Dear Katie,

We hope you're enjoying all the snow! This month we are sharing just a few of the posts from our Harpswell Nature Watchers Facebook group. Want to see the rest? Click here to join.

What are you seeing out there? We'd love to hear from you! Click here for more information about Harpswell Nature Watchers.

Went for a walk on Sunday morning at the Schiller Coastal Studies Center. It was a winter wonderland!

(Submitted by Karen Matero. January 24, 2023)

The winter forms of many plants can be quite beautiful. One of my favorites is the bead-like fruiting structure of the sensitive fern (Onoclea sensibilis). The green fronds of this fern will immediately die back at the first sign of frost in the Fall. Interestingly, the spore cases or “beads,” that remain, line themselves up along one side of the stalk creating a distinct back and front view. Sensitive ferns grow mainly in moist areas. In Spring, these beads will mature, dry, and burst, scattering thousands of spores. The fossil record indicates that this plant has been around and has remained largely unchanged in appearance for 60 million years!

(Submitted by Lynn Knight. January 25, 2023)

I was along the shore looking at the swells gently rippling the scrim of ice on the cove and heard a pop, or crunch, and turned to see that a long-tailed duck had popped up through the ice (near the edge). It collected itself and flew to the open water, turned back and seemed to consider what just happened...maybe a lesson learned...

To see a video of the duck, visit our Facebook page.

(Submitted by Gina Snyder. January 27, 2023)

Iced over bark and a cover of snow drove nuthatches and a few friends to a frenzy of feeding this morning.

(Submitted by Robert Rowe. January 7, 2023)

The birds have some competition.

(Submitted by Jess Marie. January 6, 2023)