Ask an Island Expert: Are those actual wild turkeys walking around?
Well, yes and no. They are turkeys, certainly: Meleagris gallopavo to ornithologists. But they’re better thought of as feral than as truly wild. Truly...
This Was Then: Selim Mattar’s Dreamland
Brothers Selim and Meek Mattar immigrated to the U.S. as teenagers, about 1890. They were natives of the city of Beirut, then part of...
Ask an Island Expert: Where can you find a snowy owl on Martha’s Vineyard?
At least one of these magnificent Arctic birds of prey turns up here most winters, and in so-called “irruption years,” when prey shortages or...
Can we take a peek? Inside a 12-acre Chilmark Estate
The whimsical town of Chilmark — with its undulating landscape of twisted vines and sheep grazing in hilly pastures — has captured the hearts...
Ask an Island Expert: What bird makes those big nests on top of poles...
Those are osprey, or Pandion haliaetus, if you’re a biologist. A summertime resident on the Island, the osprey is a common nesting species and...
Ask an Island Expert: What exactly is a beetlebung tree?
By Abigail Higgins
Beetlebung: a beautiful tree with a wonderful name. Many people are not especially tree-aware, but everyone perks up when they hear “beetlebung.”...
Can we take a peek? An Edgartown home by the harbor
There are certain clues that hint you’re nearing a beautiful Vineyard home. The first: The GPS won’t take you there. It’ll send you circling...
Ask an Island Expert: What is a pinkletink?
“Pinkletink” is a Vineyard name for a tiny frog, known to biologists as Pseudacris crucifer. I’ve never heard “pinkletink” used anywhere other than on...
Seaplanes coming to the Vineyard
Cape Air announced last week it had acquired the assets of Shoreline Aviation, a seaplane operator based out of East Haven, Conn.
The acquisition includes...
