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Nature

King Of The Woods

About a week before Christmas my wife and I were back on the ridge in West Virginia getting the house ready for new owners. We planned to leave before dark. When we finally got into the car at about 6 o’clock, I cracked a window. At 6:03 a tremulous whistle rose from the woods below. As if on cue, an eastern screech-owl serenaded us. We knew it was simply talking to its mate, but we decided it had come to say good-bye. Five minutes later another nocturnal friend hooted from behind the garage. “Who cooks for you, who cooks for you-allll?” Barred owls have always been my ...

Chautauqua Watershed Notes: 2019 CWC Initiatives

Once again, the start of a brand new year has come upon us. It is a time when many of us make new resolutions or recommit to previous goals with renewed energy. For 29 years, the Chautauqua Watershed Conservancy has been a leader in Chautauqua County with education and conservation efforts ...

Lake Effect Snow

Living in Western New York automatically means dealing with snow for four to five months out of the year. On top of that, residents have become accustomed to the common phenomenon known as lake effect snow. The news channels love to chat about lake effect and are quite good at keeping ...

Seed Hoarding Can Explain Empty Bird Feeders

By mid-January I’ll begin getting mail asking, “Where are my birds?” The timing of these queries varies geographically, but by mid-winter some people somewhere will wonder what happened to their birds. Unusually mild weather can be responsible. A January thaw with temperatures well above freezing keeps insects active and most birds well fed. The only exception to that are finches, which eat seeds almost exclusively regardless of season. Eventually, however, winter will roar, temperatures will plunge, snow will fall, and birds will flock to feeders. And soon after that ...

Visiting An Old Friend

Sometimes you lose track of how long it has been since you spent time with an old friend. Work, family and other obligations seem to get in the way. Then, you find the Christmas holidays and the New Year approaching. Your mind goes back to all those beautiful memories you’ve stored in your ...

Bizarre Trees

Trees can be the backdrop to our outdoor adventures. They are key in defining the forest. But how often do we take in the bigger picture and not focus on the individual. Earlier in the year trees get plenty of attention for showy flowers, interfering pollen or delicious fruit and in the fall for their short burst of color. Now that the beautiful colors of deciduous trees are once again memories, we are left with their skeletons — the tall trunks and bare branches that hold next spring’s buds. The branch shapes as well as buds, bud scars, and bark can indicate identity down to ...