Site Discussions

Thanks for your article!

I’m a raccoon rehabber for release. I have raised many lil guys. Never underestimate a raccoon. They make fools of everyone who tries to figure them out. Procyon lotor (before the dog/washer) they are smarter than cats,dogs, etc. and the important thing to remember is their extreme intelligence, then the paws which they do use as hands. I have given the juniors human baby Busy-boxes for lil kids (that you put into cribs, etc) and away they go. They will wear them out! If left with a regular combination lock (closed and locked inside the cage) they can eventually open it.

I don’t know, Tami, but I bet it would make a great game camera image. Which you could then share with us…

Great article.  I’m a duckweed lover (Odd, isn’t it.) and have been watching the duckweed reappearing on a pond in Central Park near the “North Woods.” It’s always fun to get some inside info!

Thank you for giving all this information about using fertilizer in the woods. I want to find a fertilizer with organic crop production so that it can help with my farm. I was looking on your site because I have some woodlands near my crop site, so it’s good to know that fertilizer isn’t all that helpful for trees.

I have a raccoon that has been visiting my yard at night, I can’t work out how he is getting the bird seed patty off of the washing line I attached it to, ten it is 6-7 ft off the ground, no overhanging trees - he must’ve jumped and hung on to the line while simultaneously opening the mesh to get the patty out - HOW does he do that?

I wish someone could tell me why they tack on “chick burr” sometimes but not always and why they say it alone sometimes .I had them in residence in NH and was delighted to find them here as well.

What a great read! Gives me faith in the written word and in young writers. Thanks to Northern Woodlands for letting Gary speak for himself.

I’ve heard that the traditional way of eating ramp leaves in Vermont is to make a sandwich of buttered bread with the raw ramp leaves piled on.  The butter cuts the sharpness.  I tried it yesterday after gathering ramps from the dense clumps growing on the east-facing cliff on my land in Calais and it was delicious.

Thanks for writing this up. I’d like to hear how you did through the years, now that it’s 2017. Did you keep up the pace? Did you have luck selling some to local restaurants? Curious.

Hank Rope…......Integrity !

Very interesting story. Love the relationship between the eagle and the owl.

It is definitely porcupines chewing off the smaller branches from my weeping willow trees. And they just chew them through at one spot, no bark is chewed. I’m thinking they’re getting the sap, or some other nutrient, because it only occurs in the spring, with the new growth.
Greg

Not only does the Canadian Government help the Canadian mills. The State of Maine through the Tree Growth Tax, reduces the property tax on Irving woodlands by about 50 per cent which allows them to grow cheaper trees for their mills in Canada. Remove the tax reduction for trees shipped to Canada and put the border tax on for finished lumber coming into Maine and you will see more saw mills located in Maine.

Sapwood is the nutrient and water conductor, while the Heartwood is the result of development and the aging process of the tree, to support its structure

Great Article!

Kudos, Charles, for this piece about your journey and process. You turned a prodigious task into a labor of love and a beautiful boat.

If anyone searching on the internet happens to come here wanting to know the answers to some of the questions people have asked, here are my thoughts.

1. If the eggs have died from lack of incubation, will the parents eventually give up?
Ans: Yes.

2. Why are their nests so small and weak?
Ans: I don’t know that anyone really knows, but doves are large birds, easy to spot, with few defenses, and building a nest can draw the attention of predators. I’ve seen recommendations to help them by putting wooden platforms or hardware cloth (steel mesh) and nesting material in trees or buildings. In my experience, though, climbing trees draws predator attention, and wooden platforms in particular are obvious and completely defenseless.

3. What about doves nesting in hanging plants?
Ans: This seems to happen more and more often. If your doves succeeded in this way, great! But if you’re looking to help doves nest, I wouldn’t go out and buy a hanging plant. I’ve compiled a small amount of statistics on this, and hanging plants too often result in nest failure, or worse, the death of a parent. Most hanging plants are placed within reach of humans, which means they are within reach of cats and other ground predators. Height is very important. If you want to help them, I’d start by getting your neighbors to keep their cats indoors.

4. Why did my dove call at night?
Ans: Hey, I don’t know everything!

5. Do other birds pay attention to chickadees?
Ans: Anyone with sense pays attention to chickadees. They’re small and scouty and smart and their calls tell other birds about predator motion and threat level. Everyone is safer with chickadees around.

6. Why did they abandon the nest?
Ans: Probably predators. In Dixie, snakes are big. Tree squirrels are another, for those of you squirrel feeders. Ground squirrels less so, I think. Cats are significant near civilization. When I see a mess, I suspect a cat because they like to play with their prey, leaving more feathers. Raptors and crows seem more surgical to me. Insects, especially fire ants, are also killers.

7. Lisa in Oregon: Of course insecticides aren’t good for birds, and there are alternatives, although maybe not easily available. But the doves probably didn’t leave because of the spray. Why did they leave? First, it sounds like there were a lot of wasps nearby. Second, they didn’t have eggs yet, so there wasn’t much to lose. Third, from what I gather, someone was rummaging around just after dark, which is a scary time for nesting birds; a predawn raid would have been smarter. But don’t beat yourself (or your husband) up over it. No eggs were lost, and doves often try more than one site before settling on one. If you’re nice to them, there’s a chance they’ll nest there for their next clutch in May. But porches don’t tend to be very good sites to begin with. They’re too low (meow) and have little transit cover (caw). Oh, and if by any chance the nest is on your light fixture, disconnect it at the switch, and use LEDs. Incandescents are hot enough to ignite nesting material, and subsequently, your house.

Great information about how the people before contact managed the land and game.
I have heard that to take turkey a man would dig a shallow pit to lay in, cover himself up, and spread corn on the ground. He would then grab the turkey with his bare hands.
Is there any basis to this story?
Thanks for your work,
Jim

Well written. Fishers have been introduced back into Pennsylvania in areas that they have been extirpated from. It was exciting to see my first Fisher in an area that once was farmland now connected only by a narrow green-way leading to the mountains. Wildlife species prove to be adaptable and resilient.