Coordinates: 42°47′55″N, 70°48′40″W Map of Earth showing lines of latitude (horizontally) and longitude (vertically), Eckert VI projection; large version (pdf, 1. ...

Sand dunes in 1908.

Captain John Smith's 1616 map, in which he names New England. Cape Anna (Anne) is labeled. A larger-than-life, unlabeled island is shown to the north of it.

Plum Island, Massachusetts is an island located off the northeast coast of Massachusetts, north of Cape Ann. It is a barrier island approximately 11 miles (18 km) in length. Image File history File linksMetadata Sand_Dunes,_Plum_Island,_MA.jpg Summary Sand dunes, Plum Island, Newburyport, MA; from a 1908 postcard. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Sand_Dunes,_Plum_Island,_MA.jpg Summary Sand dunes, Plum Island, Newburyport, MA; from a 1908 postcard. ... 1908 (MCMVIII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar). ... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 690 × 600 pixelsFull resolution (1108 × 963 pixel, file size: 2. ... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 690 × 600 pixelsFull resolution (1108 × 963 pixel, file size: 2. ... Ordinal directions are the four compass directions: northeast, southeast, southwest, and northwest, located halfway between the cardinal directions. ... The West Coast of New Zealand The coast is defined as the part of the land adjoining or near the ocean. ... Official language(s) English Capital Boston Largest city Boston Area  Ranked 44th  - Total 10,555 sq mi (27,360 km²)  - Width 183 miles (295 km)  - Length 113 miles (182 km)  - % water 13. ... Compass rose with north highlighted and at top Look up North in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Cape Ann, Massachusetts Landsat satellite photo of Cape Ann Cape Ann is a rocky peninsula located in northeastern Massachusetts on the Atlantic Ocean. ... In geography, a bar is a linear shoaling landform feature within a body of water. ... A mile is a unit of length, usually used to measure distance, in a number of different systems, including Imperial units, United States customary units and Norwegian/Swedish mil. ... Look up length, width, breadth in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...

Plum Island appears as an unnamed island as early as Captain John Smith's map of New England. It is named in an act of the General Court of Massachusetts dated 1649, apportioning 2/5 of the island to Newbury (before its division), 2/5 to Ipswich and 1/5 to Rowley.^[1] The name is apparently of local origin: the journal of Margaret Smith (1678-9) relates: John Smith (1580-1631) was an English soldier and sailor, now chiefly remembered for his role in establishing the first permanent English colony in North America, and his brief association with the Native American princess Pocahontas. ... The Massachusetts General Court is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Massachusetts. ... Newbury is the name of several places: Canada Newbury, Ontario (village) Newbury Station, Ontario (Southwest Middlesex Township, Middlesex County, Ontario) England Newbury, Berkshire United States of America Newbury, Massachusetts Newbury, New Hampshire Newbury, Ohio also: Newbury Park, California Newburyport, Massachusetts The place name was bestowed on Newbury in England late... Timber framed buildings in St Nicholas Street The Ancient House is decorated with a particularly fine example of pargeting Ipswich (pronounced ) is the county town of Suffolk and a non-metropolitan district in East Anglia, England on the estuary of the River Orwell. ... Rowley may refer to geographical places: Rowley (town), Massachusetts Rowley (CDP), Massachusetts Rowley, Iowa Rowley (hamlet), Alberta, Canada Rowley, East Riding of Yorkshire, England Rowley, a former parish in Barnet, London Other locations with Rowley inside: Rowley Hills Rowleys House, Museum, Shrewsbury (England) Rowley Island Rowley Mile Rowley Regis...

"Leaving on our right hand Plum Island, (so-called on account of the rare Plums which doe grow upon it,) we struck into the open Sea...."^[2]

A notable historian of the region, Joshua Coffin, said of it in 1845: Joshua Coffin (October 12, 1792 – June 24, 1864) was an American antiquary and abolitionist. ...

