Special guest appearance by a Trapa natans nutlet

Spiders aren't for everyone and anything larger than a bathroom spider might be a little too horror film for some, but six spotted fishing spiders (Dolomedes triton) are actually relatively docile and won't bite unless they're provoked. Members of the nursery web family, they are similar in size, appearance, and behavior to nursery web spiders you might find in meadows.  True to their name, fishing spiders do fish. They're capable of diving and swimming underwater, and actively hunt their prey rather than spinning a web to catch it.  They can scurry along the surface of the water and can even jump straight up to escape predators, if they need to!

Like their terrestrial cousins, female fishing spiders carry the egg sac in her palps until the eggs are ready to hatch. When they're ready, she spins a special nursery web, often on floating aquatic vegetation, and stays nearby her babies until the spiderlings have all hatched and are ready to disperse on their own.

We found A LOT of adult and baby six spotted nursery web spiders on Carding Mill Pond. Intimidating at first, by the time the Mass Audubon crew moved on to their next work site they had grown accustomed to sharing their boats with these eight-legged friends and were, dare we say, even fond of them?

How could you not love this face?!

 

So lush! So green! So invasive!

Controlling water chestnut is a long-term and time-consuming process, but we've noticed marked improvement in our rivers and ponds over the past number of years. Some conservation grups have reduced the water chestnut investation in their ponds by so much that they can count the individual plants they remove!  We're not quite there yet along the Sudbury River, but we're making progress.

Workplace hazards

Leeeeeeech!

Volunteer Opportunities - Water Chestnut

The harvester at Carding Mill Pond in Sudbury

One of our partners, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, generously lends their big, bright orange, mechanical aquatic harvester to other CISMA (Cooperative Invasive Species Management Area) partners to harvest water chesnut. Fish and Wildlife will be using the harvester themselves from July 23 through August 3rd, and they're looking for volunteers!  If you liked our post about the Water Chestnut Pullathon, have heard people talking about it, or just think that canoeing on the Sudbury River and getting a little messy sounds like fun, then this may be the opportunity you've been waiting for!

The work parties will run from 8:00 am to noon and from noon to 4:00 pm. Volunteers of all ages are welcome, but if you are under 16, please bring a parent or guardian who will also be participating.

Meet them at the public boat launch off of River Road (near its intersection with Route 27) in Wayland, MA. You should bring shoes and clothes you don't mind getting wet and dirty, sunscreen, bug repellent, water, and a snack.  They do have some canoes available, but resources are limited so sign up soon! Volunteers are welcome to bring their own boats. 

All participants must register with Amber Carr prior to the event. Call or email her at (978) 443-4661 ext. 33 or amber_carr@fws.gov.  The dates for the pulls are below:

Monday 7/23
Tuesday 7/24
Wednesday 7/25
Thursday 7/26
Friday 7/27

Monday 7/30
Tuesday 7/31
Wednesday 8/1
Thursday 8/2
Friday 8/3


Hope to see you there!

First Annual Water Chestnut Pullathon!

Water chestnut control is an on-going project here on our rivers and ponds. This year for Riverfest, we tried something a little new. We turned it into a contest!  We challenged high school-aged students to compete with other sites to pull the most water chestnut they possibly could. Three sites participated - Icehouse Pond in Acton, Carding Mill Pond in Sudbury, and near the Route 27 Bridge on the Sudbury River in Wayland. What better way to spend a summer morning than canoeing, kayaking, and pulling some weeds?!  We will be hosting additional water chestnut removal events through until mid-August, so stay tuned for more opportunities!

Over 30 people, from kids to adults, volunteered and helped us pull water chestnut. Students from local schools, including Lincoln-Sudbury, Acton-Boxborough, Concord-Carlisle, and Hudson High participated as well as several girls from a Concord Girl Scout troop. 

Erikson's Ice Cream in Maynard and Eastern Mountain Sports in Acton graciously provided small prize items to our winning team and other participants.

Ultimately, our volunteers in Acton took home the prize, but not without a good run for their money!  Scroll on for some photos from the event!



The winning team with their pile!