Knots and Bolts

Oak wilt has killed millions of trees in 24 states throughout the Midwest and south to Texas and is – slowly, for now – spreading into the Northeast. Scientists first described…

Ambush bugs have sufficient cold tolerance to remain active late into the season, until hard frosts occur. As their name suggests, these insects sit motionless on plants, waiting for prey such…

White-barked birches never fail to captivate our attention. We are acquainted with innumerable images of a blindingly white birch among some stark winter scene or a stand of snow-white trunks…

As Peter Grima notes in his profile of heartleaf birch in Northern Woodlands Autumn 2024 edition, one of the easiest ways to distinguish this species from paper birch and gray birch is by…

August ushers in the season of satiety, an interval of repose. Botanically speaking, it is what I refer to as the “Lammas-time lull,” a dip in the calendar of bloom when the plant…

If there is an amphibian that is a master of disguise, it has to be the gray treefrog (Hyla versicolor). The adults of this species are capable of changing color (gray, green, or brown) to…

A couple of years ago, I joined colleagues from University of Rhode Island and the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management for a day of fieldwork studying brook trout (Salvelinus…

The Summer 2024 issue of Northern Woodlands includes an article by Michael Freeman, describing efforts to reduce the impacts of invasive phragmites (also called common reed), an especially…

In 2004, foresters Laura French and Jeremy Turner connected at a Forest Stewards Guild meeting in Orono, Maine. Turner asked French if she’d like to join him on a hike in the woods.…

The Summer 2024 issue of Northern Woodlands includes an article by Rebecca Perkins Hanissian describing efforts by Laura French and Jeremy Turner to enhance their 240 acres of forestland and…

April 2024 presents an opportunity to experience two rare and spectacular astronomical sightings in northern New England. A total solar eclipse will occur for the first time in our region…

“If I was queen for a day, there wouldn’t be separation of terrestrial and wetland conservation,” said University of Maine’s Aram Calhoun, a dogged vernal pool advocate…

As the year turns toward spring, some of the earliest flowers on the landscape are pussy willows (Salix discolor). These fuzzy catkins are a happy sight, but more important, as a designer of…

There’s a new invasive in the Northeast, with the potential to spread rapidly in fields and forest clearings. Mile-a-minute weed (Persicaria perfoliata) is an annual vine that lives up…

In the Northeast, if you don’t live on the coast or in one of a few inland locations where double-crested cormorants breed, you will probably only see these large birds as they pass…

For such a tiny creature, hemlock woolly adelgid (HWA) can cause a remarkable amount of devastation. This non-native, aphidlike insect sucks the nutrients out of hemlock trees, and –…

The horned lark (Eremophila alpestris), so named for its tiny feather tufts resembling miniature devil horns, is the only true lark species native to North America. These birds nest on…

At Hoffman Evergreen Preserve in Stonington, Connecticut, southern trees are growing in forest clearings. Where dense stands of hemlock once shadowed the ground, the terminal buds of loblolly…

There is nothing that can match the feeling of being on a mountain summit, standing on what seems like the top of the world. Here – with peaks and valleys stretching into forever –…

For an owl, choosing the perfect place to nest is a balancing act. It’s not just about finding a hole in a tree or the side of a barn. The entry must be big enough to let the owl and its…