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Happy Winter Solstice!
The solstice is an astronomical event attributable to the earth's tilt on its axis and its orbit around the sun. On the December solstice, the earth is positioned so that the sun does not reach above the North Pole horizon. For us in the northern hemisphere, the fewest number of daylight hours are experienced on the day of the solstice.
The days and weeks surrounding the solstice are characterized by late dawns and early sunsets. You may even notice that shadows are perceptible mid-day ('noontime shadow'). After the solstice, the earth continues on its trajectory around the sun, meaning that in the northern hemisphere we can look forward to a gradual increase in the number of daylight hours (earlier sunrises and later sunsets) over the coming months.
This year the moon will be in a waxing gibbous phase (in photo at left)
on the solstice, gearing up for the full moon on Christmas. This December full moon falls on Christmas for the first time since 1977.
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CELT Welcomes New Executive Director - Cynthia Krum
The Land Trust is pleased to introduce our new Executive Director, Cynthia Krum. Cindy brings to CELT a passion for community-based land conservation, strong management and organizational skills, and significant experience in environmental education. She lives in South Portland and loves to walk, bike and snowshoe on CELT's trails. Cindy is also a registered Maine Guide.
Cindy recently served as the Executive Director of the Gulf of Maine Association, an organization with  multiple partnerships focused on protecting and restoring regional watersheds and the Gulf of Maine Ecosystem. She also managed conservation projects and supported other initiatives for the South Portland Land Trust.
She holds a Masters of Science degree in Environmental Studies from Antioch University New England and a Bachelor of Arts in Human Ecology from the College of the Atlantic, both of which reflect her commitment to CELT's conservation mission.
We are excited to work with Cynthia on new conservation projects and to further the goals that you have supported through your dedication to CELT. To learn more about our new ED, please check out The Cape Courier's recent feature article.
Cindy has been enjoying meeting CELT's dedicated and dynamic supporters. Please do stop by the office to introduce yourself! And join us for our upcoming Open House:
January Open House: Save the Date!
Please join us at the CELT office January 21st (4-7 p.m.) to meet Cynthia Krum,
chat with board members, and enjoy food, drink, and conversation with other
land conservation enthusiasts. We look forward to seeing you!
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Consider Making Your Year-End Gift to CELT Today
As 2015 wraps up, CELT's annual appeal is underway. With three new staff members and several land preservation projects in the pipeline, 2016 promises to be an exciting time for us here in Cape Elizabeth.
CELT's work touches each of us in different ways. If you have children, they benefit from CELT's expanding nature curriculum in Cape schools. If you enjoy walking our trails, you have surely noticed the extensive new boardwalks recently laid in Robinson woods. If you appreciate the rural feel Cape residents enjoy, you can thank CELT!
Please help us continue to expand our conservation, stewardship and education programs throughout next year by making a tax-deductible donation today. Your land trust, and our future generations, appreciate your support.
[
Just before leaving on holiday recess, Congress and the President signed into law a bill making the IRA Charitable Rollover a permanent tax incentive. Starting at age 70 1/2, people with traditional IRAs must take a Required Minimum Distribution. With the IRA Charitable Rollover, individuals can donate up to $100,000 to charitable organizations from their IRAs without treating the distribution as taxable income. CELT encourages you to check with your tax advisor before year's end to see if taking advantage of this tax incentive makes sense for you.]
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An Innovative Way to Give -
Ocean House Gallery
For the month of December Ocean House Gallery and Frame will be donating 10 percent of their profits from art sales and custom framing to CELT! We are grateful to Ocean House Gallery and Frame for their generous support and for reminding us that there are so many innovative ways to support land conversation.
Please show your appreciation by stopping into the gallery - which is located right in the center of Cape Elizabeth.
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Volunteers working to keep Great Pond Trails in good shape.
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Stewards in Action
A troupe of dedicated CELT stewardship volunteers participated in a clean-up effort at Great Pond last week.
We want to extend an enthusiastic 'thank you' to Paul Wennberg, Gabe McGinn, Anne Carney, Bob Dawson, Tony Owens, Herb and Kathleen Janick, Tim and Finn Case, Bull Luneberg, Tom McInerney, and Neil and Suzanne McGinn!
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CELT 'Spotlight' on Richard Brothers Financial Advisors
From time to time, we like to salute partners who have extended their support to land conservation in Cape Elizabeth. This month, we're shining the "CELT spotlight" on
Richard Brothers Financial Advisors
, which through its generous sponsorship, helped make our November annual meeting possible. 
Richard Brothers Financial is a sterling example of the maxim, "it takes a village" and we are extremely grateful for the company's continued support for our work. For more information on the firm's services, please visit its website.
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'El Nino' Has Brought Warm Weather, and Moths
Oh, the weather outside is...unusual this year! There are many reasons for our mild December temperatures, but the immediate culprit is 'El Nino'. El Nino is one part of a natural environmental cycle caused by interactions between the ocean and atmosphere. During El Nino events, which last several months and can occur every 3-5 years, the surface water in the equatorial eastern Pacific becomes warmer than normal. This new temperature changes our wind pattern: the jet stream, a current of wind moving west-to-east across the northern hemisphere shifts to drive more to the north and east.
For us here in Maine, that means warmer winter temperatures. Our precipitation levels are more difficult to predict, but predicting the
climate is different than predicting the
weather. Weather events evolve from real-time conditions and it's important to remember that there are many other climate patterns that will affect our weather on top of the El Nino effect. So, stay tuned to your local meteorologist!
One of the more noticeable effects of this El Nino winter so far is the increased population of winter moths (
Operophthera brumata). First recorded in North America in the 1930s, these small, brown moths are native to Europe; they moved into Maine over the past few years. The moths have no native predators, and have defoliated deciduous trees and shrubs in recent years; they favor oak, aspen, apple, cherry and crabapple trees and blueberry bushes. The larvae pupate in the soil from June to November. At the end of November, they hatch as adult moths and are active until January whenever the temperatures are above freezing. Adults mate and lay their eggs on trees, where the eggs overwinter and hatch in the spring, beginning the cycle again.
If you see winter moths,
please report them to the state. The Maine Forest Service is actively collecting data in its efforts to create some control measures. A
recent article in the
Portland Press Herald (with a focus on Cape Elizabeth) has more information.
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CELT's Education Coordinator Linden Rayton, Membership & Development Manager Katye Charette, and Executive Director Cindy Krum welcomed Chewonki's Matt Weeks and Varia, a Barred Owl.
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Chewonki Owls Flew in for Holiday Visit
This week we were joined in the CELT office by all six Pond Cove first grade classes as they enjoyed presentations by
Chewonki Foundation naturalists on the owls of Maine.
Chewonki staff visited on Monday and Wednesday and brought with them Great Horned Owls, Barred Owls, an Eastern Screech Owl, and a Saw-Whet Owl.
The first graders asked wonderful questions and the Chewonki staff, it should come as no surprise, had all the right answers. CELT is pleased to have funded this collaborative educational program in our schools since 2006.
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Robinson Woods Extended Off-Leash Hours for Winter
A quick reminder about the extended off-leash hours in Robinson Woods: to keep canine friends happy and healthy during the short days of winter, CELT will offer dogs and their walkers an additional hour of off-leash time in Robinson Woods I.
Through March 12th, off-leash access will begin at 3 p.m. [Robinson Woods II off-leash hours and all other property rules remain unchanged.]
Enjoy the woods during this quietly beautiful season!
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