Scientists and naturalists working on and near the Vineyard worry that recent reported sightings of great white sharks near the Island will feed fears that get ahead of the facts.

Naturalist Gus Ben David, shark expert Greg Skomal and oceanographer Anthony Wood downplayed the threat to humans from sharks.

Tonight’s full moon resides in the zodiacal constellation Sagittarius and has a companion. The bright planet Jupiter is nearby. The two are a handsome pair and shine together through the night in the southern sky. For those venturing to South Beach, the two celestial objects will hang together, making the water sparkle underneath.

Temperature: Precip.

Day Max. Min. Inches.

Fº Fº

July 11 84 60 .00

July 12 81 59 .00

July 13 82 66 .00

July 14 80 69 .00

July 15 84 65 .16

July 16 85 61 .00

July 17 84 61 .00

Water temperature in Edgartown harbor: 78º F.

Friday, July 11: Sunny and warm. Tiger lilies and daylilies are in full bloom in a Vineyard Haven backyard. The sky is deep blue in the morning. Hazy sunshine in the afternoon. In Edgartown, sailboats return from a day of sailing in the afternoon.

Saturday, July 12: Calm morning on Nantucket Sound. More than 30 boats sit idle off Chappaquiddick awaiting the start of a race around the Island. Blue skies overhead and blue water beneath. A puff of wind fills spinnakers at the start. Hot. Partly cloudy night.

Dragonfly Program

Odonates — better known as dragonflies and damselflies — are one of the most beautiful and interesting groups of insects.

Explore them in a program at Felix Neck Wildlife Sanctuary today, July 18, at 1 p.m.

In this program, Massachusetts Audubon regional scientist Robert Buchsbaum will go through the basics of dragonfly and damselfly life histories and identification.

The group will spend most of the time in the field at Felix Neck identifying odes.

By MARK ALAN LOVEWELL

The commercial striped bass season began this week with a whimper. The fishermen are out hunting for this highly prized fish, but their landings are off.

Striped bass are local and one of the few species that are plentiful and available at fish markets and restaurants to sell. Bluefish comes a close second as a local fish and are landed daily.