Maine

Maine adds 3 species to ‘special concern’ list

Published

2 years ago

December 6, 2024

Maine adds 3 species to ‘special concern’ list

The state added three species of flower flies to its “special concern” list.

The special concern list puts people on notice that the species may be on the decline, and scientists monitor it and the known areas where it lives for signs that it needs to be moved to the state’s endangered and threatened species list.

The Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife Advisory Council approved the designations Wednesday to increase the protection of the hourglass drone fly, the Slosson’s pond fly and the Holarctic bristleside fly to special concern. The next step would be endangered species.

Flower flies, also referred to as hover flies, can be found in vegetable gardens as adults. Two species have a larval stage that depends on water, so are found in peat bogs and other wet habitats. The larvae are filter feeders, according to Alex Fish, a biologist specializing in endangered and threatened species with the MDIF&W.

At last count in 2023, Maine had 57 species on its endangered species list.

It is illegal to kill wildlife that is on the endangered species list, and can result in a fine of no less than $1,000 if caught, but those on the special concern list do not have the same protections or fines associated with them.

The advisory council’s action also adjusted its lists to reflect the addition of eight species, including five birds, a bumblebee, a bat and a beetle to the Maine Endangered Species list last year, and eliminated the salt marsh or margined tiger beetle from its special concern list.

Scientists found that the margined tiger beetle, which was put on the endangered and threatened species list last year, gets blown here on the wind from the south, but does not breed in the state, therefore is not considered a Maine species, Fish said.

The beetle is found where sand dunes and salt marsh meet in just a few sites in Maine, he said. The beetle was removed from the state’s list.

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Maine

Maine’s 10 most expensive home sales from June

Published

5 hours ago

July 8, 2026

Press Room

Maine’s 10 most expensive home sales from June

A nearly $7 million home on the coast of Kennebunk topped out as the most expensive home to sell in Maine last month.

We assembled a list of the top 10 most expensive residential properties in Maine that changed hands in June. The information comes from state transfer tax documents that are available to the public online.

While Maine’s most expensive residential property sales last month all surpassed $3 million and averaged nearly $5 million, they are not as pricey as some of the commercial real estate transactions from the same time frame.

The Press Hotel in downtown Portland, for example, sold for just under $58 million, making it the state’s most expansive property sale from last month.

— Scott Edmunds, Trustee of The Oyster Shell Real, bought 7 Shoreline Way in Kennebunk from Evergreen/Kennebunk Realty LLC for $6.9 million on June 30.

— Rebecca and Eric Deschambault bought 49 Rising Tide Lane in Freeport from Daniel and Lauren Mills for $6.7 million on June 1.

— Sea Rose Holdings LLC bought 488 Main St. in Ogunquit from John Brennan for $6.3 million on June 30.

— Set Family Investments LLC bought 9 Starboard Lane in York from The Richard Jackson Sr. 2023 Trust for $5.2 million on June 8.

— Suzanne and Christopher Hendriksen bought 904 Kings Highway in Kennebunkport from The Anchorage LLC for $4.5 million on June 15.

— The 149 Lighthouse Road Trust bought 149 Lighthouse Road in Bridgton from The William P. Boardman Irrevocable Trust for $4.2 million on June 30.

— Kevin Devaney and Melissa Croatti bought 7 Nubble Point in York from Jennifer and Andrew Amorosi for $3.5 million on June 18.

— Melanie and David Cox bought 909 Princes Point Road in Yarmouth from Thomas Harden for $3.4 million on June 18.

— The BH Family Trust bought 75 Scenic View Drive in Naples from the Denis R. Landrey and Cathleen Landry Revocable Trust for $3.4 million on June 26.

— April and Joshua Lafrance and Gail Marie Sasseville bought 93 Governors Point Road in Harpswell from Donna B. Barmore for $3.1 million on June 17.

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Maine

Leslie Marshall urges Democrat Graham Plattner to exit Maine Senate race amid allegations | Fox News Video

Published

16 hours ago

July 7, 2026

Press Room

Leslie Marshall urges Democrat Graham Plattner to exit Maine Senate race amid allegations | Fox News Video

Fox News contributor Leslie Marshall shares her personal experience as a rape survivor, stating her belief in women as Democratic Senate candidate Graham Platner faces allegations.

Fox News contributor Leslie Marshall expresses her belief in women as Democratic Senate candidate Graham Platner faces rape accusations. Marshall criticizes the Democratic Party for applying a ‘political litmus test’ to sexual assault allegations, emphasizing that physical abuse should not be overlooked based on political affiliation or timing.

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Maine

PACs should ease up on the political propaganda in Maine | Letter

Published

1 day ago

July 7, 2026

Press Room

PACs should ease up on the political propaganda in Maine | Letter

Maine folks are being harassed with political ads. We are all sick and tired of the mostly mean-spirited rhetoric appearing constantly in ads, mail and by phone from traditional and super PACS, dousing us with propaganda.

Trust me when I say that we are well aware of how our representatives serve Maine. Their actions or inactions speak volumes.

Here is an impressive action that should be implemented. Make it mandatory that all out-of-state campaign spenders, who throw obscene amounts of money on political ads regarding Maine candidates, hence disturbing our peace and privacy, must spend the equal amount directly on the people of Maine, who are literally struggling with various affordability crises (too many to list, but felt daily).

Money is no object during an election year, when they want our full attention. If they invested in Maine folks, instead of bombarding us with ads that we ideally tune out, that might get our attention. We are witness to millions of dollars being thrown at ads, as Maine struggles. And that is all we notice.

Christine Hoyt
Rumford

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