This episode is part 2 of an interview with Coco and Tracey Faber, who have spent the past decade working in Maine’s offshore seabird colonies. They discuss the struggles and resilience of seabirds facing storms and changing conditions, share the story of a record-aged puffin still breeding at 36 years old, and reflect on long-term changes in island vegetation and tern colony numbers.
This episode is part 1 of an interview with Coco and Tracey Faber who have spent the past decade working in Maine’s offshore seabird colonies. Coco shares her experiences on Seal Island, the state’s largest puffin colony, while Tracey describes her work on nearby Matinicus Rock. Together they reflect on a season of challenges and surprises in the Gulf of Maine, from poor prey availability and storm impacts on terns and Razorbills to unexpectedly strong productivity among puffins.
This episode continues Laura Hatmaker’s reflections on Balch Head Heath and the dilemmas of conservation management. She considers the uncertainties of bog succession, the challenges of climate change and incomplete historical records, and the importance of long-term monitoring. Laura shares her work establishing protocols for future surveys, ensuring that data will guide conservation decisions for years to come.
This episode features part one of an essay by environmental scientist Laura Hatmaker, exploring Balch Head Heath, a rare Coastal Plateau Bog in Lubec, Maine. Laura describes the contrasting northern and southern domes of the peatland, the habitat of the rare Crowberry Blue butterfly, and the questions conservationists face when deciding whether to intervene in natural processes.
Elliot, an ecologist at Maine Natural History Observatory, discusses his work on purple sandpipers, island songbirds, and upcoming research on mammals and Black Guillemots. He also reflects on his path into field biology, from backyard bird feeders to graduate school at the University of Maine, and shares his perspective on Maine’s islands as unique self-contained ecosystems with rich opportunities for future research.
In this episode, Glen rows and sails along Mount Desert Island’s south shore, recalling his early days learning plants and birds and the beginnings of his field ecology career. He describes the quiet rhythm of rowing and decades of ecological surveys along the Maine coast.
Leaving Marshall Island after a rainy night at anchor, Glen sails east toward Mason Ledge, a long-time seabird colony. Along the way, he notes loons now commonly seen on saltwater in summer, lines of Black Guillemots, and flocks of southbound Semipalmated Sandpipers.
Anchored in Boxam Cove on Marshall Island, Glen reflects on a rainy night lit by the glow of bioluminescent plankton. Morning brings fog, eagles, schools of fish, and the striking contrast of dark spruce forests against patches of blue sky as Glen shares the beauty and solitude of Maine’s wild offshore islands.
As Glen sails past Roberts and Brimstone Islands south of Vinalhaven, he reflects on decades of baseline research in collaboration with Maine Coastal Islands National Wildlife Refuge—mapping vegetation, inventorying plants, and surveying birds to track long-term ecological change. Along the way, he shares the challenges of island fieldwork, a close puffin sighting far from a breeding colony, and the occasional mishap with lobster buoys.
Drifting in Penobscot Bay, Glen shares the sounds of a ringing bell buoy, a close encounter with harbor porpoises, and surprising concentrations of moon jellyfish. When the sea breeze arrives, he sails south of Vinalhaven, reveling in a fast and lively run along the Maine coast.
