Wildlife and Nature
Deer, red fox, a variety of non-poisonous snakes, raccoons, frogs and toads, gray and black back gulls, loons, and ducks are all creatures that can be seen on and about the island. Curiously, no grey squirrels or skunks are to be found on this, the second largest island in Casco Bay (Sebascodegan, or "Great Island" - part of the town of Harpswell and connected to the mainland by a bridge, is the largest). Mosquitoes can be a nuisance, and much of the island is soft, sandy, swampy soil (due largely in part to the many underground springs), which are perfect conditions for mosquito breeding.
Harbor seals can often be spotted from the shores of Chebeague, swimming or sunning themselves on the rocks of nearby uninhabited islands or on depth-marker buoys. Occasionally one might spot a porpoise breaking surface as well. Lobsters and lobstering are a big part of Casco Bay, and the ocean surrounding Chebeague is dotted by thousands of lobster pot buoys, the livelihood of many year-round residents in the area. Lobstering is a big commodity of Casco Bay. Locals often fish from the docks and piers for mackerel, bluefish, or striped bass, just a few of many abundant fish in the area, and crab traps hang from the docks.
Read more about this topic: Chebeague Island, Maine
Famous quotes containing the words wildlife and/or nature:
“Russian forests crash down under the axe, billions of trees are dying, the habitations of animals and birds are layed waste, rivers grow shallow and dry up, marvelous landscapes are disappearing forever.... Man is endowed with creativity in order to multiply that which has been given him; he has not created, but destroyed. There are fewer and fewer forests, rivers are drying up, wildlife has become extinct, the climate is ruined, and the earth is becoming ever poorer and uglier.”
—Anton Pavlovich Chekhov (1860–1904)
“Because it is in the nature of things that they become extreme, we have passed down from manliness to cruelty. If I had been told when I was 20 that there was a tavern in the town where the brave and the cruel were gathered together, I would have run all the way and I would have gone up to the largest and leatheriest of the denizens and said: “If you truly love me, kill the bartender.””
—Quentin Crisp (b. 1908)