September 13, 2026: Beech Leaf Disease

Before we look at Beech Leaf Disease let's get an update on our loon chick, Pip.

Pip looks large when alone, but seen next to an adult, still has more growing to do.

Pip spends a lot of time alone these days, though at least one parent - probably the female - is still on the lake.  At this point, the tides have turned:  instead of Pip floating on the surface while mom fishes, it's now Pip that spends most of the time diving while mom soaks up the warm September rays.  I have to assume that Pip is successful with many dives, but still petitions mom for food when they're together.

I learned from the Loon Preservation Committee's most recent newsletter that juvenile loons are considered fledged when their primary (flight) feathers have grown to the point they can fly, which occurs at 11 to 13 weeks of age.  Thus our northern pair has now successfully fledged another loon, though I haven't observed Pip flying yet.

Pip will most likely remain on the lake into November or even December.

Now to beech leaf disease.  On a visit to the Hamlin-Eames-Smyth town forest last week, I came upon a large infestation of the nematode that causes beech leaf disease (BLD). 

Leaves affected by the BLD nematoad.

BLD is an invasive species believed to have its origin in Asia.  It was first detected in North America in Ohio in 2012 and made its way to New Hampshire by 2022.  It has now progressed as far north as Woodstock.  The nematodes enter leaf buds in the summer and fall, and the damage appears the following year when in the leaves exhibit dark bands between the veins.  It's most obvious when viewed from below with a bright sky above. 

Infested trees often die in 3-5 years, with larger trees surviving longer.  If New Hampshire loses its beech trees as currently expected, it will be a huge loss to the forest and the wildlife, especially having already lost the American Chestnut in the 1950s, which used to be the primary food source in eastern forests.  Today, beech is an important mast crop for many animals; it also provides excellent nest cavities in their sturdy trunks which can stand in the forest for years.  You can read more about BLD in this article by the UNH Extension Service.

Now let's move on to more pleasant sights seen this week, including fall wildflowers.

New England Asters

Asters, goldenrod, woodland sunflowers, and many other fall plants are important food for pollinators for their winter survival.

Woodland sunflower with a honeybee, which is not a native insect.

Nodding Ladies Tresses

Bumblebee on Goldenrod

And how about this great photo of a Gray Fox a friend and colleague from my working days at BAE Systems sent me:

He captured this photo with a trail camera, and it looks like a couple of this adult's offspring came back at night to romp around the area.

Thank you JH for sharing these!

I'll close with another video, this one of a bumblebee working the goldenrod.

The animals are starting to build up their reserves for the coming winter!

July 12,2026: Blake Brook Paddle

This week the Lakes Region Conservation Trust sponsored a guided paddle tour on Lake Wicwas.  It was a small group, but they were adventurous, powering through the thick weeds to paddle all the way up to the beaver dam that impounds the beaver pond in Blake Brook before it flows into Lake Wicwas. Once we got past the shallow cove and into the brook the weeds thinned out and the paddling was easier. 

Working our way up to the beaver dam.

Blake Brook is the second largest tributary feeding the lake; Dolloff Brook is the largest.  Both tributaries have beaver dams which provide great value to clean the water before entering the lake, as well as providing flood mitigation during heavy rain events, and storing water to supply the lake through prolonged dry spells.

As far as one can paddle before reaching the beaver dam.

There are literally thousands of White Water Lilies blooming in the lake now, and we saw quite a few Floating Bladderwort.

White Water Lilies - and several Yellow Water Lilies

White Water Lilies

Floating Bladderwort

There was even a painted turtle posing for us as it was sunning on a log.

Back in the middle of the lake we noticed a stand of tall dead trees reaching up above the forest canopy west of the lake.

Ash trees killed by the emerald ash borer.

These are White Ash trees, killed by the invasive Emerald Ash Borer which I mentioned in the May 17, 2026 Journal Entry.  

The remaining live ash trees in the Lakes Region won't last much longer.

Speaking of invasive species, here are a few of the most notorious invasive plants to keep an eye for at this time of year as they are easily identifed right now.  All of these spread very rapidly and should be addressed as soon as they are noted.  Once they have grown into a large area they are much harder to eliminate.

