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!).

Mystery Mounds

We found this mound, and four others just like it – each measuring approximately 2 to 3 inches wide, and each spaced at least a foot from the others – on a sandy hill in Thetford, Vermont. What are these?

Answer

These are the nests of solitary bees, most likely cellophane bees. Solitary bees build these nests as nurseries for their larvae. As noted in Charley Eiseman’s excellent book, Tracks & Sign of Insects and Other Invertebrates, “The main shaft has several side branches that lead to oval brood cells, which are provisioned with balls of pollen and nectar.”

This week’s contest winner was Hugh Markey