For the past several years, we’ve included a multiple choice quiz as part of our nonprofit’s autumn fundraising appeal, posing questions that are based on recent articles in Northern Woodlands magazine, The Outside Story essays, or on-line content. Part of the fun of putting together this quiz, is coming up with believable wrong answers, as well as a few goofy ones (this year, we included references to forest gnomes).
From this year’s batch of correctly answered quizzes, we’ve randomly selected two winners. Congratulations to Lynn Sheldon and returning champion Judie Nelson! Each will receive three gift subscriptions to share with friends.
And thank you to everyone who participated in the quiz, and/or made a gift this autumn to support our work. If you’d like to make a donation today, here’s a link!
Below is a list of correct answers, with references to the articles and other content that inspired them.
1. The phrase “passing the buck” most likely derives from (a) a derogatory term for an unskilled hunter (b) an 18th-century term from the Danish textile industry (c) poker slang (d) an early colonial form of compensation for crop damage, paid in deer hides
(c). The phrase “passing the buck” most likely derives from poker slang. As Laurie D. Morrissey noted in her Autumn 2020 column, “an object such as a buckhorn-handled knife was thrown into the jackpot and temporarily taken by the winner of the pot. Or it might be passed around to indicate whose turn it was to deal. If the receiver refused to deal, he passed the object to the player at his side.”
2. What do blue jays eat? (a) tree frogs (b) carrion (c) seeds (d) rodents (e) all of the above
(e). Blue jays aren’t picky eaters. These highly adaptable birds, members of the corvid family, will consume tree frogs, carrion, seeds and small rodents. To learn more about the birds’ eating habits and other behavior, see this Outside Story essay by Lee Emmons.
3. Which of these tree species is less well-suited for cross-laminated timber? (a) balsam fir (b) eastern white pine (c) red spruce (d) white spruce
(b). As noted in this article by Catherine Schmitt, part of our 2019-2020 Resilient Forest series, “red and white spruce and balsam fir, especially, are well-suited for CLT.” Eastern white pine may be a future contender for cross-laminated timber, but as noted in the article, it isn’t as stiff or strong as the other three listed species
4. Brett McLeod describes Spiller axes as, “soft enough to file but hard enough to hold an edge, even in frozen wood.” What was a brand name for one of these popular axes? (a) Biltmore Biter (b) Chopper’s Choice (c) Frosty the Forester (d) McLeod Maul (e) Winter Wasp
(b). Chopper’s Choice is the name of an actual brand of Spiller axe. We had fun making up faux brand names, although we were disappointed that few of you opted for, “Frosty the Forester.” This quiz question was inspired by the Summer 2020 excerpt of Brett McLeod’s book, American Axe (available via our online shop).
5. When newt larvae smell dragonfly larvae, they (a) reduce their activity and hide (b) emit a masking scent that makes the dragonfly larvae mistake them for fish (c) go into a feeding frenzy (d) shoot tiny jets of neurotoxin from their spots (e) don’t react because newt larvae can’t smell
(a). When newt larvae smell dragonfly larvae, “they reduce their activity and hide by sitting at the bottom of a pond until they don’t smell that dragonfly anymore.” So noted Brian Gall, a biology professor at Hanover College, who was quoted by Todd McLeish in the Autumn 2020 Discoveries column. Gall recently conducted a series of laboratory experiments to study whether common green darner larvae prey on eastern newts, and how newts avoid predation.
6. How can you promote old-growth characteristics in a forest? (a) girdle some trees to create more snags (b) use harvest techniques that enhance complexity (c) topple trees to create tip-up mounds (d) recruit a benevolent family of gnomes (e) a, b and c
(e). As noted in this Spring 2020 interview with Bill Keeton, a professor at the University of Vermont’s Rubenstein School and leading authority on old-growth forests, there are a number of ways to promote old-growth characteristics in younger forests. These include girdling some trees to create more snags, using harvest techniques that enhance complexity, and toppling trees to simulate storm-created tip-up mounds. Alas, recruiting “a benevolent family of gnomes” is not recommended.
7. What’s a hookaroon? (a) an evil water spirit, thought to haunt log drives (b) an old Catskills term for a chipmunk (c) a “dance” symptomatic of ruminants infected with brain worm (d) a log handling tool (e) 19th-century slang for a fishing guide
(d). A hookaroon in not an evil water spirit, old Catskills term for a chipmunk, 19th slang for a fishing guide or “dance” symptomatic of ruminants infected with brain worm. It’s the name of a log handling tool. Check out Brett McLeod’s Summer 2020 “Tricks of the Trade” column for details.
8. How many rays (tentacle-like appendages) are on a star-nosed mole’s nose? (a) 5 (b) 16 (c) 20 (d) 22
(d). As noted by Susie Spikol in this Outside Story essay, the nose of the star-nosed mole has “22 fleshy tentacle-like appendages.”
9. Who said, “I think I’ll get another five years out of me. So we’re on the same rotation.” (a) Ruth Smith, referring to a butternut tree (b) Lou Wickham, referring to his forester (c) Art Krueger, referring to his horse (d) Rena Wellford, referring to her hiking boots
(c). “I think I’ll get another five years out of me. So we’re on the same rotation.” So said Art Krueger, referring to his horse Teddy in this Community Voices interview, an ongoing on-line series available via our website and email newsletter.
10. What creates those odd little balls at the tops of some ferns? (a) a benevolent family of gnomes (b) deer spit (c) moth larvae (d) late frost (e) a malevolent family of gnomes
(c). Those odd little balls at the tops of some ferns are the work of moth larvae from the genus Herpetogramma. You can see an image, and learn more about fern balls, by checking out this link to the Fourth Week of June entry in our 2020-2021 on-line phenology series, This Week in the Woods.