When the project is complete, Mezebish hopes to use the study as a springboard to study related questions about other conflicts and interactions between waterfowl and humans.
Tuesday, December 14, 2021
Grad student investigating distribution of one of Rhode Island's rarest turtles
Wood turtles are among the rarest turtles in Rhode Island, and yet little is known about where they can be found in the state and what conservation strategies may boost their populations. A University of Rhode Island graduate student is taking the first steps in addressing those questions by surveying the state to identify local populations of the turtle and the habitat they require from season to season.
“There has never been a statewide survey of wood turtles in Rhode Island before, and before we can protect them, we have to figure out where they are,” said Chloe Johnson, a native of Atlanta,
Georgia, who is in her second year of studying the turtles as part of her master’s degree.
Wood turtles, which have been proposed for inclusion on the federal endangered species list, are found from Virginia to southern Canada and west to Minnesota. Sporting orange patches on their neck and legs, they spend time in slow-moving rivers and streams as well as in terrestrial environments like forests, croplands and pastures. They nest in open sandy areas.
Working in collaboration with URI Associate Professor Nancy Karraker and Scott Buchanan at the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management, Johnson conducted upland surveys during the summer of 2021 in hopes of finding nesting turtles, and she scoured rivers and streams in fall and spring. So far, she has identified 13 locations where the turtles have been documented. But finding the turtles has been harder than she expected.
“I’ve done more than 70 surveys and found fewer than 15 wood turtles,” she said. “They’re much more difficult to find than I anticipated. In the summer I went three weeks without seeing one. It’s hard, but when you find one it’s so much more rewarding.”
In the upcoming field season, when Johnson finds a wood turtle, she will attach a GPS data logger on its shell so she can track its movements.
“We want to know where the turtles go at night. Are they in fields or forests or streams?” she said. “How often do they cross roads? We’ve seen and heard from a lot of people that they’re seen crossing roads. Maybe we can find potential hotspots of road mortality.”
According to Johnson, wood turtles are threatened by habitat loss and fragmentation from the construction of roadways, houses and other human-based development. Their streams are also being negatively impacted by these developments. In addition, their bright coloration makes them popular in the pet trade and a prime target for wildlife traffickers.
“They’re endangered range-wide,” said Johnson, “but compared to surveys in Virginia, they’re much harder to find here in Rhode Island.”
The URI student anticipates completing her wood turtle research by next fall, when she hopes to have located previously unidentified breeding areas that state wildlife officials can include in future management and conservation plans.
“There has never been a statewide survey of wood turtles in Rhode Island before, and before we can protect them, we have to figure out where they are,” said Chloe Johnson, a native of Atlanta,
 |
| Chloe Johnson with wood turtle |
Wood turtles, which have been proposed for inclusion on the federal endangered species list, are found from Virginia to southern Canada and west to Minnesota. Sporting orange patches on their neck and legs, they spend time in slow-moving rivers and streams as well as in terrestrial environments like forests, croplands and pastures. They nest in open sandy areas.
Working in collaboration with URI Associate Professor Nancy Karraker and Scott Buchanan at the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management, Johnson conducted upland surveys during the summer of 2021 in hopes of finding nesting turtles, and she scoured rivers and streams in fall and spring. So far, she has identified 13 locations where the turtles have been documented. But finding the turtles has been harder than she expected.
“I’ve done more than 70 surveys and found fewer than 15 wood turtles,” she said. “They’re much more difficult to find than I anticipated. In the summer I went three weeks without seeing one. It’s hard, but when you find one it’s so much more rewarding.”
In the upcoming field season, when Johnson finds a wood turtle, she will attach a GPS data logger on its shell so she can track its movements.
“We want to know where the turtles go at night. Are they in fields or forests or streams?” she said. “How often do they cross roads? We’ve seen and heard from a lot of people that they’re seen crossing roads. Maybe we can find potential hotspots of road mortality.”
According to Johnson, wood turtles are threatened by habitat loss and fragmentation from the construction of roadways, houses and other human-based development. Their streams are also being negatively impacted by these developments. In addition, their bright coloration makes them popular in the pet trade and a prime target for wildlife traffickers.
“They’re endangered range-wide,” said Johnson, “but compared to surveys in Virginia, they’re much harder to find here in Rhode Island.”
The URI student anticipates completing her wood turtle research by next fall, when she hopes to have located previously unidentified breeding areas that state wildlife officials can include in future management and conservation plans.
