What in the Woods Is That?

Play our biweekly guessing game!

Whatever draws us into the forest—be it birdwatching or logging, hiking or hunting—all of us are unified by the sense of wonder we feel in the outdoors. The forests, fields, and streams of our region are full of mystery, and if you stop and look closely, you’ll see all sorts of oddities.

Below find a picture of one such woodlands curio. Guess what it is and you’ll be eligible to win a Northern Woodlands woodpecker magnet designed by artist Liz Wahid. A prize winner will be drawn at random from all the correct entries. The correct answer, and the winner’s name, will appear when the next column is posted and in our newsletter (sign up here!).

An Unidentified Agglomeration

Reader Penny Harris took this picture in her woods in Cambridge, Vermont. What’s the black growth?

Answer

A chaga mushroom (Inonotus obliquus). The burnt-looking part is not a fruiting body, but a mass of mycelium. “Chaga mushrooms are fairly rare and used medicinally,” writes Harris. “They will reportedly stimulate an under-active immune system and have been used in cancer therapy. I aim to make tea with mine and can’t wait to see what it tastes like!”

This week’s contest winner was Leah Mital-Skiff of South Burlington, VT