Environment

Photos: Embracing Beauty of Winter at Arnold Arboretum

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I try to keep my voice down when I speak of my love for winter. I’ve learned that almost no one wants to hear it. Yet at Harvard’s Arnold Arboretum, I fall in love with this stark but lovely season once again. It’s November on my first visit — everything is shades of brown and the sky is nearly entirely gray. Standing halfway up Peters Hill, the only sound is a nearby rustling in the bushes, then silence, then cawing overhead, then silence.

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Animals

Video: Opossum, Fox, Raccoon, and More, Caught By JP Resident’s Backyard Cam

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The other week we shared photos from a Jamaica Plain resident's trail cam by their compost pile. This week we bring you more photos and a video from a different local's backyard cam -- and check out the wildlife who ambled by. "This year, my plan was to have the surveillance cameras in place to watch the birds this winter near the feeders. Instead of waiting," emailed Steve M. to Jamaica Plain News. "I installed the cameras earlier this summer, because a baby rabbit had taken up residence in my yard, who I wanted to keep an eye on.  One night a fox appeared and chased the little bunny, but the bunny escaped and I could see the fox walk away empty-handed (so-to-speak)."

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Animals

JP Resident Set Up Trail Cam By Compost — See Who Stopped By!

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Jamaica Plain resident Judith Gibson-Okunieff had a camera laying around and thought why not set it up outside to see what wildlife is in her backyard. "I put the trail camera by the compost pile because I figured there would be some interest from the squirrels and I wanted to see how they interacted with it," said Gibson-Okunieff to JP News. "Before putting it down, I had seen squirrels running away from it whenever I got close to it but I hadn't seen any of the other animals I caught on camera. The blue jay and cardinal were a lucky catch. I was surprised at how much the rabbit liked the pile because it kept returning to it.

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Animals
The White Squirrel of Jamaica Pond, circa August 2007

Video: White Squirrel Spotted at Jamaica Pond

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In Jamaica Plain we love our white squirrels! Recently another one of the rare rodents was seen at their favorite local haunt of Jamaica Pond. Cari Brennen took this video of a white squirrel at Jamaica Pond in November 2019 and shared it with Jamaica Plain News. Through the years there have been a concentration of white squirrels seen at Jamaica Pond and in Boston Common. The white squirrel is usually a morph of an Eastern Grey Squirrel, according to untamedscience.com.

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From the Community

17 Chihuahuas Taken From JP Home, Up for Adoption at MSPCA-Angell in Boston and Cape Cod

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On the heels of last week’s surrender of 45 Ragdoll cats -- the MSPCA-Angell’s largest single-home cat surrender in five years -- the organization is now the temporary home of 17 Chihuahuas taken from a Jamaica Plain home after their families were forced to leave, the MSPCA announced Wednesday. The dogs, six males and 11 females, range in age from one to four. They are described as very active and in good health, but not without their challenges. “Our sense is that these dogs may never have left the apartments in which they lived and, as a result, will need time to learn how to walk on a leash, obey some basic commands and so on,” said Anna Rafferty-Arnold, associate director of the MSPCA’s Boston adoption center. “But we’re committed to working with them -- and their new owners -- to ensure they become excellent canine citizens,” she added.

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