This Week in the Woods

This week in the woods, we spied an immature bald eagle picking at a deer carcass on a frozen roadside pond. The United States’ newly designated national bird doesn’t always have…

This week in the woods, we observed a large flock of American robins feeding in a crabapple tree – and perhaps getting drunk. Because sugars in fruit can ferment over the course of the…

This week in the woods, despite the frigidity, we found this snowfly marching and tumbling across the snow on Black Mountain in Benton, New Hampshire. These members of the wingless cranefly…

This week in the woods, we observed indications of black knot, the fungal disease caused by Apiosporina morbosa or Dibotryon morbosum and only infecting species in the genus Prunus. It shows…

This week in the woods, we found the tiny, stalked fruiting bodies (or apothecia) of pink earth lichen. This colorful lichen prefers disturbed areas and the full sun of settings such as…

This week in the woods, we’ve observed a number of resident birds, as well as a loon that we hope has moved on to open coastal waters. Northern cardinals were uncommon in the Upper…

This week in the woods, the past year’s fruit and this coming year’s catkins persist on speckled alders, making these diminutive trees stand out. All alder species share the woody,…

This Week in the Woods, we came across a pileated woodpecker excavation, with large vertical, rectangular holes typical for this species. The blond wood and layering of woodchips over this…

This week in the woods, an eastern chipmunk paused with an acorn and retreated into its winter burrow beneath some tree roots in Fairlee, Vermont. This foraging trip was likely among the…

This week in the woods, we can take a closer look at some vacated nests, now more visible among the bare branches and withered greenery. We found this red-eyed vireo nest in Lyme, New…

This week in the woods, we start with where we can find some lingering green. When many other species’ leaves have browned or fallen away, striped wintergreen (Chimaphila maculata)…

This week in the woods, the landscape shows its skeleton, and we can see the true ridgeline beneath the now-leafless hardwoods. Also more apparent during the beginning of this bare month are…

This week in the woods, a white pine snag with much of its bole rotted away displayed some of its branch rings in three dimensions. In lumber, we would see these conical features in cross…

This week in the woods, river otter families may be moving to new areas to hunt. Every year at this time, we find at least one family of otters (mother and this year’s young) in the same…

This week in the woods, we stumbled upon several yellow birch logs completely engulfed in the fruiting bodies of turkey tail (Trametes versicolor) a polypore fungus that commonly grows on the…

This week in the woods, Editor Meghan McCarthy McPhaul encountered this garter snake making its way across a field, perhaps on its way to winter lodging. The snakes typically move into…

This week in the woods, late season caterpillars are making their fuzzy way across the ground in search of the perfect cocoon site. To help them on their way, they use “prolegs,”…

This week in the woods, we saw several Andrena bees, most likely peaceful miner bees (Andrena placata) heavily loaded with late-blooming aster pollen. These solitary bees are notable for the…

This week in the woods, we’ve been noticing the abundance of brightly colored berries and other fruit. The Northern Woodlands biweekly What in the Woods is That? quiz features six types…