By Susan Shea As spring warms the water, a turtle, covered by leaves and mud at the bottom of a wetland where she hibernated for the winter, awakens. Emerging from the water, she basks on shore. The sun illuminates her […]
Category: The Outside Story
Column, The Outside Story
The elusive southern bog lemming
By Tiffany Soukup Distinctive features differentiates this rodent If you’ve never seen – or heard of – the southern bog lemming, you’re not alone. Although this small mammal scurries through our landscape year-round, it is elusive by nature. So elusive, […]
Column, The Outside Story
The slime on slugs
By Susie Spikol Gardening at night has its rewards. For me, it offers a way to stay on top of planting and weeding while balancing work and family responsibilities. It is also cooler at night, and the quiet act of […]
Column, The Outside Story
Yellowthroats: little masked bandits
By Susan Shea “Witchity, witchity, witchity.” I know that common yellowthroats have returned to my neighborhood in spring when I hear that distinctive song. With luck, I’ll glimpse the striking male as he darts about the shrubbery. The common yellowthroat […]
Local News, The Outside Story
Little loudmouths: How tiny animals make so much noise
From early spring through late summer, the air trills and croaks and buzzes and chirps with the sounds of nature’s little loudmouths. Mornings are full of birdsong; evenings are the domain of frogs and crickets. How do such little animals […]
Column, The Outside Story
Sunbathing serves a double purpose for some birds
By Laurie D. Morrissey One cold spring morning, a turkey vulture soared across the sky and landed high in a tree behind my house. I soon noticed another vulture, most likely its mate, in a nearby oak. This one was […]
Column, The Outside Story
Striped maple provides food, shelter in understory
By Susan Shea Beneath the forest canopy, or overstory, of towering trees is a second layer of vegetation known as the understory. It is composed of shrubs, saplings, and understory trees that grow in the dappled shade of the overstory. […]
Column, The Outside Story
Healthy Vermont forests benefit stream salamanders
By Steve Faccio The life cycles of the three species of stream salamanders native to New England – northern two-lined, northern dusky, and spring – are closely tied to the small streams where they are found. All three species belong […]
Column, The Outside Story
Bloodroot — An early bloomer
By Meghan McCarthy McPhaul Every spring, after the last of winter’s snow has completely melted and as I start the wonderful, dirty work of turning the soil of my vegetable beds, I find myself gazing often to the just-greening-up ground […]
Column, The Outside Story
Birds nest using lichen as camouflage
By Rachel Sargent Mirus Birds use a wonderful variety of materials and techniques to create their nests. Some nests are small and tidy, like grass baskets lined with cozy feathers. Others are large and messily blobbed with mud. Some species […]