"Plum Island, a wild and fantastical sand beach, is thrown up by the joint power of winds and waves into the thousand wanton figures of a snow drift."^[3]

Geography

The northern portion of the island is bordered by the mouth of the Merrimack River (in which stands Badgers Rock), the western portion by the Plum Island River in the north (which joins the mouth of the Merrimack to Plum Island Sound), Plum Island Sound in the south (into which empty the Parker, Rowley and Eagle Hill Rivers) and the southern portion by the mouth of the Ipswich River (into which the sound empties). The Atlantic Ocean lies to the east. The sound is a tidal estuary.^[4] Merrimack River watershed The Merrimack River (or Merrimac River, an earlier spelling that is sometimes still used) is a -long river in the Northeastern United States. ... Badgers Rock is a small barren rock within the Merrimack River, in Salisbury, Massachusetts, USA. The rock is just south of the light campground area of the Salisbury Beach State Reservation and north of Plum Island Point on Plum Island in Newburyport. ... Rowley River The Rowley River is a small river between Ipswich and Rowley, Massachusetts. ... Eagle Hill River The Eagle Hill River is a small river in Ipswich, Massachusetts. ... Ipswich River is a small river in northeastern Massachusetts, USA. Its watershed is approximately 155 square miles and the estimated population in the area is 160,000 people. ... The Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak (EAST, internally called HT-7U) is a project being undertaken to construct an experimental superconducting tokamak magnetic fusion energy reactor in Hefei, the capital city of Anhui Province, in eastern China. ... An estuary is a semi-enclosed coastal body of water which has a free connection with the open sea and within which sea water mixes with fresh water. ...

Situated in Essex County, Plum Island is divided between four cities and towns: Newburyport, Newbury, Rowley and Ipswich. Developed areas of the island, with public beaches, businesses and private residences, lie wholly within the boundaries of Newburyport and Newbury, the latter containing the village of Plum Island. The island's pristine largest section is managed by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service as the Parker River National Wildlife Refuge, while the Massachusetts Audubon Society operates the Joppa Flats Education Center & Wildlife Sanctuary. Essex County is a county located in the northeastern part of the state of Massachusetts. ... Newburyport is a small coastal city in Essex County, Massachusetts, 38 miles (61 km) northeast of Boston. ... Seal of Newbury, MA Newbury is a town located in Essex County, Massachusetts. ... Settled: 1638 â€“ Incorporated: 1639 Zip Code(s): 01969 â€“ Area Code(s): 351 / 978 Official website: http://www. ... Ipswich is a coastal town in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. ... Ninety Mile Beach Australia. ... Plum Island, Massachusetts is an island located off of the northeast coast of Massachusetts, north of Cape Ann at north latitude 42°47 by west longitude 70°50, Plum Island is a barrier island approximately 8 miles in length (12. ... The USFWS logo The United States Fish and Wildlife Service is a unit of the United States Department of the Interior that is dedicated to managing and preserving wildlife. ... National Wildlife Refuge is a designation for certain protected areas of the United States managed by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service. ... The Massachusetts Audubon Society, founded in 1896 and headquartered in Lincoln, Massachusetts, is a nonprofit organization dedicated to Protecting the nature of Massachusetts. ...

Plum Island is accessed by one road running from Newburyport to the north of the island on a causeway and drawbridge over the Plum Island River. A charter to build the road between Rolfe's Lane (Ocean Avenue) and the island was granted in 1806 to the Plum Island Turnpike and Bridge Corporation. The road remained a private one until in 1905 the General Court required Essex County to lay it out as a county road, compensating its then owners with a cash settlement.^[5] Essex County is in Ontario: see Essex County, Ontario or Essex County is the name of several counties in the United States: Essex County, Massachusetts Essex County, New Jersey Essex County, New York Essex County, Vermont Essex County, Virginia This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists...

Plum Island Drive runs along the inland side of the island. In the north it is lined with homes. In the refuge it is paved for about half its distance and is a "washboard" dusty dirt road for the remainder. Along it are numbered parking lots with boardwalks leading to the beach, overlooks and trails, and facilities for the maintenance of the refuge.