Monday, December 13, 2021
URI student takes birdwatching community by storm
When University of Rhode Island senior Sam Miller discovered a sharp-tailed sandpiper at the Galilee Bird Sanctuary in Narragansett in November, it caused significant excitement among the birdwatching community. During the three weeks the bird remained in the area, hundreds of people from throughout the eastern U.S. flocked to see the bird, which breeds in Siberia and winters in Australia.
Miller found the bird – a species never previously observed in the Ocean State – during an all-day event he organized in which dozens of local birders sought rare birds along the Rhode Island coast.
“November is rarity season in the Northeast, so we targeted the most rarity-productive habitats in Rhode Island and hoped that someone would find something cool,” said Miller, a wildlife and
conservation biology major from Gambrills, Maryland. “I didn’t think I’d be the one finding the rarest bird, but other rare and uncommon birds were discovered as well.”
The event, which he called a Rarity Round-up, is an annual event in his home state, and Miller wanted to launch something similar in Rhode Island.
“Hopefully there was enough interest to make it an annual event,” he said. “It seemed to work out pretty well.”
Miller has been interested in wildlife since early in his childhood, and he eventually obtained a camera to take photos of the birds at his birdfeeders. After flipping through a field guide to identify the birds in his photographs, he realized how many other species could be found, so he started looking for them.
“I mostly go birding around Maryland and Rhode Island, but I take advantage of family vacations to do some birding, and last winter I road-tripped to Florida with friends to see birds there,” he said.
He chose to enroll at URI after meeting the University’s ornithology professors, Scott McWilliams and Peter Paton and discovering that Rhode Island is an excellent place to observe fall migration. He has served as a teaching assistant in Paton’s field ornithology class for two years, and he is in the midst of a research project to learn about nocturnal bird migration and morning flight along the Rhode Island coast.
“Most songbirds migrate at night, and as the sun rises, they descend to land,” he said. “Birds descending in the vicinity of Point Judith either continue their migrations to Block Island or land at the coast. In most cases, those that land at the coast continue flying farther inland in search of more productive habitat to refuel. Others may find the coastal habitat suitable and refuel there. At Camp Cronin on the Point Judith peninsula, I could study this decision making and see how it may be impacted by varying weather conditions.”
Camp Cronin is where Miller spent his early morning hours in September and October recording the nocturnal flight calls of birds flying by for the two hours before dawn. He also conducted flight counts at sunrise and walked transects to document the species and numbers of birds that spent the daylight hours at the site.
“I got more intensified morning flights when visibility was less than ideal to Block Island,” he said. “When there’s poor visibility, more birds seem to descend at the coast rather than continuing over water where weather conditions and the presence of habitat is uncertain. When birds descending at the coast can see across Block Island Sound, I believe many decide to continue their migrations to Block Island, but this will require further research.”
“In my 26 years at URI, Sam is undoubtedly the most field-savvy undergraduate I have had the pleasure of working with,” said Paton. “He has an encyclopedic knowledge of the birds of Rhode Island. He has already established himself as one the most skilled birders in Rhode Island, and he has yet to graduate from URI. I am sure he will go far in the field of ornithology.”
As a relative newcomer to Rhode Island, Miller made an extra effort to reach out to the local birding community, and he even helped start a text messaging group to quickly share information about interesting bird sightings. It not only helped him become acquainted with the state’s most active birders, but it also helped other new birders get connected to the community.
With one semester left before graduation, Miller is looking ahead to graduate school and a career as an ornithologist.
“I’m probably going to take a year to work and get some field jobs before going to grad school,” he said. “What happens after that is a bit up in the air. I’ve always thought about a career in academia, because I like to teach, but I’m going to take one step at a time and see what opportunities come my way. And I’ll take it from there.”
Miller found the bird – a species never previously observed in the Ocean State – during an all-day event he organized in which dozens of local birders sought rare birds along the Rhode Island coast.
“November is rarity season in the Northeast, so we targeted the most rarity-productive habitats in Rhode Island and hoped that someone would find something cool,” said Miller, a wildlife and
 |
| Sam Miller birding at Sachuest Point NWR (Peter Paton) |
The event, which he called a Rarity Round-up, is an annual event in his home state, and Miller wanted to launch something similar in Rhode Island.
“Hopefully there was enough interest to make it an annual event,” he said. “It seemed to work out pretty well.”
Miller has been interested in wildlife since early in his childhood, and he eventually obtained a camera to take photos of the birds at his birdfeeders. After flipping through a field guide to identify the birds in his photographs, he realized how many other species could be found, so he started looking for them.
“I mostly go birding around Maryland and Rhode Island, but I take advantage of family vacations to do some birding, and last winter I road-tripped to Florida with friends to see birds there,” he said.
