urbpan: (dandelion)
Since I've made myself into a guy people ask about urban nature, I've noticed a bunch of recurring characters in the questions people ask. I thought it might be interesting or useful to make a list of the creatures that most often inspire a "what the hell is that?" reaction. These animals have a special value as gateways to an interest in nature for city people. When someone is startled by something that seems unusual or exotic, it's a great way to start to appreciate life for its own sake.

#8: European starling Sturnus vulgaris

Most urban people never even notice this most common of city birds. Smaller than pigeons, without that bird's habit of lingering in parks for handouts, starlings are below the notice of laypeople. This changes when they find a young starling, separated from its parents, seemingly helpless. The nestling is the same size an adult (a fact common to songbirds that is a source of much bafflement to those new to the study of nature) but less shy of humans. Sometimes the bird is stunned by having struck a window or otherwise reluctant to fly. The would-be good Samaritan scoops the bird into a box and goes online looking for advice on how to care for their little patient. They are then amazed to discover that they have rescued a bird that is hated by bird lovers. This paradox can only disentangled by learning the history of starling introduction, and the subsequent disastrous effects on native birds. Not the most pleasant way to begin learning about urban nature, but it may be the first awakening that there are many stories of the animals in the city, and they may be interested to learn what animals are introduced, what are native, and the many ways humans have changed the path of nature.

the countdown continues )
urbpan: (wading)

Photos by [livejournal.com profile] urbpan. A small colony attached to a stick is pulled out of the water to be examined. Location: Ward's Pond, Boston.

Urban species #260: Freshwater bryozoan Pectinatella magnifica

A football-sized clump of gelatinous material in a pond may not be an egg mass. You may encounter a colony of animals called bryozoans, or as that obsolete scientific name translates, "moss animals". Bryozoans make cockroaches look like spring chickens: their fossil record extends back 500 million years. The vast majority of the thousands of species in this group live in salt water, with only 50 or so found in fresh water. This one, Pectinatella magnifica (with no good common name but sometimes referred to as "blobs") is the one most often seen in urban waterways. I have seen it in Spectacle Pond at Mt. Auburn Cemetery in Cambridge Mass., and recently found it in Ward's Pond in Boston. It also apparently occurs in the waters of the Connecticut and Potomoc rivers. Bryozoans have a similar ecology to corals. Hundreds of thousands of individual animals (or "zooids" in zoological jargon) live together, secreting a jelly-like matrix, growing quickly in favorable conditions. Favorable conditions include water temperatures of 68 degrees or more (20 degrees or more celcius) and large amounts of food: single-celled algae, bacteria, and other microorganisms, conditions not uncommon in urban ponds in summer. Each zooid has tiny tentacles with which it grabs food particles. Rapidly growing bryozoan colonies are alarming to some people, and may create problems when they form on intake pipes and other structures. However, it seems that their presence and growth may potentially be a good indicator of water quality.

bonus saltwater bryozoan )

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May 2017

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