Go figure: how tree burls grow By Joe Rankin I’ve had my eye on this maple in my woods for some time. Not because it’s a beautiful timber tree. It’s only about eight inches in diameter, after all. But it […]
Tag: the outside story
The Outside Story
The Outside Story
Vernal pools: Hatch, grow and get out By Barbara Mackay Three things happened this week: bluebirds and tree swallows returned, my road was graded, and the red maple buds popped. It’s time to search for vernal pools. Vernal pools are […]
The Outside Story
The Outside Story
Fish go with the flow By Tim Traver There are times when fish appear telepathic. Consider the uncanny way a school of bait fish moves as one to avoid a predator, or the way goldfish in their lighted bowl turn […]
The Outside Story
The Outside Story
Tasty teas (and more) from trees: black and yellow birch By Russ Cohen Scratch and then sniff a black or yellow birch twig, and the pleasant aroma will likely put a smile on your face. What you are smelling is […]
The Outside Story
The Outside Story: From winter to spring in a bear cub’s den
By Barbara Mackay The transition from February to March is not subtle. With hardly time to recover from a truncated month, we attend Town Meeting, cede an hour to our clocks, and navigate spontaneously erupting frost heaves. The forest is […]
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The Outside Story: Sneaky ducks and scrambled eggs
By Carolyn Lorié If you peek into a wood duck nesting box during the breeding cycle, you might find 10 to 11 eggs, which is the bird’s normal clutch size. But you might also stumble upon a box overflowing with […]
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The Outside Story: When nature comes knocking
By Michael Caduto We two-leggeds build inviting habitats and fill them with ample food supplies. We heat these spaces in winter, cool them in summer, and keep them dry year-round. And when our wild neighbors have the audacity to move […]
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The Outside Story
Blobs on ice: Jelly fungi add color to winter landscape By Joe Rankin They look like blobs of shiny tar, a melted lollipop, or a crayon left in the sun too long. They come in vivid colors from orange to […]
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The Outside Story: Red squirrels, “Keep your mitts off my midden!”
By Meghan McCarthy McPhaul In the woods behind our house, there’s a pile of cones and gnawed-apart bracts–easily two feet deep and twice as wide–built against the trunk of a tall hemlock. Over consecutive winters–when the newly discarded bracts stand […]
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The Outside Story: trees and ice
By Joe Rankin Ice storm. If you live in northern New England, those words can send a chill up your spine. They portend demolition derbies on the roads, power outages and the ominous cracking sound of limbs breaking and trees […]