He chose to enroll at URI after meeting the University’s ornithology professors, Scott McWilliams and Peter Paton and discovering that Rhode Island is an excellent place to observe fall migration. He has served as a teaching assistant in Paton’s field ornithology class for two years, and he is in the midst of a research project to learn about nocturnal bird migration and morning flight along the Rhode Island coast.
“Most songbirds migrate at night, and as the sun rises, they descend to land,” he said. “Birds descending in the vicinity of Point Judith either continue their migrations to Block Island or land at the coast. In most cases, those that land at the coast continue flying farther inland in search of more productive habitat to refuel. Others may find the coastal habitat suitable and refuel there. At Camp Cronin on the Point Judith peninsula, I could study this decision making and see how it may be impacted by varying weather conditions.”
Camp Cronin is where Miller spent his early morning hours in September and October recording the nocturnal flight calls of birds flying by for the two hours before dawn. He also conducted flight counts at sunrise and walked transects to document the species and numbers of birds that spent the daylight hours at the site.
“I got more intensified morning flights when visibility was less than ideal to Block Island,” he said. “When there’s poor visibility, more birds seem to descend at the coast rather than continuing over water where weather conditions and the presence of habitat is uncertain. When birds descending at the coast can see across Block Island Sound, I believe many decide to continue their migrations to Block Island, but this will require further research.”
“In my 26 years at URI, Sam is undoubtedly the most field-savvy undergraduate I have had the pleasure of working with,” said Paton. “He has an encyclopedic knowledge of the birds of Rhode Island. He has already established himself as one the most skilled birders in Rhode Island, and he has yet to graduate from URI. I am sure he will go far in the field of ornithology.”
As a relative newcomer to Rhode Island, Miller made an extra effort to reach out to the local birding community, and he even helped start a text messaging group to quickly share information about interesting bird sightings. It not only helped him become acquainted with the state’s most active birders, but it also helped other new birders get connected to the community.
With one semester left before graduation, Miller is looking ahead to graduate school and a career as an ornithologist.
“I’m probably going to take a year to work and get some field jobs before going to grad school,” he said. “What happens after that is a bit up in the air. I’ve always thought about a career in academia, because I like to teach, but I’m going to take one step at a time and see what opportunities come my way. And I’ll take it from there.”
Boom in mouse population has implications for Lyme disease, predators
A wildlife biologist at the University of Rhode Island has observed a significant growth in the local population of white-footed mice this year, which could increase Lyme disease risk next year while also providing additional food to area predators and increasing the likelihood that homeowners find mice in their basements.
Christian Floyd, a URI teaching professor who studies rodents and other small mammals, said that his mammalogy class set 50 box traps in a forest to the north of the Kingston campus this fall, and in
one night they captured and released 24 white-footed mice. They typically capture no more than 6. The students also captured many more images of white-footed mice on trail cameras than usual.
“Even in down years, this mouse is the most abundant mammal in Rhode Island,” said Floyd. “They’re everywhere – in fields, forests, farms, homes, everywhere.”
According to Floyd, mice typically live short lives because they are the primary prey for many common predators. But because females can reproduce just 30 days after being born, and they can produce 3 to 4 broods of 4 to 8 babies per year, their populations can grow rapidly if the conditions are right.
“A white-footed mouse outbreak is all about survival,” he said. “They have a high rate of being predated, but they seem to have survived better this year for some reason. The predator populations don’t really change, but what does change is their winter survival rates. The last couple winters haven’t been very severe, and that’s one important factor.”
Floyd said that the abundance of acorns in the last two years has also provided plenty of food to carry the mice through the winter months.
“Acorns are a major food source. They’ll eat seeds and other parts of plants, but it’s mostly acorns, and acorns were abundant this year and last year,” Floyd said. “That influences the size of their food cache for the winter.”
The combination of high food availability, mild winters and their typically high reproductive rate has led to a banner year for mice.
“What that means is a higher risk for Lyme disease and babesiosis,” he said. “Both are transmitted by black-legged ticks, but mice are the primary reservoir for the bacteria that cause those diseases. Mice transmit Lyme and babesia to the ticks.”
Floyd said that homeowners should also expect a greater number of mice than usual in their basements and garages this year.
“Since the weather turned cool, I’ve been catching about one mouse a day in my basement,” he said. “I’m up to 25 already. And that’s a problem, because they chew the wiring, they make a nest out of the insulation, and they get inside vehicles.”
An abundant mouse population isn’t all bad news, however. Just as the abundance of acorns probably contributed to the increase in the mouse population, the abundance of mice will likely give a boost to wildlife populations that feed on mice, like hawks, owls, foxes and weasels.