Toward the south is Camp Sea Haven, formerly a therapeutic camp for those stricken with Polio, closed, now that the Salk vaccine has all but eradicated the disease. At the southern end of the road, the tip of the island, is Sandy Point State Reservation, a state park. Camping is allowed there. At the northern end of the road, the northern tip of the island, is the historic Plum Island Lighthouse, marking the narrow entrance to the mouth of the Merrimack River. It is the only lighthouse remaining on the island. Poliomyelitis (polio), or infantile paralysis, is a viral paralytic disease. ... Sandy Point State Reservation is a Massachusetts state park located in Ipswich. ...

Touring facilities

Launching the lifeboat, c. 1910

Like most coastal communities, Plum Island has historically been a popular vacation destination. Several large hotels operated during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Today, there are numerous lodging options for tourists, including B&B's, inns, and rental cottages. In addition, there is a population of year-round residents. Image File history File linksMetadata Launching_the_Lifeboat,_Plum_Island,_MA.jpg Summary Launching the lifeboat, Plum Island, Newburyport, MA; from a c. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Launching_the_Lifeboat,_Plum_Island,_MA.jpg Summary Launching the lifeboat, Plum Island, Newburyport, MA; from a c. ... Year 1910 (MCMX) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Friday [1] of the 13-day-slower Julian calendar). ... Alternative meaning: Nineteenth Century (periodical) (18th century — 19th century — 20th century — more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 19th century was that century which lasted from 1801-1900 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar. ... (19th century - 20th century - 21st century - more centuries) Decades: 1900s 1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s As a means of recording the passage of time, the 20th century was that century which lasted from 1901–2000 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar (1900–1999... Tourists of various nationalities chatting over breakfast at a B&B in Quebec City. ... For the river named Inn, check Inn River Inns are establishments where travellers can procure food, drink, and lodging. ... A cottage is a small house of any period. ...

Ecology

The beach

Plum Island Beach is a gently sloping shelf extending some distance out to sea. As result of the slope tidal flow does not reach very far horizontally, while breakers are small and close to shore. Boats can easily be launched from or landed on the beach. The shelf causes strong undertow currents that can pluck the thoughtless bather out of the shallows and draw the unsuspecting swimmer out to sea. During severe storms the beach is inundated and the breakers strike the dune line. Over the centuries a number of ships have been wrecked in the shallow waters off Plum Island.

The Labrador current flows from north to south along the shore, migrating sand in that direction and chilling the coastal waters. Several breakwaters have been constructed along the north coast of the island to protect the beach and impede the process. Over the centuries the migrating sand moves the outlet of the Merrimack River, which has been artificially fixed at its current location. The collision of the Labrador current with the northward-flowing Gulf Stream further south has erected Cape Cod. The Labrador Current is a cold current in the north Atlantic Ocean which flows from the Arctic Ocean south along the coast of Labrador and passes around Newfoundland, continuing south along the east coast of Nova Scotia. ... For the album by Ocean Colour Scene, see North Atlantic Drift (album) The Gulf Stream is orange and yellow in this representation of water temperatures of the Atlantic. ... Cape Cod (or simply the Cape) is an hook-shaped peninsula nearly coextensive with Barnstable County, Massachusetts and forming the easternmost portion of the state of Massachusetts, in the Northeastern United States. ...

Vascular plants

Beach Rose.

