There is good news on the Vineyard waterfront for those who love to eat fresh-caught fish. This summer, for the first time in many years, black sea bass will be available in restaurants and fish markets. Sea bass are abundant in surrounding waters, a commercial quota system in place has meant that the quota would be landed early in the fishing season.

A barely-visible comet is now appearing low in the western sky shortly after sunset.

On Saturday, March 9, the partnership of the Vineyard Conservation Society and the MV Film Society will host its next Green on Screen event, a series of films that explore and bring attention to environmental issues. This time; everything you ever wanted to know about biophilic design but were afraid to ask.

Two Vineyard institutions, the Vineyard Gazette and The Nature Conservancy (TNC), have announced a new partnership to advance an innovative approach to the Island’s environmental challenges. A new section on the Gazette website (mvgazette.com/nature-conservancy) will introduce Gazette readers to the principles and techniques of TNC’s Vineyard Habitat Network, which pairs TNC know-how with the energy and resources of conservation-minded Islanders.

Launched in 2011, the Habitat Network is free to participants and involves no obligations.

Spruce it up. That is what Islanders did when they planted spruce trees in their yards. Fairly common on the Island, spruce found its way here because of its usefulness and beauty. These conifers prefer more northern climes, thriving in boreal forests.

The question was, “How do you find places to bird watch and stay when you are traveling in the Bird Buggy?” It has been a challenge at times, but mainly a combination of word of mouth, internet research and dumb luck. Vineyard birders Tom Rivers and Lanny McDowell loaned us books entitled How to Find Birds in: Arizona, Texas and Southern California which give specific details on where to locate good birding areas in those states and also how to find information on the latest sightings in an area.