Discover More from This Category: The Outside Story

Eastern white pine: the Northeast’s tallest conifer

February 10, 2021
By Tiffany Soukup Last summer I regularly passed a stand of towering white pine trees at Camp Plymouth State Park in Ludlow, where I live and work. Most days I saw at least one hairy woodpecker, a few blue jays, chickadees, a pair of broad-winged hawks, and a multitude of red squirrels around the trees.…

The hairy woodpecker: insect hunter extraordinaire

February 3, 2021
By Susan Shea A woodpecker frequently visits our feeder, alighting on the wooden supporting post and hopping up the post to the suet. Its medium size and striking markings – black wings spotted with white, a large white patch on the back, and a red spot on the back of the head – identify the…

How insects spend the winter

January 27, 2021
By Declan McCabe I consider the lack of biting insects and other invertebrates to be a wondrous gift of the winter season. I can wander unmolested through wood and field absent the attentions of mosquitoes, deer flies, and ticks. And aside from a short list of “usual suspects,” insects are a rarity to be encountered…

Owls are common and fascinating forest residents

January 20, 2021
By Lee Emmons On frigid winter evenings, the hooting of a barred owl (Strix varia) serves as a reminder that the darkened forests of the Northeast are still very much alive with activity. Owls’ nocturnal calling emanates from favorite forest haunts, including along lakeshores, swamps, and rivers. But the sound of an owl late at…

Wood turtles are rare (and threatened) beauties  

January 13, 2021
By Michael J. Caduto Last June, my wife Marie and I encountered a mature wood turtle while walking through a forest near our home. We admired the intricate topography of its shell, inspiration for this species’ scientific name: Glyptemys (“carved turtle”) insculpta (“sculpted”). The 9-inch adult had brownish-black skin and scarlet-orange patches on its neck…

Where are our summer birds?

January 6, 2021
By Susan Shea Mornings are quiet now. Gone is the loud chorus of bird song outside my window that I awoke to in spring and summer. While we brave the cold, snow, and bitter winds of winter by donning extra layers or throwing another log on the fire, most of our summer birds have departed…

Hair ice and frost flowers, ephemeral frozen forms abound

December 30, 2020
By Laurie D. Morrissey If you are out walking on an early winter morning, you might be lucky enough to see some of nature’s most beautiful and ephemeral sights: hair ice and frost flowers, both snow-white and delicate against the dull forest floor. Recently, a friend sent me a photo of hair ice, seemingly sprouting…

Common redpolls: Coming to a feeder near you? 

December 23, 2020
By Tyler Hoar As winter settles in, people watching their birdfeeders hope to catch a glimpse of something out of the ordinary – perhaps a visitor from the Far North. Nothing satisfies this desire like the bubbly and charismatic common redpoll. A member of the finch family, this small songbird is similar in size to…

Tufted Titmice flock to feeders

December 9, 2020
By Lee Emmons As winter approaches and snow coats the ground, the tufted titmouse (Baeolophus bicolor) will again become a ubiquitous backyard visitor. Familiar to even the most casual observers of nature, titmice readily come to feeders, especially those filled with sunflower seeds. Like many other birds that spend winters here, they seem to relish…

Mighty oaks of the Northeast

December 2, 2020
By Susan Shea Rat-a-tat-tat. Showers of acorns hit the ground and tapped our heads as my husband and I hiked the Appalachian Trail. Thousands of acorns strewn across the path atop multi-colored leaves made for treacherous passage. We were hiking a portion of the trail through the Berkshires, and the tall, straight red oaks that…

Life goes on in hollow trees

November 25, 2020
By Tami Gingrich I can’t seem to pass a hollow tree without stopping to snoop. If there is a cavity within reach, an investigation is in order. Wear and tear around a hole, evidence of food items on the ground, or simply sounds from within tell of the tenants inside. One of my favorite tricks…

The skinny on voles

November 18, 2020
By Susie Spikol Bent down in an apple field searching for a lost earring, I found a different treasure: a stout mouse-like animal, with a short tail and stubby ears. It gave me one quick look, then disappeared through a maze of tunnels in the thick autumn grass. I would have loved to follow this…

Life within the brush pile

November 11, 2020
By Lee Emmon For nearly a decade, I’ve been adding to a brush pile in the woods behind my home. A depository of pruned branches, dead flowers, discarded logs, old leaves, and an occasional Christmas tree, the pile is a decaying testament to seasons and chores long past. Over the years, the pile has settled…

Nothing barren about pine barrens

November 4, 2020
By Laurie D Morrisey Pine barrens are certainly piney – but they’re not the least bit barren. They were so named not because they lack life, but because colonists found them unsuitable for raising cattle or growing vegetable and grain crops. Left behind by the glaciers more than 10,000 years ago, pine barrens are characterized…

Fabulous Forest Fungi

October 28, 2020
By Susan Shea A walk in the woods during fall is likely to reveal an array of forest fungi. Ranging from delicate, tan mini-umbrellas to fleshy, white softballs to foot-long, orange-yellow shelves growing out of rotten logs, they come in a variety of colors, shapes, and sizes. Fungi are critical to the health of the…