On the dunes a fragile cover of beach grass, beach pea and beach heather^[6] stabilize the sand. Visitors to the refuge are restricted from the dunes except on boardwalks to protect this cover. Destabilization has been a problem. In 1953 the U.S. Soil Conservation Service planted several thousand black pines, a hardy alpine tree, to help hold the sand.^[7] Image File history File links Metadata Size of this preview: 800 × 600 pixelsFull resolution (2048 × 1536 pixel, file size: 682 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Name Rosa rugosa [correction from: Prunus maritima] Family Rosaceae Rosa rugosa aka Beach Plum with flower. ... Image File history File links Metadata Size of this preview: 800 × 600 pixelsFull resolution (2048 × 1536 pixel, file size: 682 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Name Rosa rugosa [correction from: Prunus maritima] Family Rosaceae Rosa rugosa aka Beach Plum with flower. ... Binomial name Fern. ... Binomial name Lathyrus japonicus Willd. ... Species See text Hudsonia is a small genus of three species of flowering plants in the family Cistaceae, native to North America. ... The Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) formerly known as the Soil Conservation Service (SCS) was founded in 1935 at the urging of Hugh Bennett, who also served as the agencys first chief. ... Binomial name Pinus nigra J.F.Arnold The European Black Pine Pinus nigra (generally called Black Pine in Europe), is a variable species of pine, occurring across southern Europe from Spain to the Crimea, and also in Asia Minor, Cyprus, and locally in the Atlas Mountains of northwest Africa. ...

Stands of black pine, pitch pine and occasional eastern red cedar trees can be found in the depressions between the dunes. There also are thickets of beach plum, from which the island takes its name, bayberry and honeysuckle (the latter being intrusive).^[7][8] Binomial name Pinus rigida Mill. ... Binomial name Juniperus virginiana L. Juniperus virginiana is a widespread North American species of juniper, known as Eastern Juniper or Eastern Redcedar (though it is unrelated to the cedars); the Lakota Native American name is Chansha, redwood or Hante. It is found from southeastern Canada to the Gulf of Mexico... Binomial name Marsh. ... Binomial name Myrica pensylvanica Mirbel The Northern Bayberry (Myrica pensylvanica) is a species of Myrica native to eastern North America, from Newfoundland west to Ontario and Ohio, and south to North Carolina. ... Species See text - Selected Species Honeysuckles (genus Lonicera; syn. ...

Maximum dune elevation is about 50 feet. In the deeper depressions and more sheltered regions between or next to the higher dunes are vernal pools in whch black oak, red maple and black cherry can be found. In the underbrush are cranberry. The ferns, moss and leaf cover there shelter salamanders and spadefoot toads. Binomial name Lamb. ... Binomial name Acer rubrum L. Red Maple (Acer rubrum) is also known as Swamp Maple or Soft Maple. ... Binomial name Prunus serotina Ehrh. ... Species Vaccinium erythrocarpum Vaccinium macrocarpon Vaccinium microcarpum Vaccinium oxycoccus Approximate ranges of the cranberries in sect. ... Suborders Cryptobranchoidea Salamandroidea Sirenoidea Salamander is the common name applied to approximately 500 species of amphibians with slender bodies, short legs, and long tails. ... Distribution of Scaphiopodidae (in black) Genera Scaphiopus Spea American spadefoot toads, Scaphiopodidae, are a toad family of order Anura, native to southern Canada and USA south to southern Mexico. ...

The native salt-water marshes between Plum Island and the mainland (Great Marsh) are visible from the western edge of the island. Before the observer lie prospects of "the high marsh", where extents of salt marsh hay meet the eye. The colonists who could purchase acres of high marsh counted themselves lucky: the grass needs no cultivation and can be harvested as hay for feeding farm animals. Binomial name (Aiton) Muhl. ...

Less visible in "the low marsh" at the margin of the water is smooth cordgrass. Also in the marsh are the sedges, Cyperus and Carex. Binomial name Spartina alterniflora Loisel. ... Genera See text The family Cyperaceae, or the Sedge family, is a taxon of monocot flowering plants that superficially resemble grasses or rushes. ... Species About 600 species; see text Cyperus is a large genus of about 600 species of sedges, distributed throughout all continents in both tropical and temperate regions. ... Carex (L., 1753) is a genus of plants in the family Cyperaceae, commonly known as sedges (although other, related species are also called sedges, those of genus Carex may be called true sedges). ...

