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!).

Something in the Apple Tree

Last winter, Jason Selden and family were coming down a hillside in Chelsea, Vermont when a member of the group spotted something odd in an apple tree. Selden snapped this picture of the animal. What is it?

Answer

The creature pictured is an albino porcupine. Albinism occurs when an animal inherits a trait, or a set of traits, that interrupt melanin production (melanin is a pigment that determines the color of a mammal’s skin, fur, and eyes). Wikipedia says that 1 in 17,000 people are born albino; no data on porcupines could be found.

This week’s contest winner was Larry Perry of Montpelier, VT