And by burying seeds and mushroom spores, mice also play an important role in supporting the regrowth of forests. So more mice could lead to healthier forests. But a lot will depend on the weather this winter.
“It’s already looking like we’re going to have another mild winter, and that’s a good sign for white-footed mice.” Floyd said.
Christian Floyd, a URI teaching professor who studies rodents and other small mammals, said that his mammalogy class set 50 box traps in a forest to the north of the Kingston campus this fall, and in
 |
| Christian Floyd with white-footed mouse (Bailey Wolf) |
“Even in down years, this mouse is the most abundant mammal in Rhode Island,” said Floyd. “They’re everywhere – in fields, forests, farms, homes, everywhere.”
According to Floyd, mice typically live short lives because they are the primary prey for many common predators. But because females can reproduce just 30 days after being born, and they can produce 3 to 4 broods of 4 to 8 babies per year, their populations can grow rapidly if the conditions are right.
“A white-footed mouse outbreak is all about survival,” he said. “They have a high rate of being predated, but they seem to have survived better this year for some reason. The predator populations don’t really change, but what does change is their winter survival rates. The last couple winters haven’t been very severe, and that’s one important factor.”
Floyd said that the abundance of acorns in the last two years has also provided plenty of food to carry the mice through the winter months.
“Acorns are a major food source. They’ll eat seeds and other parts of plants, but it’s mostly acorns, and acorns were abundant this year and last year,” Floyd said. “That influences the size of their food cache for the winter.”
The combination of high food availability, mild winters and their typically high reproductive rate has led to a banner year for mice.
“What that means is a higher risk for Lyme disease and babesiosis,” he said. “Both are transmitted by black-legged ticks, but mice are the primary reservoir for the bacteria that cause those diseases. Mice transmit Lyme and babesia to the ticks.”
Floyd said that homeowners should also expect a greater number of mice than usual in their basements and garages this year.
“Since the weather turned cool, I’ve been catching about one mouse a day in my basement,” he said. “I’m up to 25 already. And that’s a problem, because they chew the wiring, they make a nest out of the insulation, and they get inside vehicles.”
An abundant mouse population isn’t all bad news, however. Just as the abundance of acorns probably contributed to the increase in the mouse population, the abundance of mice will likely give a boost to wildlife populations that feed on mice, like hawks, owls, foxes and weasels.
And by burying seeds and mushroom spores, mice also play an important role in supporting the regrowth of forests. So more mice could lead to healthier forests. But a lot will depend on the weather this winter.
“It’s already looking like we’re going to have another mild winter, and that’s a good sign for white-footed mice.” Floyd said.
Friday, December 10, 2021
Nature writer cultivated craft on streets of New York
Naturalist and writer Scott Turner credits his keen wildlife observation skills to the talents he developed out of necessity growing up in a tough neighborhood in the Bronx, N.Y.
“I was a survivor among the anarchy of the 1960s and ’70s, and I survived through my observational skills, through my senses,” said Turner, who wrote a nature column for The Providence Journal for 11 years and for GoLocalProv.com for two more. “Over time, I realized that some of the things I saw — if a gang was coming or if someone had a gun and I had to get out of there — weren’t
that different from seeing a bird of prey zip through the forest or noticing a berry hanging on a Virginia creeper vine. It’s the same sort of enhanced sensory experience. It’s not about survival any more but more like a celebration.”
His curiosity about the natural world started during a life-changing moment when he was 11.
“That’s when my parents sent me to day camp, which I found was so much more peaceful and so much safer than being on the street corner,” Turner said. “I was fascinated that this entire world was around me and I’d never seen it before. I never knew that so much could be in such a small spot. I was hooked from there on out.”
Turner’s weekly column featured many of his nature observations in the Bronx, as well as those in Rhode Island and wherever he traveled. A collection of his columns, which ran from 2007 to 2020, have now been compiled into a book, Beauty in the Street: Nature Tales from the Neighborhood.
He started writing his column following the death of longtime nature columnist Ken Weber. When The Providence Journal editors selected him to succeed Weber, he considered it a chance to finally speak.
“There’s a story in the book about when I was 4 and wanted to show my dad a garden,” Turner said. “My dad was a rough guy, and I already knew not to talk with him, and he just told me to shut up. The column was an opportunity to not shut up any more.”
Because he spent most of his life living in cities, Turner’s essays have a decidedly urban slant to them. Many feature the New York City parks he found to be sanctuaries during his youth, while others explore the nature in Rhode Island neighborhoods, trails, and landmarks. And his essays don’t ignore the human element, whether it is stories about his family or people he bumps into at local refuges.