In the 1940's and '50's the wildlife service created two fresh-water marshes, North and South Pools, from island run-off by diking a section of the marsh contiguous to the island. It serves as a nesting area and stop-over for migrating birds. Originally the common cattail dominated the fresh-water marshes, but two intrusive plants, the common reed and purple loosestrife, have replaced much of it. Binomial name Typha latifolia Typha latifolia (Bulrush, Common Bulrush, Broadleaf Cattail, Common Cattail, or Cat-o-nine-tails) is a perennial herbaceous plant in the genus Typha which grows in temperate, subtropical and tropical areas throughout the Northern Hemisphere. ... Binomial name Phragmites australis (Cav. ... Binomial name Lythrum salicaria L. Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Lythrum salicaria Purple loosestrife (Lythrum salicaria) is a semi-aquatic herbaceous plant belonging to the loosestrife family, Lythraceae, native to the wetlands of Eurasia. ...

Mammals

The mammals are typical of Massachusetts woodland: the striped skunk, the raccoon, the red fox, the woodland jumping mouse, the white-tailed deer and others. Subclasses & Infraclasses Subclass †Allotheria* Subclass Prototheria Subclass Theria Infraclass †Trituberculata Infraclass Metatheria Infraclass Eutheria Mammals (class Mammalia) are warm-blooded, vertebrate animals characterized by the production of milk in female mammary glands and by the presence of: hair, three middle ear bones used in hearing, and a neocortex region in... The striped skunks show up in our neighborhood every summer from July onward, and have been quite the nuisance to anyone who likes to go out for an evening stroll. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Common Raccoon. ... Binomial name Linnaeus, 1758 Red Fox range Synonyms Vulpes fulva, Vulpes fulvus The Red Fox (Vulpes vulpes) is generally the most familiar of the foxes. ... Thw woodland jumping mouse can hop suprisingly long distances given its small size. ... Binomial name Odocoileus virginianus Zimmermann, 1780 The White-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) is a medium-sized deer found throughout most of the continental United States, southern Canada, Mexico, Central America and northern portions of South America as far south as Peru. ...

Avians

Piping Plover.

Plum Island and its surrounding estuaries are a popular destination for birders. The Parker River basin is on a migratory route for many varieties of birds, as well as a nesting area for piping plovers. Much of the beach in the National Wildlife Refuge is closed to visitors during the nesting season, which can last most of the warm months. Image File history File links Metadata No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links Metadata No higher resolution available. ... Birding or birdwatching is a hobby concerned with the observation and study of birds (the study proper is termed American origin; birdwatching is (or more correctly, was) the commonly-used word in Great Britain and Ireland and by non-birders in the United States. ... Flock of Barnacle Geese during autumn migration Bird migration refers to the regular seasonal journeys of varying distances undertaken by many species of birds. ... “Aves” redirects here. ... A basket style nest A nest is place of refuge built to hold an animals eggs and/or provide a place to raise their offspring. ... Binomial name Charadrius melodus (Ord, 1824) The Piping Plover (Charadrius melodus) is a small plover. ...

Several pepared observation posts of birds are usually populated by birders with equipment ranging from simple binoculars to expensive telephoto cameras. Some posts are blinds; others are simply a paved shoulder with a sign. Birds are usually observed in the native salt-water marshes, the artificial fresh-water marshes and the thickets and isolated trees of the refuge.

