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Site Discussions

Greg Jollymore
Nov 25, 2018

I have also seen these skid marks and wondered what had made them. I concluded it was probably a fisher since I had seen one in the area and the marks were a very long distance from water which basically eliminated otters.

From "Tracking Tips: Fisher or Otter?" »

Bill soto
Nov 24, 2018

I have two fireplaces and I have raccoons inside my smoke chamber and they have babies how do I get rid of them without killing them

From "Raccoons Prepare for Winter" »

Tricia Knoll
Nov 23, 2018

So it’s too early to hope to get any starts to plant in Vermont?

From "Planting Hope for a New American Chestnut" »

Susan
Nov 21, 2018

I have a possum that comes to my feeder at night.  I was wondering if you think it would use a shelter setup like for a feral cat - the insulated rubbermaid container with hay.  What do you think?  It has been so cold here so early in the year - I am worried about it!

From "Opossums Find Cold Comfort in New England’s Winters" »

John Snell
Nov 20, 2018

I saw one last night on our kitchen window where the light had been on for a couple hours. Temperature as 31F. Amazing!!

From "Flight of the Flunker Moth" »

Tricia
Nov 19, 2018

I love this story of the flunker moth.

From "Flight of the Flunker Moth" »

Nan Zamorski
Nov 19, 2018

Very helpful information to help me identify the tracks in the riverbank of the Nanticoke River. 
If you have comparisons of muskrat and beaver, that would help a lot too!

From "Tracking Tips: Raccoon or Otter?" »

Malcolm MacKenzie
Nov 19, 2018

Please consider doing an article on the Maple Moth. They always show up in the sap buckets!

From "Flight of the Flunker Moth" »

Elise
Nov 18, 2018

Uncertain if backlean would work for me. High winds past several years have shifted lots of trees on the front face of windbreak. Most roots have been pulled out. Tree, roots and all…...no disease.

These trees are leaning on other small trees. About 15% angle.

Neighbor said just cut pulled-out roots. I don’t think that will work.

Would love to see illustration how to cut.

Much deep thanks!

From "Felling Trees Against the Lean" »

Kathleen A Albrecht
Nov 16, 2018

The Long Island Pine Barrens are being devastated by this beetle. Its awful. So sad.

From "Southern Pine Beetles March North" »

Elise Tillinghast
Nov 15, 2018

Hi Dick - lucky you to have that wildlife sighting! What you saw was almost certainly a long- or short-tailed weasel, but their sizes overlap based on gender, their markings are pretty much identical, and the difference in tail length isn’t as obvious as the name implies! Both species are brown and summer, and most (not all) individuals grow white winter coats.

From "The Weasel – Tiny Warrior with Inexhaustible Concentration" »

Dick Harlow
Nov 14, 2018

I just caught a quick glimpse of a weasel carrying quickly a Meadow Vole into a hole under a large planting container. The past two years we have had a good population of Meadow Voles, seen mostly in the late fall and winter. This year, however, the population of Meadow Voles and a family of Chipmunks have disappeared. Since the weasel was small, estimated to be about 8-10 inches,  long and brown which weasel could I have witnessed?

From "The Weasel – Tiny Warrior with Inexhaustible Concentration" »

Michelle
Nov 14, 2018

Very interesting, thanks for sharing. Can it be proven that trees feel/think? Is there cognition?

From "How do Trees Survive Winter Cold?" »

Pamela McKenna
Nov 13, 2018

I have about 10 turkeys spending time in a hemlock grove in my back yard. I am going to feed them and see if they will stay this winter. I think the challenge for this plan will be today, it’s snowing and I have not seen them yet. I just love their personalities!

From "Wild Turkeys" »

Cynthia Walton
Nov 12, 2018

I saw a nuthatch fly onto my bird feeder, where it hung upside-down, motionless, for almost two minutes. I thought it had choked, but it flew off when I went outside to check on it. It returned soon after, collecting peanuts as usual. Was it reacting to a nearby predator?

From "Nuthatches: The Upside Down Birds" »

Linda
Nov 11, 2018

A yr. ago tonight (Nov. 11, 2017) we first spotted an opossum on one of our birdfeeders.  Our yard backs onto wooded area, although we live in town.  We now have 2 opossums regularly visit our feeders.  Also flying squirrels.  Night time has become just as busy as day at our bird feeders!

From "Opossums Find Cold Comfort in New England’s Winters" »

Charlie Schwarz
Nov 10, 2018

What a great idea. Anyone who works in the woods works alone most of the time, unseen by the people who depend on the bounty of the forest whether that bounty is wood, wildlife or clean water.

From "Portrait of a Forest: Men and Machine" »

Dave mance
Nov 06, 2018

Mike, if your fridge is cold it’s likely fine. Pour off the blood, seal, and freeze. You would have been better off vacuum sealing right away—that’s what I’d do in the future.

From "Lessons in Butchering Venison" »

Mike
Nov 06, 2018

I’m leaving my venison in the frig for 5 days or until I get the CWD results back. Just put in baggies not vacuum-sealed. Do I need to rinse the blood out building up in the bags? Will the meat be OK?

From "Lessons in Butchering Venison" »

David Crockett
Nov 05, 2018

In the late fall of 2017, on a cold night, I went into one of my sheds and saw something run out of the eve. I stood there and as it started to come back in,  it looked like a mouse to me. Then it stepped in and I saw it was a small squirrel. Then two more came in. I was only about four or five feet away.
They didn’t seem very scared of me. So I went to get some sunflower seeds. I went in the shed, and they just stood there. I put some seed on the shelf. They came right down and started to eat them. I put some seeds in my hand one jumped in my hand and just sat there eating. The next night I went in again,  sure enough they were there.  I hand feed them again. Then later in the winter, they seemed to multiply. At one point I had thirteen (that I could count in sight) eating out of my hand. I kept feeding them every night all winter long.

Then about April 2018 some of them seemed to disappear. Only two or three hung around.  I kept feeding them every day. Most of the summer of 2018 I had some of them every night.  Then as of November 2018 as the temperature keeps dropping more are showing up. The last two weeks as I walked up to feed them,  they would fly from tree to tree following me to the shed. All I had to do was to call them and whistle.

Tonight Nov 5th as I went to feed them, it is about thirty nine degrees out. I got almost to the shed, and four flew onto a tree right next to me. They went to the shed and we’re waiting for me when I went in.

I would like to know what else I can feed them other than sunflower seeds. 

Dave

From "Flying Squirrels: North vs. South" »