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What in the Woods is That?

Invasives ID

Many invasive woody plants in our area retain their leaves well into autumn, making this a good time to identify them for future control efforts. Can you name each of these six species?

It’s a Star, It’s a Flower, It’s a…What?

Reader Kirk Gentalen shared this photo, snapped in the woods of Mid-Coast Maine after a rainy day in early fall. What is this?

Spooky Find

While walking along a forest trail in Strafford, Vermont, we noticed these charred zombie fingers poking out of an old hardwood snag – and took a photo before making a run for it. What are these?

I Spy…Spiky Leaves?

Reader Mary Heide shared this photo of a maple leaf with “strange spikes sticking out of it,” which she found at her home in Taylor County, Wisconsin. What is happening here?

Monarch Mystery

We’ve been spotting some monarch butterflies lately as they sip nectar from late summer blooms. Can you tell if this one is a male or a female? How? And – for bonus points – how is the…

Oak Oddity

We found this oak twig, sporting a cluster of interesting growths, behind the Northern Woodlands office in Lyme, New Hampshire, last week. Those are definitely not acorns. What are they?

Malformed Mushroom Mystery

We’ve found many examples of this funky fungal form along trails this past week, ranging from pale orange to brick red in color, all having the basic mushroom cap and stem shape, but none…

Circle of…Life?

We spotted this moth on a tree in Concord, New Hampshire. What species is it? What is it doing? And what’s with the dead caterpillars nearby?

Funky Ferns

On a walk in the rain, we found this silk-wrapped package of Christmas fern frond leaflets. What created this fern ball? And what benefit does it provide?

Derrière Distinction

Despite those wildlife glamour shots we all love, the truth is that we often glimpse only the backside of a creature as it hurries out of sight. Here’s a posterior shot, taken near a garden…

Insect ID

We found this insect trundling across the parking lot at the Northern Woodlands office recently. What is it? (For extra credit, what’s that yellow stuff on its body?)

Sad Sapling

On a recent walk through a woodlot in Greensboro, Vermont, friends encountered a healthy patch of sugar maple seedlings, but one tree (left) appeared to be dying. Closer inspection showed…

Puzzling Plant

While out pulling invasive garlic mustard, we found what looks like a weird purple carrot sprouting from the leaf litter. What is this?

Shadow Stalking

This shadowy image appeared on a game camera placed in the Vermont woods. What is it?

Springing Forth!

We spotted these spring leaves emerging from the leaf litter beneath an apple tree in northern New Hampshire. What plant do they belong to?

Cone You Believe It?

While out walking in a wetland in Lyme, New Hampshire, we found a whole thicket of...pinecone bearing hardwood shrubs?!? What is going on in this photo?

A Mess in the Woods

We found these splintery wood chips scattered across the snow beneath a sugar maple in a Sugar Hill, New Hampshire, forest. What happened here?

Snow Walker

Even in early March, you can still sometimes find invertebrates crawling across the surface of deep snow. What is this little creature?

Holey Oak!

Reader Barbara Strell sent in this photo of a series of holes punched into the bottom of an oak tree in New Hampshire. What happened here?

Who Walked This Way?

We discovered these tracks in a snowy field next to a shed in central Vermont. Who left these prints?