Category: Nova Scotia nature

Posted on

Tamarack, Hackmatack, Juniper, and Larch

The things you notice with sunglasses on.  This time it was the surprising red colour of a newborn tamarack cone.  Even without sunglasses, they’re a beautiful red.

The red of young cones on the tamarack
The red of young cones on the tamarack

Ever since attending a concert by the Nova Scotian children’s entertainers The Wilderbeats, described in Rural Delivery magazine as “Madcap oracles of nature’s voice for a new generation,” looking at a tamarack tree makes me think of their Tamarack Song:

Tamarack, Hackmatack, Juniper, and Larch
Absolutely naked from November until March
It’s got CONES! and it’s got NEEDLES!
But it isn’t what it seems…
It’s decidedly deciduous and never evergreen

Of course, it’s not really a juniper, but that’s one of the many names people use for this conifer that sheds its needles every fall.

Posted on

Ducklings!

10 little ducks and their mother on a pond near Oak Island causeway on May 27th, 2009
10 little ducks and their mother on a pond near Oak Island causeway on May 27th, 2009
Spotted on May 27: Ten downy ducklings under the watchful eye of their American Black Duck mother.

Posted on

Fire on Oak Island

The was a brush fire on Oak Island today with fire departments from half a dozen communities responding. We couldn’t see the fire from the causeway, just the helicopter scooping up and dropping seawater on it. No serious damage, just lots of excitement, and a traffic jam of firetrucks making their way over the causeway.

Water-bombing helicopter over Oak Island.
Water-bombing helicopter over Oak Island.

Posted on

Chainsaw carvings

Snowy Owl carving
Snowy Owl carving
Bald Eagle carving
Bald Eagle carving

We had an adventure ramble in the woods during a kid’s birthday party in Chester Basin.  A neighbour had carved animals out of tree stumps and we had to discover them all.  We never did find the bear – maybe it was hibernating.

Frog carving
Frog carving
Frog carving in tree stump
Frog carving in tree stump
Rabbit carved out of tree stump
Rabbit carved out of tree stump


Posted on

Songs and poems about the ocean

My husband has just posted a video list of his favourite music and poetry about the sea on his French sailing blog, “Voile pour tous”.  The videos are in both French and English, but his introduction is in French.  Here’s my translation:

Sea, winds and boats weave a symphony of poems, music and popular song

Here is a collection of videos in French and English about the ocean, the winds and boats.  I welcome you to suggest others in different genres.

I am very grateful to YouTube for enabling me to post this modest collection.

Isn’t our planet amazing?  A big “thank you” to the artists, poets, composers and singers who have found ways to express their sense of wonder.

He has included a favourite of mine, “Je voudrais voir la mer” by Michel Rivard which Linda Morrison arranged for us in the Yellow Door Tabernacle Choir when I lived in Montreal. Even if you don’t understand the words, you can feel the rhythm of the ocean in the music.

Here’s the link to his blog post. Enjoy!

MERS, VENTS ET BATEAUX s’entrelacent dans une symphonie de poèmes, musique et chansons populaires

Posted on

Ruby Throated Hummingbirds have arrived

Dennis writes, from the Valley: “The first one arrived yesterday, buzzed right up to my face and looked in the window as if to say, ‘Where is the feeder?’   Within 10 minutes it was prepped and hanging outside the door. By 6 p.m. one male was giving another a feisty seminar on real estate law.  Hours of entertainment to follow….

Ruby Throated Hummingbird
Ruby Throated Hummingbird. Photo by Dennis Robinson

Post your hummingbird sightings here, from year to year, for the record!

Posted on

Video: Frosty Morning – Winter Ice on Mahone Bay

Hot off the press: our first Nova Scotia Photo Album video. It won’t be the last!

This one shows how tide and temperature create an ever-changing landscape on Mahone Bay’s shoreline, from first frost to spring breakup.

The music is an Appalachian tune called Frosty Morning, played by Dennis Robinson on fiddle and Heather Holm (that’s me) on accordion.