Backbeach Jake
04-16-2007, 06:11 PM
passed to me by our Senior Angler
It's all in how you look at 'natural' life
By KERRY L. ADAMS
A meeting of the Barnstable County League of Sportsmen’s Clubs that I attended recently in Provincetown gave me a whole new perspective on an aspect of Cape Cod that most residents never question.
After a superb meal, the invited guests were asked to speak.
There was a truly informative presentation by a representative from the Massachusetts Division of Fisheries & Wildlife on the coyote and how it has become a permanent addition to the Cape Cod landscape and how we can coexist with these animals.
There was also an appearance by Cape Cod National Seashore Superintendent George Price. Mr. Price discussed a number of issues including pheasant stocking (or lack thereof), “cultural landscapes” (or lack thereof), ORV use in the National Seashore (or lack thereof), and even our local dune shacks. He also took a few moments to discuss nonindigenous (nonnative) species in the National Seashore such as the ring-necked pheasant (or lack thereof), which hails originally from China.
The whole “nonindigenous species” subject got me thinking.
Some years ago (around the early 1960s) a nonindigenous species was introduced here to the Lower Cape. The idea was to bring this species here and allow it to noninvasively take hold and succeed on its own. Remarkably, it has grown and even multiplied, proving itself a hearty survivor. Its tenacity and cunning have established it as an adversary to many of our native species.
In fact, it now threatens several indigenous groups and may even prove to be their ultimate demise. Similar in many ways to a “virus,” this species has spread and grown so swiftly that it threatens and sometimes even replaces other healthy specimens that otherwise would not be in jeopardy. Large areas of land that once flourished with native species have been decimated by this aggressor. Predatory by nature, it has killed thousands of fish, deforested acres of trees and destroyed miles of dunescape.
It rarely travels alone and is often seen in packs of two or more individuals. Its typical coloring is green and tan; however, it is not unusual to see it outside its natural habitat in other color combinations. When encountered, this species can appear quite docile and even friendly. However, when threatened, it becomes extremely aggressive and rather hostile.
The species is naturally territorial, but has been known to migrate and re-establish itself throughout the country.
The species to which I allude is none other than the Cape Cod National Seashore itself.
Currently threatened by the Seashore are: the dune shacks; pheasant hunters; off-road vehicle users; surf fishermen; berry harvesters; and more. Among the things the Cape Cod National Seashore has damaged or helped to obliterate are the fish that previously populated Pilgrim Lake (as well as the lake itself), which were “replaced” by salt water that has been forced into the lake. That has produced algae blooms, mosquito infestations and that horrific smell that permeates the entire Beach Point area.
And then there are the former “high dunes,” such as Mt. Ararat at the Provincetown-Truro line, which could be seen so clearly. Those once majestic dunes have been reduced to hilly repositories of beach grass crops. The wooded areas around the Provincetown airport are soon to be submerged in salt water as well.
Destroyed and damaged are many local traditions and ways of life, such as pheasant hunting; for the past four years pheasants have not been stocked in the park pending the Seashore’s record of decision.
Also under threat are the dune shacks and their inhabitants. One shack dweller was recently evicted by the National Seashore, even as “promises” were made by Seashore personnel to allow the shack users to remain until their highly touted and well-researched ethnographic studies (which were unceremoniously thrown out by the Seashore personnel in favor of their own internal plan) were fully completed.
These are only a few examples of how the native species here has been threatened by the Cape Cod National Seashore.
As we concluded the Barnstable County League meeting, we pondered the potential loss of some of the activities that we all took for granted for so many years. It saddened many of us to think that only 40 years ago the thought of losing our traditions was the last thing any of us could have expected. Today as we look forward we wonder if there will be any ways of life here in our own towns that remain for our children and grandchildren to enjoy (or even recognize). In a truly short time span, the Cape Cod National Seashore has shaped quite a legacy for Cape Cod.
Kerry L. Adams lives in
Provincetown.
