Discoveries

Wooden tires went out of style a century ago, along with buggy whips and horse-drawn wagons, but if an Oregon State University researcher has anything to say about it, a modern relative of the…

When Colgate University biologist Tim McCay began studying the impact of acid rain on soils and forest-dwelling animals in the Adirondacks, he started by heading into the forest and counting…

When scientists and students from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology hammered a nail into a tree on campus and wired it to a metal rod in the ground, they confirmed Internet reports…

Like Hagenbuch, Laurie Richmond was interested in learning more about the impact that forestry practices have on wildlife. Earlier research had shown that forest harvesting can cause…

A considerable amount of research has been conducted about the impact of timber management on bird habitat, but few if any scientific studies have examined how management for non-timber forest…

Manipulating ecosystems to affect biodiversity and examine species interactions can be an overwhelming challenge, especially when trying to understand complete food webs. Unless, that is, the…

In areas where even a light controlled burn can be dangerous to surrounding communities, forestry officials at the Montague Plains Wildlife Management Area in west-central Massachusetts is one…

When it comes to fires, forest management practices across the U.S. have evolved considerably in recent decades, from complete fire suppression in all forests to the realization that fire…

The United States has been under assault for decades by a wide variety of alien plants and animals, and it is not often that one of these aliens faces a counterpunch. But in a collaborative…

On December 11 and 12, 2008, a major ice storm coated trees in New England and upstate New York with layers of limb-snapping ice. While official tree damage estimates have yet to be released,…

Next time you’re watching your favorite backyard squirrel, think about this: she may be watching you, too. Scientists have discovered that gray squirrels deliberately mislead onlookers…

Scientists have long known that high concentrations of pesticides can be toxic to frogs, toads, and salamanders. What is less well known is the effect of low, repeated doses of pesticides on…

Would you choose to eat in a restaurant based solely on the cool jazz wafting out the windows and the hip name over the doorway? Or would you instead make a reservation based on reviews, a…

The plight of bees has been a hot news topic over the past few years. Scientists are still exploring a number of theories to explain why pollinator populations are crashing; it could be…

When temperatures linger around 60 degrees, most people reach for light jackets or flannel shirts; conversely, when the mercury hits 80, we don shorts and short sleeves. Seventy degrees? Well…

There’s no shortage of studies about the effects of timber harvesting on amphibians. And there’s not much discrepancy between studies: generally, the heavier the cut, the fewer frogs,…

When a plant or animal is moved from its native homeland to a new territory, and it thrives to the detriment of native plants and animals in that territory, it’s known as an invasive…

Kermit the Frog once sang, “It’s not easy bein’ green.” His melancholy was well placed. It is not a good time to be a frog: the world over, frogs and other amphibians…

Acid rain leaches calcium and other nutrients from forest ecosystems. In places where soil calcium levels are naturally low, where acid rain inputs are high, or especially where both these…

Tree bark can act as a record of all sorts of events: lightning, fire, mechanical scrapes, and even the brief spark of youthful passion, carved with pocketknife, complete with heart, arrow,…