Metaboston

Otters Return to the Charles

In another sign that the Charles River is becoming healthier otters have been seen in the Charles River near Needham.

They are not found in areas that are contaminated or polluted," said Norman Smith, director of the Massachusetts Audubon Society's Blue Hills Trailside Museum in Milton. Improved water quality and wetlands preservation have sparked a resurgence of river otters, which, at least in Massachusetts, are not on endangered or threatened lists.

E. Coli in the Charles River: The Movie

An animation model of e. Coli moving through the Charles from Ferdi Hellweger.

Ice Circles on the Charles

Beautiful circles of ice form in some rivers including the Charles.  With warmer weather the river ice might break up and and reform with chances to see ice circle.  Although rational theories have edged out aliens as explanations there still seems to be uncertainty about

The lack of a clear explanation from the scientific community allowed conspiracy theorists to add the ice circles to the annals of “unexplained phenomena” until 1993 when MIT attempted to end the debate.

Ice circles began to form on the Charles River in Cambridge, Massachusetts, which runs through the MIT campus, prompting scientists at the university to study their formation.

David Ricks, an ocean engineering graduate, helped systematically rule out effluent from submerged pipes, down draughts from helicopters, alien activity, bubbles from decomposition and underwater springs.

He concluded that eddies from the Harvard bridge caused parts of the sheet ice to break away and the movement of the ice created circular holes which were filled by further ice formation. Other theories suggest that slow moving rivers can create eddies which spin the ice until it takes on a circular shape.

(Image:  Ice Circles in Campotosto, Italy by aquilano76)

Oysters to Eat Charles River Sewage

The effort to clean up the Charles River turns to 150,000 oysters to consume the ... sewage in the Charles River.

"[The] colony of seed oysters should grow at an inch per year. If they're lucky, they'll live as long as a decade. As it eats, an oyster can filter 30 gallons of water per day, [project organizer] Jay said. The shellfish potentially stand to process 3 million gallons of sewage-tainted liquid every 24 hours, slowly purifying the Charles.

Yoga by the Charles River

You can do yoga by the Hatch Shell on Monday nights for free. 

"On Monday nights through Aug. 18, anyone who wants to stretch and pose under the summer sky can participate, courtesy of the state Department of Conservation and Recreation.

The hourlong unwinding sessions were organized by Abigail Pick, a senior at New York University who got the idea in New York City, where classes were offered in parks.

"I just thought it was a great way to get people out and to see the city and the beautiful parks they can benefit from - not just from sitting there, but by doing something to help their health," said Pick, 21, a summer intern at the Department of Conservation and Recreation. "It's a beautiful sight at sunset, by the Hatch Shell.""

Garbage Cans Scarce on the Charles

William O'Neill points out how few garbage cans there are along the Charles:  "[O]nly three receptacles between the Museum of Science and the Mass Ave bridge."  And the garbage that people place into the phantom receptacles as in his picture above.

Oil Slick on the Charles

The source of an oil slick on the Charles near Longfellow Bridge is currently unknown.  Bad timing after Sunday's Charles River Swim to call attention to the river cleanup.

Charles River on Radio Boston

In more river news Radio Boston will be checking in on the new and improved Charles this weekend and you can participate by posting and geotagging your photos of the river in the Charles River Flickr pool

Charles River Swim

It's too late to jump in the water for Sunday's 1-mile Harvard Bridge - Longfellow Bridge loop but if you're afraid to put your toe into the Charles you can go and watch the racers show that the water is pretty clean.  Head over at 8 am to the River Dock (near Arthur Fiedler head statue by the Hatch Shell on Esplanade).  Don't be too late though.  They're hoping to be done in about 40 minutes.

Herring in the Charles

Mark Jaquith notes herring have returned to the Charles River to make their annual run.

"If you go down to the south coast of Cambridge these says you can see this year's herring run in progress. It looks the best run in several years. There aren't nearly as many fish as I used to see in the 1990's, and orders of magnitude below numbers seen before the river was dammed and polluted.

If you go to the dam just upstream from Watertown Square, you can see them trying to jump the dam and swimming up the fish ladder. It is a pretty cool sight. There are hundreds of fish below the dam trying to get over. You can see them trying to swim up Laundry Brook from the footbridge on the south bank. Also present are dozens of herring gulls and cormorants taking advantage of the traffic jam."

He also points to an interactive map of the current herring run (image above).

Wild City: coyotes, hawks, fishers, opossums

Nature continues to mingle with city dwellers with increasing coyote sightings in Cambridge and more unusually the weasel known as the fisher.

"John Maguranis, an animal control officer in neighboring Belmont, tracks coyotes by observing their paw prints and droppings, or scat. He believes that the coyotes seen in Cambridge are members of two main families that den throughout Belmont, Arlington, and Lexington as well. He says the animals' scat indicates they feed predominantly on rabbits and mice."
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"While raccoons are the most frequently sighted wild animal, Cambridge is also home to skunks, bats, and hawks. More elusive species spotted from time to time include possums and, most recently, fishers, members of the weasel family known as one of the porcupine's few natural predators." (Image Washington DFW)

Some of the best spots for seeing hawks are along the Charles and at Fresh Pond.

Discovering the lost waterways of Allston

Discovering the lost waterways of Allston.  Kate Bowditch and the Charles River Watershed Association are looking into whether restoring the Allston side of the Charles River to a more natural state, including exposing streams now buried under the city, could reduce flooding and other problems.

"Bowditch said her group's main goal is to figure out how the drainage systems in North Allston work and how to make them work better.

Using old maps of the area, some dating back as far as the mid-1800s, Bowditch and her colleagues have pinpointed several waterways that once drained the area.

One stream, which the group has named Allston Creek, formerly ran from near the Everett Street Interstate 90 overpass to the Charles, just north of the Western Avenue Bridge. Technically, Allston Creek is still there. It's just out of sight, running under North Allston in a series of branching pipes. Bowditch and her colleagues want to bring it back to the surface - to "daylight" it, she says - and break up the neighborhood's large tracts of concrete and asphalt with greenways, public parks, and trees."

An interesting idea that could help make the Allston side of the river more enjoyable.  It is fascinating to hear about the layers of history in the city but also the layers of the environment.  London's subterranean rivers are well-known but Boston's seem unknown.

Grindline to build skate park under the Zakim Bridge

Grindline to build skate park under the Zakim Bridge.  "Based in Washington, Grindline has a reputation for world-class skateparks and is well-known in the skater community. They have built parks in more than 30 states and are looking to expand worldwide." "The 40,000 sq foot park will be half-transition and half-streetscape elements, and will be the largest park Grindline has built."

The setting of the park looks to be pretty spectacular:

(Image:  Charles River Conservancy)

With plans afoot by the state to turn the Esplanade into a temporary road, preservationists are trying to get it landmark status

With plans afoot by the state to turn the Esplanade into a temporary road, preservationists and advocates are trying to get it landmark status.

"City landmark recognition is the highest status a park can receive in Boston, marking its significance both as a local treasure and a regional draw. To qualify, a building or location must have historical, social, cultural, architectural or aesthetic significance appreciated beyond Boston's borders.  Landmark designation would also give the city greater control over the Esplanade's future. Though it would not necessarily prohibit the detour, it would make the option unlikely, officials said."

Television coverage of the Pops on the Esplanade on the Fourth of July must contribute to widespread recognition.