Opossum for Breakfast

Morning Possum from Lucille on Vimeo.

Look at those marvelous ears! Her pink feet!

A magnificent creature, the opossum!

Winter Solstice

Finch Rescue - December 2005

Finch Rescue - Dec. 19, 2005 - Sandwich, Massachusetts from Lucille on Vimeo.

Finch Rescue - Dec. 19, 2005 - Sandwich, Massachusetts

The Squirrel-Proof Bird Feeder

The Squirrel-Proof Bird Feeder from Lucille on Vimeo.

There's a feisty squirrel in every yard! This one managed to coax a few seeds out of this feeder, but it did prevent his feasting on its entire contents in a single day, as he did with the feeder below, which he treated as his own private feeding station.

I still use this feeder, but it is now filled with safflower seeds, which the birds like, but squirrels do not.

Thanksgiving Dinner - Hens & Chickens, No Turkey, please!

My idea of Thanksgiving dinner, courtesy of wild bounty foraged from Shawme-Crowell State Forest - Sandwich, Massachusetts.

Vegetarian Thanksgiving - Hens & Chickens, but No Turkey, please! from Lucille Iacovelli on Vimeo.

Fragrant Fungi

September 15, 2007 The Black Trumpet is often ignored by foragers in my neck of the woods. It is easy to overlook these incredibly fragrant fungi because here on Cape Cod, they rarely grow large enough to make them worth hunting. They are difficult to spot on the forest floor because their appearance so closely resembles brown, fallen leaves. This very thin and fragile fungi only last one or two days at most before they shrivel up into hard, coal black pieces of debris. What these delicate mushrooms lack in size and substance, they make up for in flavor. Their unique characteristics make them easy to differentiate from poisonous types. I rarely find many of these in a season... perhaps enough to grace an omelet at best. The Black Trumpet has an affinity for egg dishes, transforming a simple omelet or a few scrambled eggs into special dish with an unforgettable flavor and aroma. I could hardly believe my eyes when I spotted these tiny trumpets emerging from a large patch of moss growing along the roadside within the state forest. I stopped the car to take a closer look, and found enough trumpets to keep me on my knees in the moss until the area was picked clean. Wild fungi should be gathered with care. They should be cut flush with the ground with a knife rather than pulled out of the ground. This causes the least disturbance to the mycelium in the soil. Only pull when you absolutely must make a positive identification by a unique characteristic of the stem base. Proper gathering will increase the chance of finding the same mushrooms in that area year after year.

Visitors' Return

Lucille Iacovelli

With the warm weather my wild visitors return. Right now, the furry variety seems to have overpowered my feathered friends. In an attempt to divert the squirrels from devouring seed intended for the birds, I thought I would entice them away from the bird feeder with tiny crackers spread with peanut butter. I offered this in addition to their usual ration of cracked corn.

My plan backfired. Now they have increased in both number and appetite with a newly acquired taste for peanut butter...and so spoiled as to leave the cracker behind after licking off every molecule of peanut from its surface. I will allow them their peanut butter feast until the jar is empty. After that, they will have to eat the corn or find another human willing to indulge their extravagant taste!

My Special Visitor

~August 11, 2007~
The light rain brought a flurry of activity to the tiny deck just outside my kitchen door. I had just replenished the nectar in a glass hummingbird feeder, scattered a few hands full of seed along the railing and floor, then filled a clay dish with a mixture of corn meal and peanut butter that sends the squirrels and chipmunks into paroxysms of delight. My friends were all waiting..perched in the oak branches forming a graceful, protective canopy over their miniature sanctuary. They began to alight even before I closed the screen behind me. Calling their friends to breakfast, they chirped and chattered, filling the morning with sparkling bird song. Blue jays, chickadees, goldfinch, sparrows, Mr. & Mrs Cardinal.. even the cranky crow made an appearance, but found the offered fare not to his liking..a relief to his smaller avian relations.

The squirrels arrived in flying leaps from tree trunk to deck, noisily announcing their presence with a commotion before settling down to feast. Reliable as clock work, Redhead and her boyfriend, Gray are bold and incorrigible, wreaking havoc with my potted plants when made to wait for their breakfast.

Then, as sudden as a flash, there she was..my special visitor. Her tiny body flitting from flower to feeder.. Her iridescent feathers luminous as jewels in the rain-gray morning. Yes, it was she.. hovering before me, looking me straight in the eye, I swear. She knows me. Does she remember?

Continued.. part II

My Special Visitor

2007

My Special Visitor - Part III

August, 2007

Exhausted from the simple task of window washing, I went inside for a brief rest. As my labored breathing became more regular, my eyes closed on pleasant thoughts of sitting at my sparkling clean window with a nice cup of tea and enjoying the view. Just as this lovely image brought me to the edge of sleep, I heard a tiny thud on the glass.

My heart flew to my throat as I hurried to the door. The precious hummingbird lay motionless on the straw mat. She was on her back, eyes closed. Kneeling before the mat, I gently, reverently, placed her in my hands. I was overwhelmed by the intensity of an indescribable emotion as I held this nearly weightless, beautiful creature; her heart beating so fast as my own raced with it. My mind flew in a thousand directions at once. I heard my own voice cry "Please, God, do not let her die!" while simultaneously admonishing myself for cleaning the glass to invisibility.

I stood helpless, holding the helpless bird, my heart and soul filled to bursting with my pitiful prayer for her life. As tears streamed down my face, I vaguely recalled reading something about reviving stunned hummingbirds. With her tiny head held gently, ever so gently, between my thumb and two fingers, I dipped the end of her long, slender beak into the cone of the nectar bottle. Suddenly, her eyes opened as her unimaginably long tongue extended and reached for the nectar.

continued....

My Special Visitor 2007

My Special Visitor - Part lV

(Photo: Visitor of a different feather..from the Finch family. I found this sweet bird on my deck during a brutal snow storm last winter, motionless and nearly frozen. I placed her inside my jacket, next to my heart, and left her there while I lined a box with an old tea towel, as my canine companion eyed me suspiciously. I then settled her into the box, covered it with a screen, then frantically searched for the number of the nearest wildlife sanctuary, thinking she would need professional help. After one hour, she was able to move, but only a bit. I fetched the camera while she nestled in my hand and captured this shot. From the moment the bird entered the flat, my dog excitedly paced back and forth in the tiny 2 rooms, giving me jealous glances, then sneaking an occasional jump, curious to see the creature that had stolen my attention. Finally, the little finch energetically fluttered her wings and appeared completely restored, I brought the box outside, removed the screen, and watched with relief, as she flew away as good as new.) Lucille Iacovelli Holding one of God's perfect creatures in one's hand is a blessing profound as life itself. As the hummingbird revived, I watched in awe while its tongue continued dipping into the nectar. I was overcome by an intensity of awareness at the wonder of this moment.. this blessing bestowed upon me and this breathtakingly exquisite little bird. She allowed me the opportunity to see, up close, every magnificent detail of her body.. her tiny feet! ... her oh, so lovely and perfectly feathered little body!.. and her eyes, trusting and looking straight into mine with an awareness we, as human beings, will never know in our present bodies. The tiny bird blessed me with its trust and filled me with humility. My Special Visitor 2007

The Wild Turkey Families of Shawme-Crowell State Forest

	Wild Turkey Families Lucille Iacovelli Please excuse this post! Silly, I know, but still cannot not resist. (Yes, I love this tune Mera Naam Chin Chin Choo : ) Watch the video ~ Lucille Iacovelli