The Outside Story

It occurred to me recently, after spotting a white-feathered American robin scampering along a dirt road, normal-colored robins alongside him, that in all my years of observing wildlife and…

Those of us who enjoy forestry and baseball get a kick out of watching professional ballplayers stride to bat holding little pieces of the northern forest in their hands, though if…

Some ground beetles are big and beautiful: shiny black or iridescent green or bluish. And because many of them are unable or reluctant to fly, they are easily caught; you can get a good long…

Route 113 at twilight. The sun’s last gasp now just a smear in the western sky. Early stars over a stripe of asphalt that’s meandering down into Chelsea. My truck upon that road.…

To the naked eye, Venus is one of the most easily identified planets. It’s the bright evening (and morning) star that you often see plopped in the sky blazing brilliantly next to the…

Many years ago, a friend and fellow naturalist encouraged me to raise cecropia moths as a way of increasing the local population, which had become scarce around my home in southern…

In Leicester, Vermont, up a rutted driveway off Route 7, Kevin New cobbled together a sugarhouse out of an old goat barn and plywood. He boiled a lot of sap this spring, long after most…

Have you noticed a few more wisps of gray of late? An ache in your joints? Crow’s feet clawing around the corners of your eyes? If so, you’re well on your way to becoming a victim…

Hikers in the mountains of the Northeast spend most of their time in the forest, emerging above the timberline for the occasional long view, then plunging back again into the greenery. The…

If you’re one of the 10 to 20 percent of the population who’s afflicted with seasonal allergies, you know that spring is in the air – literally. While the itchy eyes and…

An encounter with fairy shrimp is one of the great joys of visiting a woodland vernal pool. These small, shrimp-like crustaceans are as ephemeral as some orchids – appearing in…

Rugged overthrust ridges, deep shady valleys, mysterious caves, lush forests, buried rivers, and barren wastelands. Weird, wonderful, and sometimes sinister creatures prowl the land, lie in…

In case you missed it, there’s a natural gas explosion going on around us, not of the smoke and flames variety but rather of exploration and discovery. Enough natural gas has recently…

Whether we see them slinking silently through the shadows of a quiet forest, darting across the road, or standing alone in a yellowed field, the sight of a whitetail buck touches some ancient…

The onset of spring brings many changes to our part of the world. The longer days and higher temperatures entice plants to emerge and trees to bud. On our lakes, the ice begins to melt. We…

This past winter is on pace to have one of the lowest snowfall totals in 100 years – just as last year’s snowfall total was one of the highest ever recorded. A winter with so little…

Although weasel species tend to look alike, with low-slung bodies, sleek heads, and long tails, the marten stands out. They’re thoroughly mid-sized – considerably larger than mink and…

Back in January, taking advantage of the lack of snow, I was out hiking with a friend along a steep hillside not far from my house. Usually this hillside is too slippery for wintertime travel,…

Most of us have been at least annoyed, if not infuriated, by porcupines from time to time. Their desperate need for salt in the summer months gets them in big trouble around the house. They…

Ah, to be in the woods on a winter bluebird day. Crisp, clear, and cold, with an unimpeded view to the cloudless sky above. The sun has lifted itself out of the December doldrums and it now…