The birds most commonly observed are listed in the Visitor Center in the refuge. They are the Greater Yellowlegs, Mallard Duck, Least Sandpiper, Great Egret, Snowy Egret, Herring Gull, Great Black-backed Gull, Osprey, Canada Goose, Tree Swallow, Grey Catbird, Killdeer, Glossy Ibis, Red-winged Blackbird, Mockingbird, Least Tern, Piping Plover and Peregrine Falcon. Binomial name Tringa melanoleuca (Gmelin, 1789) The Greater Yellowlegs, Tringa melanoleuca, is a large shorebird similar in appearance to the smaller Lesser Yellowlegs. ... This article is about the Mallard duck. ... Binomial name Calidris minutilla (Vieillot, 1819) The Least Sandpiper, Calidris minutilla, is the smallest shorebird. ... Binomial name Casmerodius albus Linnaeus, 1758 The Great Egret (Casmerodius albus), also known as the Great White Egret, White Heron, or Common Egret, is a wading egret, found in most of the tropical and warmer temperate parts of the world, although it is very local in southern Europe and Asia. ... Binomial name Egretta thula (Molina, 1782) The Snowy Egret (Egretta thula) is a small white heron. ... Binomial name Larus argentatus Pontoppidan, 1763 The Herring Gull, Larus argentatus, is a large gull which breeds across North America, Europe and Asia. ... Binomial name Larus marinus (Linnaeus, 1758) The Great Black-backed Gull, Larus marinus, is a very large gull which breeds on the European and North American coasts and islands of the North Atlantic. ... Binomial name Pandion haliaetus (Linnaeus, 1758) The Osprey, Pandion haliaetus is a medium-large raptor which is a specialist fish-eater with a worldwide distribution. ... Binomial name Branta canadensis (Linnaeus, 1758) Canada Goose distribution, including introduced and feral populations Yellow: summer Blue: winter Green: year-round Subspecies Dusky Canada Goose Vancouver Canada Goose Lesser Canada Goose Moffitts Canada Goose Giant Canada Goose Interior Canada Goose Atlantic Canada Goose The Canada Goose (Branta canadensis) belongs... Binomial name Tachycineta bicolor (Vieillot, 1808) The Tree Swallow, Tachycineta bicolor, is a migratory passerine bird that breeds in North America and winters in Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean. ... Binomial name (Linnaeus, 1766) Gray Catbird range The Gray Catbird (Dumetella carolinensis[2]) is a medium-sized perching bird of the mimid family and the only member of New World catbird genus Dumetella. ... Binomial name Charadrius vociferus (Linnaeus, 1758) The Killdeer (Charadrius vociferus) is a medium-sized plover. ... Binomial name Plegadis falcinellus (Linnaeus, 1766) The Glossy Ibis (Plegadis falcinellus) is a wading bird in the ibis family Threskiornithidae. ... Binomial name Agelaius phoeniceus (Linnaeus, 1766) The Red-winged Blackbird, Agelaius phoeniceus, is a passerine bird of the family Icteridae found in most of North and much of Central America. ... Genera Melanotis Mimus Nesomimus Mockingbirds are a group of New World passerine birds from the Mimidae family. ... Binomial name Sterna albifrons Pallas, 1764 The Little Tern (Sterna albifrons) is a seabird of the tern family Sternidae. ... Binomial name Charadrius melodus (Ord, 1824) The Piping Plover (Charadrius melodus) is a small plover. ... Binomial name Tunstall, 1771 Global range (shaded green, dark dots on islands) The Peregrine Falcon (Falco peregrinus), occasionally known in North America as the Duck Hawk, is a medium-sized falcon about the size of a large crow: 380–530 millimetres (15–21 in) long. ...

Even the uninitiated are likely to linger over a strange bird wading in the marsh. Those less intensely interested in birds can enjoy their calls first-hand sitting on the benches in some of the thickets of the park away from distracting vehicle noise.

Beach and dune pests

Greenhead flies

The greatest visible pest to humans is the greenhead fly. Before insect control they swarmed the beach and dunes so thickly as to make human presence there difficult if not impossible from June through September. In recent years the near elimination of the population with traps has reduced their impact to an occasional bite. Genera as listed in ITIS: Subfamily Chrysopsinae: Merycomyia Chrysops Neochrysops Silvius Subfamily Pangoniinae: Apatolestes Asaphomyia Brennania Esenbeckia Pangonia Pegasomyia Stonemyia Goniops Subfamily Tabaninae: Anacimas Bolbodimyia Catachlorops Chlorotabanus Diachlorus Dichelacera Holcopsis Lepiselaga Leucotabanus Microtabanus Stenotabanus Haematopota Agkistrocerus Atylotus Hamatabanus Hybomitra Poeciloderas Tabanus Whitneyomyia Not placed: Zophina Horse flies (family Tabanidae) are...

The cruising flies land surreptitiously on the skin, catching their victim unaware. Their sudden sharp bite elicits an unpleasant reflex reaction and raises a welt. Another attack point is the hair, into which they work their way to bite the scalp. They are however slow and easily swatted.

