OUT!! #31: Roadkill Redux

On my way back from spending a lovely weekend in Ohio with my girlfriend (she is a songbird nest technician for the summer), I couldn't help but notice the high numbers of roadkill lining the sides of the highway. Well...not lining like a procession, but more like a body every couple of miles or so. The most common sight was of what I assumed were female White-tailed Deer (Odocoileus virginianus) in varying states of pulverization. Some were intact but resembled burly, bloated flour sacks with legs splayed in different directions. Others had the calling cards of traumatic injury such as broken or even severed limbs and still others, having been hit in the middle of the road, had been ground into the pavement by the repeated and monotonous hum of vehicular traffic.

It must be a regular sight for the seasoned traveler to find animals that once were alive, but now often lay plastered across the pavement in great streaks of flesh and entrails. One becomes desensitized to the idea of death being so prevalent on our roads and often people don't even glance back at the lifeless form that sits before them. If possible, I prefer to get close and covet what is left of the creature. It may look weird to others, but I feel that it is one of the best ways to appreciate the body of an animal, even a recently deceased one.

I took these photos some time last fall or winter near Walden Pond in Concord, MA. Just by the side of the road being passed by car after car after car was a doe, recently killed by a motorist and lying prone by the side of the road. What struck me about the doe's presence in that place was the obvious nature of her being there. Even in death, people were passing her by without really acknowledging her. They might have tutted or sighed with the loss of a "beautiful wild creature" but without closer inspection, I feel like their sympathy for the loss of the deer was not so heartfelt.

Judging by her splayed legs she, like so many of the dead deer I saw along the highway, was probably shocked after being hit broadside by a vehicle and probably died of a combination of internal trauma and shock. The life had since faded from her eyes leaving only the glazed over cornea that can be seen in the head shots above. The complete opacity of the cornea indicates that the deer had probably been dead longer than 24 hours by that point and probably died within the last day or so.

What does this mean ultimately? And why do I have such a morbid (haha, bad pun) fascination with death and roadkill? I think what holds the greatest interest for me is what has captured the attention of biologists, naturalists, and anyone who's been alive on this planet since ever! It is the "spark" of life that seems to move us while we're alive and seems to exhale out of us when we die. To become nothing but inanimate flesh and bone after death seems so foreign and unpleasant, I can see why some people are bothered by the sight of dead animals by the side of the highway. But after such a traumatic death, they are not what they once were. Their still forms dot the roadsides, reminding us of the life that surrounds us, but unfortunately and all too often meets its end by colliding with man's wheeled convenience machines. While I've seen plenty of roadkill in my life and even handled (with gloves!) some creatures out of curious observation, I can't help but wonder if there is more to the death of some creatures than others. Not just the process, but the act of dying itself is what I find most compelling.

There is a book by Bernd Heinrich called "Life Everlasting: The Animal Way of Death" which focuses on how death is equal to life in that it's role is just as important for maintaining the lives of the many species that live upon this planet. He discusses the roles of scavengers and predators, as well as the importance of understanding the role that death plays in all of our lives. I look forward to reading it as Heinrich is one of my favorite authors with his succinct, yet rich writing detailing the lives of the animals he observes around him. I'll talk about my thoughts on it another time (I have thought about turning this blog into a nature book review blog, but I'll have to experiment with that first) and hopefully I will come back with a glowing review. Hope everyone had a lovely Memorial Day and enjoy the rest of your week.

OUT!! #14: Carp Diem

When you say the name Common Carp (Cyprinus carpio), two things spring into my mind. One is that, being from the UK myself, I recognize that carp is an important sport fish to many "course" fisherman and new records regarding weight and size are sought regularly. There are even specialist magazines that deal with various issues of importance to the carp angler such as proper bait presentation, what works under certain light conditions, what bobbers work best (balsa or god forbid, plastic!), and what tents (yes, you read that correctly) can be used for adequate outdoor shelter in order to provide cover during adverse conditions. To put it in basic terms, carp fisherman are the equivalent of fly-fisherman that aspire to the "Orvis model of perfection"; the equipment and gear used must be of the highest quality, be horrendously expensive, and have an air of such sophistication and grandeur that it will intimidate those of us of a more leisurely persuasion. I might be exaggerating a bit, but this to me seems to be a fair assessment. I'm fairly sure however that many American trout fisherman wouldn't want to even be compared to the lowly trash fish that's being discussed here.

According to the Mississippi National Park Service website, carp were introduced to America on what seems to be a food-driven idea (rather than an aesthetic view which caused a great deal of non-native plant life to become established on the North American continent) perpetuated and carried out by many European immigrants who were appalled at what they perceived as being a valuable food source not being available in the waters of North America. Never mind that North America has an enormous variety of game fish to choose from, it was clear that these people wanted carp and so they brought them in by the barrel full. Nowadays, we have a better understanding of the damage introduced species can have in new landscapes. We've seen the effects of habitat displacement by species such as purple loosestrife (Lythrum salicaria) and water chestnut or caltrop (Trapa spp.), as well as more aggressive species like Mute Swans (Cygnus olor) that drive out native waterfowl from breeding and foraging areas and destroy massive quantities of submerged aquatic vegetation (SAV). The carp have the same intentions as any biological organism, to survive by any means necessary and to live long enough to reproduce. As a result, they breed in massive numbers in the spring and can survive in conditions that would kill most game fish such as turbid, low oxygen environments. They hard to eradicate and, as these videos show, eager to conquer new territories.

These three videos feature carp that have been present in Great Meadows NWR in Concord, MA for a few years now and recently were more visible. This was due to the pumping of water from the nearby Concord River to fill the surrounding marsh with water for migrating waterfowl. As I explain throughout the videos, I'm amazed by the number and sudden appearance of these fish, as well as their introduced status and why that's problematic. Caution on the third video is advised as a minor swear is uttered briefly.

However, just over two weeks later, the marsh has been filled and the flowing waters have stopped. As a result, where the carp had originally surged to the pipe pouring water in the marsh, they are now trapped by the slowly draining pool created by the rushing torrents of river water. Even when cornered like this, their will to survive is strong and they counteract the lack of dissolved oxygen by breathing air directly as the photos above illustrate. Even so, as the upper right photo demonstrates, time is running out. Even as I passed today, the smell of fishy death is in the air and the carp that once happily swarmed to this flowing pool suddenly have found that their days are numbered.

This left me with mixed feelings. Generally, I'm pleased when a destructive and invasive species is vanquished in order to reclaim an area for native wildlife, but even if the carp in this enclosed marsh pool were fated to die, surely there has to be quicker ways of dispatching them! While I'm aware fishing is banned on the refuge itself, but surely allowing some bow-fisherman to take out the trapped fish would be more merciful than leaving them to suffocate in a watery pit. Since that's an unlikely solution, at least we can take solace in there being a few less bottom feeders ripping up our plants, crowding our fish, and foolishly dying in pools of their own watery misery. Well, at least that's what I'll be doing.