If I had to pick one local bird to symbolize the Damariscotta River and coastal Lincoln County, it would be the great blue heron. A denizen of local tidal areas and wetlands, these large birds make a primordial squawking. At night, the sound can be downright sinister. As a child, I remember my grandmother, Margo Kornahrens, relaying that great blue herons sounded like someone in distress in the dark. We would hear them late in the evening, hunting along the edges of the nearby shoreline in South Bristol.

Folks, this past week has been pretty eventful to say the least: a conviction for a senseless killing in Minneapolis, where it appears justice has prevailed, and another historic flight to the international space station.

There has been a fair amount written in this paper recently about the continued issue of littering. As we all notice (or perhaps pretend not to), there is an ever-growing amount of roadside and coastal trash in our area. And while we cannot solve this particular problem overnight, we can help on an individual and community level.

This spring I have been asked many questions about Cottrill’s Wharf here in Damariscotta and what businesses have been located on it over the past years.

Lately, walking outside in the early morning sounds like a perfectly orchestrated symphony brought to us by tiny feathered friends. The variety of bird calls is a reminder that spring is indeed here. Visiting our feeder are the usual cardinals and chickadees. But in addition to them we see a pair of bluebirds, goldfinches who are sporting their summer yellow, and a few nondescript brownish birds that sing like heaven.

Last week’s column, in which I discussed roadside litter such as disposable masks, evoked a number of responses from readers who shared in my disgust.