{"id":1609,"date":"2008-11-15T14:29:23","date_gmt":"2008-11-15T18:29:23","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.turtlejournal.com\/?p=1609"},"modified":"2008-11-15T14:29:23","modified_gmt":"2008-11-15T18:29:23","slug":"snappy-houdini-and-van-gogh-wellfleet-bay-wildlife-sanctuary","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.turtlejournal.com\/?p=1609","title":{"rendered":"Snappy, Houdini and Van Gogh @ Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Follow the “Yellow Leaf Road” to Wellfleet Bay<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

If you follow the Yellow Leaf Road off Route 6 in Wellfleet, you’ll discover more than a thousand acres of pristine beauty, preserving natural Cape Cod habitats and vistas, and saving the\u00c2\u00a0native wildlife of Massachusetts for generations unborn.\u00c2\u00a0 The entrance to this\u00c2\u00a0peaceful refuge, Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary<\/a>, lies just off the main highway.\u00c2\u00a0 While\u00c2\u00a0its rustic trails<\/a>, many handicap accessible, offer peeks at unspoiled nature in the raw, don’t miss the magical world that resides inside the sanctuary’s new nature center with a cast of incredible creatures that mystify and delight.\u00c2\u00a0 We’ve never seen a kid whether three or one hundred three walk away from these exhibits without a broad smile and a look of wonder.\u00c2\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Director Bob Prescott Examines Cold-Stunned Sea Turtle<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

There’s always something extraordinary happening around the corner.\u00c2\u00a0 First-ever restoration of\u00c2\u00a0an oyster reef ecosystem on Cape Cod,\u00c2\u00a0conservation of \u00c2\u00a0a rapidly disappearing native heathland, research to save the ancient and noble horseshoe crab, satellite tracking of osprey journeys, study of sudden salt-marsh die-off on the Outer Cape,\u00c2\u00a0educating\u00c2\u00a0the next generation of young naturalists, and this month, rescuing the world’s most endangered sea turtles from certain hyptothermic death on Cape Cod beaches (see First Cold-Stunned Sea Turtle of 2008 Rescued<\/a>).\u00c2\u00a0<\/p>\n

What’s next to discover?\u00c2\u00a0 Walk around the bend and see.<\/p>\n

<\/embed><\/object><\/p>\n

Click Here to View Video in High Quality<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

“Snappy” Twice as Large and Four Times the Attitude<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

If you read Turtle Journal, then you’ve met Snappy already (see Meet \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Snappy\u00e2\u20ac\u009d at Mass Audubon\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary<\/a>).\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0When the Turtle Journal team visited East Fairhaven Elementary School<\/a> on Wednesday to “talk turtle” to fifth graders, a group of boys serenaded us with a rap song featuring … you guessed it … Snappy, whom they had met on the web site.<\/p>\n

When we visited the Nature Center on Friday, we noticed that Snappy had doubled in size and quadrupled in personality since late September.\u00c2\u00a0 We also heard a rumor that Snappy has been “stepping out” on the Sanctuary staff.\u00c2\u00a0 The word is that\u00c2\u00a0the juvenile snapper\u00c2\u00a0disappeared sometime last weekend.\u00c2\u00a0 Staff assumed that someone had taken Snappy “for a walk” to a local school for an educational program and he’d soon return.\u00c2\u00a0 By Thursday, concern rose and flashlights came out to search for the AWOL snapping turtle.\u00c2\u00a0 He was found hiding in a corner of the wet lab, a bit dusty but no worse for wear.\u00c2\u00a0<\/p>\n

By the time we saw him on Friday, Snappy had resumed his King of the World attitude\u00c2\u00a0and was\u00c2\u00a0plotting his next escape.\u00c2\u00a0 So, boys and girls, look carefully in the corner of your rooms before bedtime.\u00c2\u00a0 That scratching sound may not be the wind blowing the drapes, but the Return of Snappy!<\/p>\n

<\/embed><\/object><\/p>\n

Click Here to View Video in High Quality<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

“Houdini” and the Squirrel Proof Bird Feeder<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

The Nature Center at Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary offers exciting outdoor adventures without the nasty side effects of actually being outdoors.\u00c2\u00a0 No, we don’t mean that virtual\u00c2\u00a0magic that you get by reading Turtle Journal.\u00c2\u00a0 There’s a corner of the center dedicated to quiet observation and reflection … with large picture windows\u00c2\u00a0and open vistas of the gorgeous salt marsh beyond and protected bird feeders immediately outside.\u00c2\u00a0 We’ve watched visitors spend a hugely satisfying winter day, just sitting by those windows with a book in hand while gazing occasionally at the exquisite beauty within arm’s reach.\u00c2\u00a0 And no one<\/strong> has\u00c2\u00a0ever watched a winter sunset over Try Island from this vantage without being\u00c2\u00a0transformed by\u00c2\u00a0the experience.\u00c2\u00a0 We even enjoy watching snow showers blow in from the bay to blanket the surroundings in fluffy whiteness.<\/p>\n

Friday, we dwelled a moment ourselves in quiet meditation until we burst into raucous laughter at the antics of Houdini.\u00c2\u00a0 Cape Codders pride themselves on creating perfect squirrel proof bird feeders … that are never squirrel proof.\u00c2\u00a0 Yet, the quest continues.\u00c2\u00a0 Houdini,\u00c2\u00a0for sure that must be his name; Houdini climbed the center pole and pondered, much like humans on the other side of the glass, which of the three squirrel proof feeders offered the best chance of a good meal.\u00c2\u00a0 He decided and sprung into action.<\/p>\n

<\/embed><\/object><\/p>\n

Click Here to View Video in High Quality<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

“Van Gogh” Paints the Tank Red … and Yellow, Too<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Finally, on the way out we stopped by the fresh water tank again for a last glimpse of Snappy before he disappeared once more for a weekend adventure.\u00c2\u00a0 Instead, we caught sight of Vincent Van Gogh,\u00c2\u00a0a juvenile painted turtle, who transformed the tank into museum art with his\u00c2\u00a0deep reds and bright yellows.<\/p>\n

The Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary<\/a> has much to offer any time of the year.\u00c2\u00a0 A rainy day?\u00c2\u00a0 What could be more satisfying than\u00c2\u00a0spending time\u00c2\u00a0with nature inside a wonderfully designed platinum green building and entertained by the coolest personalities that nature has designed.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Follow the “Yellow Leaf Road” to Wellfleet Bay If you follow the Yellow Leaf Road off Route 6 in Wellfleet, you’ll discover more than a thousand acres of pristine beauty, preserving natural Cape Cod habitats and vistas, and saving the\u00c2\u00a0native wildlife of Massachusetts for generations unborn.\u00c2\u00a0 The entrance to this\u00c2\u00a0peaceful refuge, Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet Bay […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[23],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.turtlejournal.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1609"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.turtlejournal.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.turtlejournal.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.turtlejournal.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.turtlejournal.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1609"}],"version-history":[{"count":12,"href":"https:\/\/www.turtlejournal.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1609\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1623,"href":"https:\/\/www.turtlejournal.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1609\/revisions\/1623"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.turtlejournal.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1609"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.turtlejournal.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1609"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.turtlejournal.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1609"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}