Glossy Buckthorn

Purple Loosestrife

Japanese Knotweed

I mentioned recently that a skunk family has taken up residence behind our house.  I'm pretty sure that's what's been digging holes beside our steps at night, so I set the trail camera to see if that's the case.  Well, I haven't seen the skunk yet, but I did catch this animal which was probably following the skunk's scent.

I wonder what a bobcat would do if it came upon a skunk....

We also have a broad-winged Hawk nest somewhere in the vicinity.  They've been driving the chipmunks and small birds crazy whenever they're near.  I saw this one swoop in, causing all the other birds to scatter.

Broad-winged Hawk

Finally, a check in with our loon chick, Pip, thanks to Deb Crowely.  

Loon photos by Deb Crowley

Pip is doing fine, and somehow swallowing ever bigger fish.

At this rate, Pip will start shedding its baby fluff soon!

June 28, 2026: A Floating Nursery Log

Before we look at the nursery log, here's the loon update.  All our hopes for fledging a chick this year may fall upon little Northern Pip and its parents' vigorous protection of it from all danger. 

Northern Pip, five days old.  Photo by Debby Crowley.

Which by all appearances, they are doing. 

Two parents and one chick means twice the attention.  Photo by Debby C.

The reason we have all our hopes on Pip is because the southern pair has abandoned its nest - and for no clear reason.  On Monday, Shayne D. noted that both adults were out on the lake away from the nest.  On Thursday, seeing the same situation, I took a look at the nest, and found a single egg. 

A lone, unattended egg in the southern nest.

On Friday afternoon, the Loon Preservation Committee (LPC) gave the order to mark the egg and check it on Saturday.  Dave T. did that and found it had not been tended, so he collected it for analysis by the LPC.  We may not know the status of the egg until winter when things slow down enough for the LPC biologists to do forensics, but we may learn then why it was abandoned.  There's a chance the southern pair will attempt a second nest, but if not, we'll have to hope the big, strong male, and unknown female that make up the northern pair can keep Pip safe all summer long.

Our banded male, up close and personal.

Wicwas isn't the only Lake having loon challenges.  A pair using one of the floating nests that the LPC has a camera on is on their fourth egg, after three failures, each for a different reason.  Details were in the Laconia Daily Sun yesterday (see page 25).

Now the "nurse log".  You may have heard about nurse logs in the forest - large trees that fall to the ground and decay slowly over many years, providing a fertile bed for plants to grow.  Much of a forest floor is covered with a dense layer of leaves which can prevent germination, so these fallen trees can become filled with new life.  Well, on a paddle this week I came across an aquatic analog, an old log floating in the lake that's serving the same purpose, but for bog-centric flora.

Nurse log

Let's look at what's growing here.

The primary base plant is Sphagnum Moss, which covers much of the log and may provide a good place for other plants to take hold.

Sphagnum Moss

The tall, grass-like plant growing most profusely on the right is a sedge.  There are many varieties of sedge and I won't attempt to determine which this is.

Sedge

In the center is another tall plant, this one woody, which can grow quite tall and dominates much of the higher ground in the bogs around Lake Wicwas:  Leatherleaf.

Leatherleaf

Growing on the right side of the log, with a reddish-green color (which helps identity this species) is Bog St. John's Wort.

Bog St. John's Wort

One of the most interesting of our bog plants is the carnivorous Round-leaved Sundew, which is on the log in several places, but most visibly right in front of the St. John's Wort beside the bare spot on the log.

Round-leaved Sundew

When you find these on your paddles near a bog, look closely and you'll see fine hairs with a sticky drop of dew on each which catches small insects which the plant then digests.

Hardest to find on the log is the Purple Pitcher Plant, another carnivorous plant.  These are small, tubular stems growing right along the water's edge.  They'll be easier to spot in fall when they've grown larger.

A mature Pitcher Plant, fully grown in October.

Finally, the crown jewel of the log is the Rose Pogonia.

Rose Pogonia

This pretty member of the orchid family also grows on wet soil around water, and it's extremely abundant this year.  There are two growing on the log and another ten or so behind the log at the very top of the first photo of the full nursery.

