Romance is in the air. For the American woodcock (Scolopax minor), that’s a literal statement. The courtship ritual of the woodcock is the most elaborate that I’ve seen outside of Homo sapiens, and is a must-see for lovers of forests, birds, or flirtation. In the southerly parts of the Chesapeake Bay Watershed, lucky residents
There are many good reasons to have a lawn. A lawn can be used for overflow parking, a space for children and dogs to play, or as a stable surface for heavy foot traffic around buildings and houses. But about ten percent of the land in the Chesapeake Bay watershed is lawn cover. Do
Our streams need trees. The very best thing we can do for water quality is to protect and increase the amount of streamside (or, if you’re inclined to speak Latin, riparian) forest cover. In the conservation world we call these strips of recently planted streamside trees riparian forest buffers; they are protecting our water
Participants in the Riparian Forest Buffer Vocational Training hear about the finer points of buffer maintenance from Trevor Weaver (right), Watershed Specialist for the Mifflin County Conservation District and Ryan Davis (left), PA Forest Program Manager for the Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay. Photo by Shea Zwerver On a sweltering July afternoon, a
The Alliance is seeking motivated Pennsylvanians dedicated to clean water to become Riparian Rangers! A Riparian Ranger is more than a volunteer opportunity; it’s a chance to shepherd a streamside restoration project from its flashy beginnings through the part that really matters: after the trees are planted. A Riparian Ranger is assigned a streamside
Live staking (or propagation by cutting) almost seems too good to be true. Cut a stem from certain species of trees and shrubs and drive it into the ground, and a new plant will grow there! This method, if executed correctly, has a high success rate, and can be a very affordable if not free
Last month, in What's That Conifer? (Part 1 of 2), we detailed the genera of the Cupressaceae family found in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed. Still pining for conifer identification knowledge? Read on to learn about the Pinaceae family, which contains firs, spruces, hemlocks, and of course, pines. Pinaceae is one of the most important tree
Conifers are important members of our forests year-round, but visually are most prominent during the winter when their evergreen leaves stand out in a sea of dormant deciduous limbs. To the untrained eye these trees may all look the same, but there is a vast amount of diversity among this ancient group of plants. Conifers
A mature American holly, Ilex opaca. Photo by Ryan Davis. Sixteen species of holly (the genus Ilex) are native to North America. Two of the most widespread eastern species, American holly (Ilex opaca) and winterberry holly (Ilex verticillata), are commonly used for holiday decorations due to their cheerful red berries and, in the
Resurrecting something from the dead is a classic scary story plotline, but there is nothing spooky about efforts to bring back our American chestnuts (Castanea dentata). The grand, incredibly valuable tree has been functionally extinct for the past century, but efforts are underway to restore it as a component of our eastern forests. The
A dead American chestnut, Castanea dentata. Photo by Robert Llewellyn. Our woods are haunted. Generations ago, there was a massacre that left few survivors, and our nation has never been the same. The ghosts of the victims still cling to our forests, reminding naturalists and hikers of what was lost. This isn’t fiction.
In October, bats are everywhere. Images of them, at least. The mammals typically are hibernating by Halloween, tucked away in caves and deep rock crevices. Summertime is when you will see real bats around, but if you live in the northeast or mid-Atlantic, you have likely seen dramatically less bats foraging in the summer dusk