Nice piece of writing, I think
It's all in how you look at 'natural' life
By KERRY L. ADAMS
A meeting of the Barnstable County League of Sportsmen’s Clubs that I attended recently in Provincetown gave me a whole new perspective on an aspect of Cape Cod that most residents never question.
After a superb meal, the invited guests were asked to speak.
There was a truly informative presentation by a representative from the Massachusetts Division of Fisheries & Wildlife on the coyote and how it has become a permanent addition to the Cape Cod landscape and how we can coexist with these animals.
There was also an appearance by Cape Cod National Seashore Superintendent George Price. Mr. Price discussed a number of issues including pheasant stocking (or lack thereof), “cultural landscapes” (or lack thereof), ORV use in the National Seashore (or lack thereof), and even our local dune shacks. He also took a few moments to discuss nonindigenous (nonnative) species in the National Seashore such as the ring-necked pheasant (or lack thereof), which hails originally from China.
The whole “nonindigenous species” subject got me thinking.
Some years ago (around the early 1960s) a nonindigenous species was introduced here to the Lower Cape. The idea was to bring this species here and allow it to noninvasively take hold and succeed on its own. Remarkably, it has grown and even multiplied, proving itself a hearty survivor. Its tenacity and cunning have established it as an adversary to many of our native species.
In fact, it now threatens several indigenous groups and may even prove to be their ultimate demise. Similar in many ways to a “virus,” this species has spread and grown so swiftly that it threatens and sometimes even replaces other healthy specimens that otherwise would not be in jeopardy. Large areas of land that once flourished with native species have been decimated by this aggressor. Predatory by nature, it has killed thousands of fish, deforested acres of trees and destroyed miles of dunescape.
It rarely travels alone and is often seen in packs of two or more individuals. Its typical coloring is green and tan; however, it is not unusual to see it outside its natural habitat in other color combinations. When encountered, this species can appear quite docile and even friendly. However, when threatened, it becomes extremely aggressive and rather hostile.
The species is naturally territorial, but has been known to migrate and re-establish itself throughout the country.
The species to which I allude is none other than the Cape Cod National Seashore itself.
Currently threatened by the Seashore are: the dune shacks; pheasant hunters; off-road vehicle users; surf fishermen; berry harvesters; and more. Among the things the Cape Cod National Seashore has damaged or helped to obliterate are the fish that previously populated Pilgrim Lake (as well as the lake itself), which were “replaced” by salt water that has been forced into the lake. That has produced algae blooms, mosquito infestations and that horrific smell that permeates the entire Beach Point area.
And then there are the former “high dunes,” such as Mt. Ararat at the Provincetown-Truro line, which could be seen so clearly. Those once majestic dunes have been reduced to hilly repositories of beach grass crops. The wooded areas around the Provincetown airport are soon to be submerged in salt water as well.
Destroyed and damaged are many local traditions and ways of life, such as pheasant hunting; for the past four years pheasants have not been stocked in the park pending the Seashore’s record of decision.
Also under threat are the dune shacks and their inhabitants. One shack dweller was recently evicted by the National Seashore, even as “promises” were made by Seashore personnel to allow the shack users to remain until their highly touted and well-researched ethnographic studies (which were unceremoniously thrown out by the Seashore personnel in favor of their own internal plan) were fully completed.
These are only a few examples of how the native species here has been threatened by the Cape Cod National Seashore.
As we concluded the Barnstable County League meeting, we pondered the potential loss of some of the activities that we all took for granted for so many years. It saddened many of us to think that only 40 years ago the thought of losing our traditions was the last thing any of us could have expected. Today as we look forward we wonder if there will be any ways of life here in our own towns that remain for our children and grandchildren to enjoy (or even recognize). In a truly short time span, the Cape Cod National Seashore has shaped quite a legacy for Cape Cod.
Kerry L. Adams lives in
Provincetown.
Nice piece of writing, I think