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Educator's E-newsletter
| January 27, 2012
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 A Look at the Season's Main Events Virginia Barlow First Week of February The familiar bird's-nest-shaped seed heads of Queen Anne's lace contain emergency food for birds.
After a few days, crusted snow will be littered with an interesting collection of seeds, often from birches, basswood, and hemlock.
The tapering shape of balsam firs allows them to shed snow when the load gets too heavy.
Second Week of February
Most mammals sit tight during a snowstorm, tucked in their dens, warm and dry. Wait two days and the woods will be full of their tracks.
The snowshoe hare is well named. Its furry feet are very large for its weight.
A raven may commute over 50 miles daily to a good food source.
These listing are based on observations and reports in our home territory at about 1,000 feet in elevation in central Vermont and are approximate. Events may occur earlier or later, depending on your latitude, elevation - and the weather. |
North Country Pig Out
Madeline Bodin
Ever wonder why those Angry Birds on your smartphone app are so mad at those pigs? It's probably because the pigs are feral. According to estimates by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), there are about five million free-ranging, feral swine living in the U.S. and they're wreaking havoc on native ecosystems...
Full Article TextDownload the Article
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 Wood Fashions
Sandra Murphy
Where the Trees Grow Tall and Straight, by Tovar Cerulli
Like many commodities, wood marketing is subject to changing public aesthetic preferences. Where oak was once the wood of choice for cabinetry, flooring, and other millwork, now sugar maple reigns supreme. Not just any kind of sugar maple, but top-grade, clear-grained lumber. Although many other hardwoods common to the Northern Forest yield beautiful lumber-like ash, birch, and beech-they command only a small fraction of the lumber marketplace. What effect might such market tastes have on the ecology of the Northern Forest? Have your students survey lumber yards in your region to find out what hardwood species they sell most. Students can then compare those figures with your state forestry department's statistics on the relative abundance of those species in your state. Are the numbers significantly different? Have your students hypothesize some possible effects of disparity between relative hardwood species abundance and market demand.
Website: The Vermont Family Forests website offers extensive information on the interplay of forest economics, consumer choices, and forest ecology. Webpages devoted to the Middlebury College Bicentennial Hall Building Project explore this idea in depth. Download the Teacher's Guide (This activity is on page 3) Download the Article: Where the Trees Grow Tall and Straight Click here for the complete Teacher's Guide archive!
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WHAT IN THE WOODS IS THAT?
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 Our Biweekly Guessing Game!
What are these gnarled formations on this birch branch?
Every other week we run a photo of something unusual found in the woods. Guess what it is and you'll be eligible to win a copy of The Outside Story, a paperback collection of our Outside Story newspaper columns. A prize winner will be drawn at random from all the correct entries. The correct answer, and the winner's name, will appear in next week's column.
This week's contest deadline is 8:00 AM, Wednesday, February 8, 2011. |
 Congratulations to our winner Alan Seamans of Lisbon, ME! Alan receives a copy of our book, The Outside Story.
Penny Harris of Cambridge, Vermont found this gelatinous ribbon of brown stuff on a log next to some moss. Do you know what it is?
NW Answer: Jelly Fungus.
This slimy-looking brown ribbon is jelly fungus. This late-season fungus swells when wet, appearing slimy and jelly-like, shriveling and thinning out in dry weather. This particular fungus appears to be the species Tremella foliacea, known also as brown witch's butter or leafy jelly fungus.
Visit our What In The Woods Is That? contest archive.
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Upcoming Webinar: Transforming Schools with PLT GreenSchools! Energy InvestigationsFebruary 1, 2012, 4:00 - 5:00 pm Whether you're a teacher looking for a valuable, free professional development opportunity, or a student Green Team member, this webinar will teach you how ENERGY STAR tools can help schools improve energy efficiency, and how GreenSchools! teams can make a difference by using the GreenSchools! Energy Investigation to examine their school's energy use and implement action plans to reduce energy impacts. Click here for more information, and to register.
Do you have news or an event you'd like to share? Let us know!
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If you are an educator who finds Northern Woodlands magazine useful in your classroom, you are eligible for a complimentary subscription. Simply e-mail your completed registration form to the NWGTS coordinator Emily Rowe.
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We Welcome Your Questions and Comments
Postal Address:
Northern Woodlands
1776 Center Road
P.O. Box 471
Corinth, VT 05039
Toll-Free: (800) 290-5232
Phone: (802) 439-6292
Fax: (802) 439-6296
Email: emily@northernwoodlands.org
General inquiries form
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The mission of the Center for Northern Woodlands Education is to advance a culture of forest stewardship in the Northeast and to increase understanding of and appreciation for the natural wonders, economic productivity and ecological integrity of the region's forests. Our programs give people the information they need to help build a sustainable future for our region. Through Northern Woodlands magazine, the Northern Woodlands Goes to School program, and special publications, we make a difference in how people care for their land.
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