“We’re all part of the natural world, even when you’re in Providence,” he said. “The column was an opportunity to tell people about what I saw. At times I’d see something or smell something — the bay or the bike path maybe — and want to write about it, and it would often take me back to being along the Hudson River in 1974. I’d let that stretch out, not only in what I was experiencing in the moment, but also what it was reminding me of.”
Turner worked in the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation and at Pennsylvania State University before moving to Providence in 1996 to work as a science writer for Brown University, where he worked for almost 20 years. He is now the director of communications for the American Mathematical Society.
The Providence resident described his book as part memoir and part “love letter to the people, the streets, the parks, and what I experienced there,” he said. “It’s a lot of observation, what I saw, heard, and smelled that has stuck with me my entire life. It has more about Rhode Island than anywhere else because I love Rhode Island’s nature. Rhode Island is small, but when it comes to nature, it’s pretty big. And diverse.”
He decided to publish the book in part because his columns generated so much feedback from readers, more than 1,000 of whom wrote to him about particular columns or about their own observations. But he also compiled his columns into a book because his 87-year-old mother asked him to.
“I did it more for my loved ones than for anyone else,” he said. “But it’s also for anybody who feels the same way I do when you’re outside or when you’re experiencing something that you’re appreciating or feeling wonder about. I meet a lot of people on the trail and they talk about all the different reasons why they love it out there. The book is for anyone who has had that kind of reaction when they’re outside.”
This article first appeared on EcoRI.org on December 10, 2021.
“I was a survivor among the anarchy of the 1960s and ’70s, and I survived through my observational skills, through my senses,” said Turner, who wrote a nature column for The Providence Journal for 11 years and for GoLocalProv.com for two more. “Over time, I realized that some of the things I saw — if a gang was coming or if someone had a gun and I had to get out of there — weren’t
 |
| Scott Turner |
His curiosity about the natural world started during a life-changing moment when he was 11.
“That’s when my parents sent me to day camp, which I found was so much more peaceful and so much safer than being on the street corner,” Turner said. “I was fascinated that this entire world was around me and I’d never seen it before. I never knew that so much could be in such a small spot. I was hooked from there on out.”
Turner’s weekly column featured many of his nature observations in the Bronx, as well as those in Rhode Island and wherever he traveled. A collection of his columns, which ran from 2007 to 2020, have now been compiled into a book, Beauty in the Street: Nature Tales from the Neighborhood.
He started writing his column following the death of longtime nature columnist Ken Weber. When The Providence Journal editors selected him to succeed Weber, he considered it a chance to finally speak.
“There’s a story in the book about when I was 4 and wanted to show my dad a garden,” Turner said. “My dad was a rough guy, and I already knew not to talk with him, and he just told me to shut up. The column was an opportunity to not shut up any more.”
Because he spent most of his life living in cities, Turner’s essays have a decidedly urban slant to them. Many feature the New York City parks he found to be sanctuaries during his youth, while others explore the nature in Rhode Island neighborhoods, trails, and landmarks. And his essays don’t ignore the human element, whether it is stories about his family or people he bumps into at local refuges.
“We’re all part of the natural world, even when you’re in Providence,” he said. “The column was an opportunity to tell people about what I saw. At times I’d see something or smell something — the bay or the bike path maybe — and want to write about it, and it would often take me back to being along the Hudson River in 1974. I’d let that stretch out, not only in what I was experiencing in the moment, but also what it was reminding me of.”
Turner worked in the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation and at Pennsylvania State University before moving to Providence in 1996 to work as a science writer for Brown University, where he worked for almost 20 years. He is now the director of communications for the American Mathematical Society.
The Providence resident described his book as part memoir and part “love letter to the people, the streets, the parks, and what I experienced there,” he said. “It’s a lot of observation, what I saw, heard, and smelled that has stuck with me my entire life. It has more about Rhode Island than anywhere else because I love Rhode Island’s nature. Rhode Island is small, but when it comes to nature, it’s pretty big. And diverse.”
He decided to publish the book in part because his columns generated so much feedback from readers, more than 1,000 of whom wrote to him about particular columns or about their own observations. But he also compiled his columns into a book because his 87-year-old mother asked him to.
“I did it more for my loved ones than for anyone else,” he said. “But it’s also for anybody who feels the same way I do when you’re outside or when you’re experiencing something that you’re appreciating or feeling wonder about. I meet a lot of people on the trail and they talk about all the different reasons why they love it out there. The book is for anyone who has had that kind of reaction when they’re outside.”
This article first appeared on EcoRI.org on December 10, 2021.
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