New England Asters at the Silvermine Fowler Pollinator MeadowEarly fall is the time for asters to shine. Their blooming season coordinates with the decreasing sunlight as the days grow shorter. There are over 60 species of native asters in North America. Most...

Christmas ferns along the water cascade path at Watson Symington PreserveDid you know that ferns are among the oldest plants on earth? Some varieties are as old as the dinosaurs and predate the rise of flowering plants. Ferns are vascular plants with tissues that...

Ebony Jewelwing DamselflyDid you know that dragonflies as a species are older than the dinosaurs?  Their prototype appeared on earth nearly 200 million years before the arrival of T Rex and his cousins.  Fossil evidence indicates that the largest dragonfly in...

False blister beetles on trout lilyThe human eye is naturally drawn to the grand vista – sweeping views of distant landscapes – so that we often overlook the minutiae living at our feet. Much of the intersection between the plant and animal world happens at eye level...

The eastern red maples silhouetted against the sky at the Colhoun meadow are pictured above. The red buds are actually flowers that need to be pollinated to produce viable seeds. To enable fertilization, the pollen must be transferred between the stamen (male parts of...

Robins in hollyA robin nests in a holly bush. A bumblebee savors meadowsweet pollen. A wild turkey gobbled down the dark blue berries on the maple leaf viburnum. A swallowtail butterfly lays her eggs on a spicebush leaf. A red fox bounds away into the thick...

Blue Jays amidst a scattering of bird seedBirds spend the majority of their waking hours looking for food. Flying requires a lot of energy, which depends on a constant supply of sustenance. When the temperature drops and the leaves fall, many birds head south to...

Much of the natural world appears to sleep in winter. Plants go dormant, nights are long and frigid, and food becomes scarce. It can seem to be an impossibly inhospitable environment at times, but the wild creatures among us have developed many survival strategies....

White and red oak acorns from Browne Preserve collected by Chris Schipper As our deciduous trees shed their leaves each fall, they also drop an abundance of seeds in the form of acorns, nuts, and samarras. This seed crop, referred to as mast, is defined as the dry...

A venerable old snag at the Browne PreserveA visit to our open space preserves will reveal a number of dead, dying, or fallen trees. Deadwood is a natural phenomenon of forests as they age, or are subjected to disease, lightning strikes, and storm damage. If you...

False Turkey Tails, a type of Polyspore Shelf MushroomIf you are of a certain age, you probably learned in school that all life on Earth is divided into two kingdoms: plant and animal. For years, scientists following Carl Linnaeus’ lead classified fungi (mushrooms,...

Livingston-Higley MeadowThe wind rustles through the grasses. Song sparrows and crickets serenade. Tree swallows soar overhead, catching insects on the wing. A cottontail nibbles clover on the edge of the path. Butterflies flutter about the wild bergamot. A praying...