In the Spring 2022 issue, we tackled the task of removing a broken axe handle from the eye of an axe or maul. Now we’ll begin the process of hanging (or hafting) the axe. 1. Fit the eye. The eye…

While I was photographing pollinators on a patch of meadow near a bike path, a bumblebee caught my attention. It appeared to have an enormous, clubbed antenna, as well as a normal-size one. Closer…

Earlier this summer, I joined graduate school friend and beetle biologist, Kristian Omland, in search of the elusive cobblestone tiger beetle (Cicindela marginipennis). We loaded a canoe with insect…

This poofy white ball was spotted in northern New Hampshire by reader Sandy Dannis. What is this?

A self-proclaimed “tree geek,” Joanne Garton is the technical assistance coordinator for Vermont Urban & Community Forestry, a role that has her traveling the state to collaborate with…

Several years ago, I was awakened nearly every day of late spring by a recurring – and very loud – bird sound. I say “sound,” rather than “song” because this…

Some things are so familiar, so common, that they are often overlooked. Such is the case with northern white-cedar (Thuja occidentalis). Also known as eastern white-cedar, this tree grows throughout…

We took this photo in a forest in northern Aroostook County, Maine. Can you identify the species by its bark?

Many of you took your cameras into the bog this month, emerging with colorful images of flowers and insects. Fishing scenes, caterpillars, and baby birds were also common themes. In Windham, New…

Siblings Jim Robbins, Alden Robbins, and Catherine Robbins-Halsted are the fifth generation of their family to run Robbins Lumber in Searsmont, Maine. The Robbins kids grew up around the sawmill, have…

Phantom midges are among the most common, but least seen, planktonic insect larvae in lakes and ponds. These members of the genus Chaoborus earn the “phantom” moniker from both their…

When asked to name the most resilient animal, not many people likely think of tardigrades. In fact, most people probably don’t even know that tardigrades exist. Affectionately called water bears…

Legacy trees are trees of an older generation that persist in a younger forest. The ecological benefits of legacy trees are many. Their complex bark provides habitat for mosses and lichens,…

Wolastoqiyik (Maliseet) and Mi’kmaq peoples maintain relationships with hundreds of species of plants and fungi in their forested homelands of the Canadian Maritimes, the Gaspe Peninsula, and…

Geoff McKonly’s journey as a furniture maker is much like his creations: unconventional. A former boatbuilder, McKonly not only taught himself the fine art of furniture making, but also has…

As spring warms the water, a turtle, covered by leaves and mud at the bottom of a wetland where she hibernated for the winter, awakens. Emerging from the water, she basks on shore. The sun illuminates…

We spotted these beech leaves sporting dark stripes in the woods near Bucksport, Maine. What’s happening here?

For Nancy Baker, tending to the region’s woodlands is “all about caring well for the forest.” She manages land that has been in her family since 1861, and over the years has earned…

If you’ve never seen – or heard of – the southern bog lemming, you’re not alone. Although this small mammal scurries through our landscape year-round, it is elusive by nature.…

It is common knowledge that beavers are herbivorous, but the extent of their herbivory is not always appreciated. A beaver’s massive front incisors, along with the muscles attached to its jaws,…