Discover More from This Category: The Outside Story

Downy woodpeckers are well adapted to winter

January 26, 2022
By Lee Emmons On winter mornings, I often venture outside to photograph the assembly of birds that visit the feeders in my front yard. One of the regular visitors is the diminutive downy woodpecker, which clings to my peanut feeder, takes a nibble of suet, or forages in the nearby maple trees. Fairly comfortable with…

Fungi may kill winter ticks, and help moose survive

January 19, 2022
By Rachel Sargent Mirus Legend says a stake through the heart will kill a vampire. But it’s a bit more complicated if you’re plagued – as moose can be – by tens of thousands of tiny blood-suckers. In the case of moose, the vampires are winter ticks (Dermacentor albipictus), and finding a way to stake…

Snowy owls erupt in number

January 12, 2022
By Meghan McCarthy McPhaul Here’s a quiz for Harry Potter fans: What kind of owl played Hedwig in the movies? If you guessed a snowy owl, you’re correct. With their bright yellow eyes, bulky-looking bodies, and white feathers that cover everything from their beaks to their large feet, these owls strike an impressive pose. And…

Winter larder: The underground caches of moles and shrews

January 5, 2022
By Tiffany Soukup In November, I was making soup to stock the freezer when I looked out my kitchen window and spotted a red squirrel rustling through the leaves in search of acorns. Both of us were preparing for harder days ahead — me for an upcoming hip replacement surgery, the squirrel for the approaching…

Get to know the junco

December 29, 2021
By Susan Shea Most winters, the dark-eyed junco is one of the most common birds at my feeder. While I rarely see juncos in summer, except when hiking in the mountains, small flocks of juncos typically appear soon after I hang my feeder in early December. Due to their sudden appearance in winter, John James…

Lichen colors offer protection

December 22, 2021
By Rachel Sargent Mirus As I stroll through the cemetery near my home on a snowy day, splashes of golden orange, bright as daylilies in July, pop from the gray stones. These patches are elegant sunburst lichens, which provide a vibrant example of just how colorful lichens can be. Lichens come in a wonderful range…

How to preserve a snowflake

December 15, 2021
By Frank Kaczmarek Wilson Bentley (1865-1931) lived his entire life in Jericho, Vermont, where he developed a passion for snowflakes at an early age. He started by collecting snowflakes and trying to create detailed drawings of each one, but the snow crystals’ tiny size and the speed at which they melted made this a futile…

Balsam fir is a favorite Christmas tree

December 8, 2021
By Susan Shea Every year my husband and I cut a Christmas tree on family land. We look for a young balsam fir growing in the power line right-of-way or in a forest clearing. Fir is our favorite type of Christmas tree because of its delightful, pungent fragrance. While Christmas tree farmers cultivate a variety…

How to provide shelter for birds

December 1, 2021
By Lee Emmons Come winter, after the bears have retreated to their cold weather dens, many backyard bird enthusiasts hang feeders to attract — and nourish — avian visitors. Birds need more than a supplemental food source, however. Whether they are roosting, feeding, selecting a nest location, or flying from one grove of trees to…

Woodland jumping mice are truffle specialists

November 24, 2021
Circulating spores far and wide By Susie Spikol “Shhh,” I tell my 5-year-old son, “there are animals sleeping, right under our feet.” He presses his ear against the frozen ground, hoping to hear the slow, sleepy breath of a snoozing mammal. I tell him that if he could pull back the earth like a blanket…

It takes gall(s) to make this ink

November 17, 2021
By Frank Kaczmarek What do the following items have in common: the Declaration of Independence, Da Vinci’s notebooks, Bach’s musical scores, Rembrandt’s drawings, Shakespeare’s plays, and the Magna Carta? Give up? These examples, along with countless other documents ranging from the historically important to the more mundane, were all recorded using iron gall ink, which…

Decomposing into the rainbow

November 10, 2021
By Rachel Sargent Mirus As we stroll down a forest trail, we pass trees of all types and sizes, with red and orange and brown leaves strewn below, a riot of ferns fading to yellow, and intermittent moss-covered rocks. Amongst this profusion of forest growth are stumps and fallen logs: what will become new soil…

Bats prepare for winter

November 3, 2021
By Susan Shea Years ago, I visited two Vermont caves in winter to help biologists count hibernating bats. After descending through a hole into the first cave, I immediately noticed that it was much warmer than above-ground. The cave was also more humid, and I could hear the steady drip of water. We walked quietly…

Fungi and fairy rings appear

October 27, 2021
By Frank Kaczmarek My German mother was a highly superstitious soul, especially when it came to the natural world. Case in point, one day a “fairy ring” of mushrooms appeared in our yard. My mother became agitated and told me not to disturb the ring, for it was a “hexenringe” — a place, she believed,…

American eels on the move in autumn

October 20, 2021
By Catherine Schmitt Fall’s cooling temperatures signal many changes. Among the least visible, but most incredible, is the migration of the American eel. Somewhere right now, at the bottom of a lake, pond, or river, an American eel is preparing to leave the home she has known for three, 13, or maybe even 30 years.…