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Newsletter
| February 10, 2012
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 EDITOR'S BLOG
Victory in Victory
Meghan Oliver
There's not much I'd rather do during my treasured weekend hours than make my way through some stretch of woods, just to see what I can see. In the green and humid glory of a New England summer day, a walk through the forest can be a balancing act: trying to keep my eyes upward to the tree branches for a flash of warbler yellow, while glancing downward in an effort not to miss forget-me-not blue. In the winter, well, it's different...
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 THE OUTSIDE STORY
Snug as a Snow Bug
Michael J. Caduto
One frosty winter's day, while tracking a mink along the edge of a stream, I discovered some tiny winter stoneflies creeping on top of the snow. Unaccountably, the stream-dwelling larvae of these insects metamorphose into adults and emerge in the depths of winter. Feeding on algae, they move along the rocks, snow, and tree bark. After mating, females lay eggs back in the stream...
Full Article Text
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 WHAT IN THE WOODS IS THAT?
Our Biweekly Guessing Game!
This winding vine, bedecked with puffballs of silky filaments, was found throughout a roadside thicket. What is it?
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 22, 2012. |
 Previous Contest Answer
Congratulations to our winner Karen E. Holmes of Cooper, ME! Karen receives a copy of our book, The Outside Story. What are these gnarled formations on this birch branch?
NW Answer: Birch budgall.
The gnarly formations on this tree branch are birch bud galls - a plant tissue deformation caused by eriophyid mites (also known quite suitably as birch bud gall mites). The parasites, which overwinter on bud scales, begin feeding in the spring, initiating gall formations as the leaves and flower buds open.
This week's winner is Karen E. Holmes, who not only identified the gall, but the mites that caused it.
Visit our What In The Woods Is That? contest archive. |
 NORTHERN WOODLANDS NEWS
The Art of Logging
The paintings of artist Kathleen Kolb, whose work has appeared in Northern Woodlands, are currently on view at the Vermont State House in Montpelier through March 2 as part of the Vermont's Working Landscape exhibit. Kolb's paintings, which depict logging scenes,are part of the show developed by Sonia Rae of the Vermont Arts Council to highlight the working landscape. Click here for more information.
Forest Legacy Projects in the Northeast
The US Forest Service is distributing $52.2 million in Forest Legacy grants for 17 conservation and working land projects across the United States this year. In Maine, $7 million goes to the High Peaks-Crocker Mountain project to protect 11,798 acres of productive forestland. The Androscoggin Headwaters project in New Hampshire will receive a $5 million grant to protect more than 12,000 acres of important forestland in the headwaters of the Androscoggin River. The project complements conservation actions by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service at the Umbagog National Wildlife Refuge and the America's Great Outdoors landscape-scale conservation partnership initiative. To learn more about Forest Legacy grants, click here.
Guide to Good Forestry in the Granite State
First published in 1997, the guide Good Forestry in the Granite State: Recommended Voluntary Forest Management Practices for New Hampshire, provides landowners and the professionals who work with them practical recommendations and information on a wide variety of forest resources. The revised edition includes the many changes in practice and knowledge that occurred in the 10-plus years since the guide was first published. This revision was guided by a 24-member steering committee and involved public input. To download chapters of the guide or the book in its entirety, click here. Working Lands Legislation in Vermont
Legislation was recently introduced in Vermont to support local agriculture and forestry. Key components include designation of working lands, a proposal for a tax to fund enterprise development and conservation, the creation of a state planning office, and the targeting of investments through a Vermont Agriculture and Forest Products Development Fund. Click here for additional information.
Vermont Wood Products Marketing Council Releases Strategic Plan
The Vermont Wood Products Marketing Council has released"A 2020 Vision for the Vermont Wood Products Sector," a new 10-year strategic plan. The Vermont Wood Products Marketing Council consists of representatives from the Guild of Vermont Furniture Makers, Vermont Wood Manufacturers Association, Vermont WoodNet, Vermont Woodlands Association, Vermont Department of Economic, Housing and Community Development, Vermont Department of Forest, Parks & Recreation, and three outside directors. To download a copy of the plan, click here.
Learn Your Herps
Vermont Family Forests is offering a second season of Conserving Vermont's Reptiles and Amphibians, a two-credit class through Hogback Community College. Jim Andrews, adjunct assistant professor of herpetology at the University of Vermont,will teach the course, which entails the identification, natural history, and conservation of Vermont's reptiles and amphibians. The course will be offered for $320, and offered in Bristol and nearby field locations. For more information, click here. |
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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: mail@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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