Ticks

Less obstrusive are the dog tick and the deer tick, which enter the clothing of their victim from the vegetation and later crawl into the soft tissue, where they attach themselves. The area usually becomes infected even after they are removed. Binomial name Dermacentor variabilis, also known as the American dog tick, is a species of tick that is known to carry bacteria responsible for several diseases in humans, including Rocky Mountain spotted fever and tularemia (Francisella tularensis). ... Families Ixodidae - Hard ticks Argasidae - Soft ticks Tick is the common name for the small wingless arachnids that, along with mites, constitute the order Acarina. ...

Dog ticks are the least harmful, except to dogs, from whom they can in sufficient numbers remove a dangerous amount of blood. Dog ticks are large and easily visible. Deer ticks are almost invisibly small. They often carry Lyme disease, which is endemic to the region. The first and only manifestation of a deer tick bite is a red ring on the skin. The victim is advised to seek medical care immediately. The disease is best cured if detected early. Lyme disease (Borreliosis) is a bacterial infection with a spirochete from the species complex Borrelia burgdorferi, which is most often acquired from the bite of an infected Ixodes, or black-legged, tick, also known as a deer tick. ...

Mosquitos

The mosquito is a pest anywhere in Massachusetts. Mosquito control has reduced the presence of the pest in the Newbury region. Usually they are only annoying; that is, it is not possible to be in the refuge without the hands being constantly in motion to kill or ward off insects. More rarely a few cases of Eastern equine encephalitis virus, carried by mosquitos, occur each year, usually to the south of Boston, but potentially anywhere. Diversity 41 genera Genera See text. ... Eastern equine encephalomyelitis virus (EEE), commonly called sleeping sickness or Triple E, is a zoonotic alphavirus and arbovirus present in North, Central and South America and the Caribbean. ... Nickname: City on the Hill, Beantown, The Hub (of the Universe)1, Athens of America, The Cradle of Revolution, Puritan City, Americas Walking City Location in Massachusetts, USA Counties Suffolk County Mayor Thomas M. Menino(D) Area    - City 232. ...

Poison ivy

Three shiny leaves.

Poison ivy is indigenous to all the woodlands of Massachusetts. It especially loves the margins of paths. On Plum Island it grows in every thicket and in mats along the sand. The visitor is cautioned to learn to identify its three shiny leaves immediately, which he can do at the visitor center or by reading the brochures. larger version of poison_ivy_sm. ... larger version of poison_ivy_sm. ... Binomial name Toxicodendron radicans (L.) Kuntze Poison-ivy (Toxicodendron radicans or Rhus toxicodendron), in the family Anacardiaceae, is a woody vine that is well-known for its ability to produce urushiol, a skin irritant which for most people will cause an agonizing, itching rash. ...

Reactions to the toxic oil secreted by the leaves of poison ivy depend on the individual. Highly sensitive persons are advised that brushing against vegetation at the side of a trail can smear the oil on clothing, from which it gets transmitted to the skin without warning. A victim who has touched it or touched the blisters on the skin is advised against rubbing the eyes or face.

Notes

1. ^ Toppan, page 285. Before then it was owned by the General Court.
2. ^ Whittier, page 53.
3. ^ Page 7.
4. ^ Yahoo Map.
5. ^ Wood, pages 160-161.
6. ^ Hudsonia tomentosa.
7. ^ ^{a b} Hellcat Trail pamphlet.
8. ^ Bailey, pages 425-426, also describes some vascular plants on the island. The scientific names of some plants have changed since then.

Bibliography

External links

• Plum Island, Massachusetts Webpage
• Birding America -- Plum Island & Parker River
• Friends of Plum Island Light
• Joppa Flats Education Center & Wildlife Sanctuary
• Massachusetts Audubon Society
• Parker River National Wildlife Refuge
• U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
• Great Marsh, ACEC site at mass.gov
• Taming he Wild Beach Plum, monograph by Richard H. Uva
• Yahoo Map