These are some of the most common species seen in an exemplary acidic bog habitat in New Hampshire.  I will remind you that I have no formal training in botany, but am learning from books and often the internet (PlantNet ID is excellent), and I may not have all these right.  If you notice an error, please let me know!

In a few weeks, I hope to have a similar post on plants in the aquatic habitat, this time with expert assistance.  Wicwas' resident biologist, Russ Brummer, is leading a Weed-Watcher class on July 11th, and all are welcome to participate.  Below are the details in case you're interested in becoming a weed-watcher, or are just curious about the aquatic plants we have in our NH lakes.  Last year's class was interesting, and a lot of fun - you can see what we did on the July 13, 2025 post, "Weed School".

I hope to see you there!

June 21, 2026: We have Chicks!

We have our first loon chick of 2026, earlier than anticipated. Eagle-eye loon-watcher Amy saw it on the morning of June 17 with both adults tending to it, far away from the nest.  Which raised the question, was there a second egg?  With the three loons well away from the nest, Amy checked the nest and found an unattended egg just sitting there.  So we called the Loon Preservation Committee and they said the parents may return to it, but we should mark it and check again in 12 hours to see if it had been turned. If not, it would be an inviable egg.  So following the described procedures, I went to mark it.  When I got close, I could see it was damaged - there was a crack in the shell.

But then I thought I saw the crack move.  And then I heard a peep!

The crack was the chick inside starting to peck its way out!  I couldn't resist taking some pictures before I got out of there, hoping the parents would hear it calling and return.

When I checked again in early evening, one loon was back on sentry near the nest, and the other was on the nest, and the next morning - there were two chicks!

Riding on mom's back.

Two chicks safely tucked up under dad's strong wing.

So now the addictive draw of watching baby chicks being raised has begun. One parent dives constantly to find tiny minnows for the chicks. Sometimes it takes a bit for the small fluff balls to build up the confidence to swallow what must appear huge to them. But when they're hungry enough, they do it.

Mom takes a well deserved nap.

While dad quietly brings in dinner.

Junior takes over.

It's a big bite.

Going down.

And dad's already searching the next fish.

Unfortunately, the good news didn't last long. The very next night there was a lot of loud ruckus on the lake, and the next morning, only one chick was to be seen.  The pair has been fending off a rogue loon the past few days, and that may be culprit of the chick's demise.  It was hard to watch the adults floating in the lake for hours that morning, scanning the water and cooing gently in hopes of locating their lost chick.  Contrary to the tranquil appearance, being a loon is not an easy life.

We assume the surviving chick is the older, larger, stronger of the two.  The tradition on Wicwas is that a chick is named by the first person to see it.  Amy named our little one "Northern Pip".  

Meanwhile, the southern pair has taken up residence on their nest, and because it's in a more travelled part of the lake, signs have been placed to alert boaters.   Please encourage anyone you see too close to back off a bit.

Southern nest.  Photo by Dave Thorpe.

Earlier in the week I saw a different bird collecting food for its young chicks. 

A Tree Swallow with a beak full of damselflies.

There have been a lot of tree swallows zooming all over the lake this spring, feasting on the plentiful insect population that thrives near water.

On land, the mammals are raising their young as well.  I came across a doe that was nursing a tiny, tiny, fawn right along the edge of the road beside the Hamlin Town Forest.  I was on my bike and I stopped. Mom stared at me for a moment, then walked calmly off, dissolving into the forest. The fawn, confused, stood there for a second or two before wobbling off on its spindly little legs to find its mother.  A second four legged animal we're not quite sure we're happy about is a skunk family that has taken up residence behind the house. So far we haven't seen anything more than a few little black and white fur balls scurrying around in the trees as mom shoes them back into the den.

The skunk family residence in the rocky hill behind the house.

Soon enough they'll be out exploring their neighborhood, and though skunks are mostly nocturnal, juveniles will often sneak out during nap time when mom is sleeping.  Fortunately, young skunks don't develop the ability to spray for about three months, and by that time we hope they have learned to sleep whenever we might be out and about!

We'll be in loon overload for next couple of months, so I'll end with another of nature's summer light show.

The crescent moon was back to join Venus and Jupiter in the western sky.