By DOUG FACEY The Outside Story During the autumn months, many birds migrate from their summer breeding grounds in the Northeast to warmer wintering areas south of our region. Migratory birds include many species of raptors and waterfowl, which we often notice because of the birds’ large size and their[Read More…]
Outdoors
Scrubbing off the eponyms
By Bill Chaison Of a Feather On Nov. 1 the American Ornithological Society issued a press release. It announced a pilot program in 2024 that would rename many North American birds. At issue are primarily birds named after people (eponyms). Some of the referenced persons committed offensive acts during their[Read More…]
Buckthorn: A Tenacious Invasive
By Jenna O’del The Outside Story Of all the non-native, invasive plants in the Northeast, buckthorns are among the most hated by forest stewards. There are two types of invasive buckthorn in our region: glossy buckthorn (Frangula alnus) and common buckthorn (Rhamnus cathartica), also called European buckthorn. Both plants grow[Read More…]
Crazy as a Coot?
By BILL CHAISSON Of a Feather The coots are back in town. I used to see them all the time when I lived in central New York, where they are breeders and migrants. Here in New England, they are only passers-through and now is the time to see them. A[Read More…]
Identify a Poacher using ‘Operation Game Thief’
Eagle Times Staff MONTPELIER, VT — Vermont State Game Wardens are asking Vermonters with information about fish and wildlife crimes to submit them through the Operation Game Thief (OGT) program. OGT is a joint nonprofit program sponsored by the Vermont Federation of Sportsmen’s Clubs and administered by the Vermont Fish[Read More…]
Hunters Asked to Help Collect Deer Teeth
Eagle Times Staff MONTPELIER, VT — The Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department is asking hunters for help gathering biological data on the state’s deer population. Hunters who get a deer during the Nov. 11-26 regular deer season are asked to provide an incisor tooth from their deer. Tooth envelopes are[Read More…]
Sign Up Now for Snowmobile, OHRV Safety Classes
Eagle Times Staff CONCORD, NH — Winter is on its way, and free in-person snowmobile safety education classes are now being scheduled in the Granite State. To operate a snowmobile or off-highway recreational vehicle (OHRV) in New Hampshire, any person aged 12 or older must have either a valid motor[Read More…]
Vermont’s Regular Deer Season Starts Nov. 11
Eagle Times Staff MONTPELIER, VT — Hunters are gearing up for the start of Vermont’s traditionally popular 16-day regular deer season that begins Saturday, Nov. 11 and ends Sunday, Nov. 26. A hunter may take one legal buck during this season if they did not already take one during the[Read More…]
Duck With An Upturned Tail
By BILL CHAISSON Of a Feather On Wednesday someone reported on the N.H. Bird Forum seeing 50 ruddy ducks. They were floating in an unlikely spot: the top pond of the Exeter Wastewater Treatment Plant. As it happens, on Monday, I saw what looked like a single ruddy duck. It[Read More…]
A Witch in The Woods
By D. Glenn Miller THE OUTSIDE STORY In late autumn, well past the showy blossoms of summer, after even fall’s late bloomers have faded and the trees have dropped their leaves, there is one shrubby plant still putting on a flower show: American witch hazel (Hamamelis virginiana). Four slender, wrinkly[Read More…]