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!).

Floral Forest Mystery

Some trees continue to “flower” throughout the summer – like this one. What kind of tree produced this “flower?”

Answer

Hophornbeam.

Not even our deceptive use of the word flower fooled our savvy readers. Hophornbeam, the common name of Ostrya virginiana, was bestowed because its seed pods – technically, they are strobiles –  resemble those of the hops used for flavoring beer (pictured at right below). Hophornbeam seeds stick around well into winter and many are eaten by ruffed grouse and wild turkeys.

This week’s contest winner was Janet Pesaturo of Bolton, MA. We had close to 100 correct answers!