Tiger swallowtail butterflies. (Photo courtesy Mary Throckmorton)
This week’s column begins with a couple of announcements. The Somerville town meeting is Saturday, June 17 from 10 a.m. to noon in the gym at the old Somerville School. The town meeting is especially of interest this year due to the recent townwide revaluation. Also, the road engineering report from Coffin Engineering is in, and bids have been taken for the work associated with the plan. There were also bids submitted for the paving of Somerville Road, Jones Road, and South Colby Road.
Residents who travel the South Colby Road may be interested to know that Palermo plans to pave its section of the Colby Road. Sometimes the roads here are six of one and a half-dozen of the other. Either you sacrifice your vehicle when they are in poor condition, or you have to deal with people speeding like maniacs when the road conditions improve. A request for speed-limit signs was rejected, with the standard reply being, “they don’t work.”
If you have ever been stopped for speeding, you know there are two questions coming. The first: “Do you know how fast you were going?” The second: “Do you know what the speed limit is on this road?” If there is no posted speed limit, it seems that you would have to get caught twice, once with a warning, before you got a ticket. By the way, the speed limit on Somerville’s dirt roads is 25 mph.
The second announcement is Somerville’s second annual Open Farm Day is Saturday, June 24 from 1-4 p.m., with June 25 being the rain date. The flyer that came in the mail was quite lovely. You can visit somervillefarmersnetwork.com for a map and directions.
A pair of tiger swallowtail butterflies. (Photo courtesy Mary Throckmorton)
A big northern water snake that hangs out at the pond was found flat as a pancake in the road yesterday. It was over 4 feet long and as big around as my wrist. At first glance a water snake looks black, but they have a bit of pattern and a reddish underbelly. Last summer this one waited until I almost stepped on it to jump in the water. I just froze and yelled and yelled – my typical response when a snake startles me. My kids think it is pretty funny.
I found a smaller one dead last year by the water that looked like it had been killed. While I am not a big fan of snakes, I felt a bit sorry for the big old snake as I dragged it out of the road with a stick and sent it down over the bank.
The photos this week are of tiger swallowtail butterflies, Pterourus glaucus. They have been congregating in this particular location for years, even though the surface has been altered. Either they are attracted to some type of mineral in the moist sand or this is a safe way for them to get a drink. The tiger swallowtail overwinters here in chrysalis form. Swallowtails are similar in appearance to the monarch butterfly. The monarch is orange and black, and migrates to Mexico for the winter. Monarchs prefer milkweed; swallowtails aren’t so fussy.
