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It’s not uncommon to immediately think of coniferous trees when hearing the word Evergreen. For us Mountain folks, these tall beauties with multiple hues of green are a welcomed scene of color as the last parcels of leaves fall to the ground and the landscape takes on a dreary, stark appearance. If you care to venture out on a hike, you will find trees aren’t the only plants that keep their lively green shades throughout the coming winter months.
Almanack Contributor Jackie Woodcock
Jackie Woodcock was born and lives in the Adirondack Mountains. She is an apiarist, lepidopterist, conservationist, teacher, writer, artist, and a co-owner of SkyLyfeADK. You can find her SkyLyfeADK on Instagram and Facebook.
Evergreen: Not just a term for Trees
Fall Webworms: Spinning their way through the season
As fall sets in, it’s not difficult to identify the tiny creatures called fall webworms. This time of year, these masses of larva have been busy recreating scenes from sleepy hollow as they prepare to over winter in the pupa stage.
This display of web weaving starts when the adult tiger moth lays her eggs on the underside of leaves in ‘hair’-covered clusters of a few hundred. Host plant selection is dependent on factors like the plant’s degree of sun exposure, age, environmental stress undergone, toughness, and nutritional quality. For an insect that needs energy for processes like dispersal or diapause, consuming plants that provide a lot of carbohydrates could is beneficial; for a female insect that is producing eggs, consuming plants that provide a lot of protein is beneficial. In the eastern U.S., pecan trees, black walnut, American elm, hickory, fruit trees, and some maples are preferred hosts.
Butterfly house: Where Humanity and Nature Unite
SKY Lyfe was born out of love for the tiny life keepers, we call bees and butterflies. As apiarists and lepidopterists our hearts were moved over a decade ago, to research and support some of the World’s most innocent insects as well as one of the most feared. It is our mission to bring awareness to these creatures, in hopes of conserving their lives and global importance to humans and animals alike.
Did You Know? Wood frogs have teeth
For some people, the thought of a frog brings up mental pictures of small, toothless amphibians. Not many care to catch one of these leaping beauties to do an oral exam but if you were to, you would find most frogs indeed have teeth. Here in the Adirondacks, one of these toothed wonders is the wood frog.
When Flowers Sleep (or Are They Just Pretending?)
Like the bees, once the temperature gets to 50 degrees and above my husband and I are outside on the move. Its not hard to notice the changes in the view from morning to evening when you spend nearly 80 percent of your time in nature like we do. In the morning the wild flowers are on display, bringing life and a multitude color to a mountain landscape but in the evening the once vibrant petals close and shades of green take over.
Have these flowers become sleepy and fallen into a slumber and if they’re not sleeping, why have they closed for the night?
Flight of the Pollinators
For over a month now, pollinators here in the mountains have been working their life keeping magic. Each of these winged creatures participating in the cycle of life of the flora that covers the forest floors and meadows. The first pollinators to appear as Spring rolls in, are the mason and carpenter bees who are able to withstand the cooler temperatures followed by bumble bees and then the smaller breeds of solitary, ground dwelling bees which includes polyester bees among many.
In Lepidoptera land, moths that have overwintered in the Adirondacks emerge from their cocoons as well as butterflies that are able to withstand the slowly warming temperatures have made their winged displays known. The eastern tiger swallowtail (pictured here) is one of the first butterflies to soar the fields and roadsides. They are not alone, the checkered and mustard whites, orange and clouded sulfurs and some skippers join them. Some of the migrating butterflies have began to arrive back to the mountains beginning the first week of May, so you may have observed white and red admirals, northern crescents and common blues and whites with monarchs to arrive here by the end of this month.
Turtles: Mountain Reptiles on the Move
It’s Turtle Time and these shelled reptiles are making a public appearance here in the mountains. There are 356 species of turtle in the World with only four of them calling the Adirondack Park home; the snapping turtle, the painted turtle, the spotted turtle, and the wood turtle.
Friends Who Fly Into Your Heart
Have you ever heard the saying, “A dog is a man’s best friend”? For many of us who have had a dog for a pet, this saying rings true. Our dog, Mickey, has proven to be a loving, forgiving and tolerant friend and own’s a place in our hearts eternally. But have dogs cornered the market on building friendships with humans? There are thousands of accounts and videos from people around the world who testify, dogs are only one of our potential non-human friends.
My husband and I spend a great deal of time on the Adirondack Wildlife Refuge. It’s there that we witnessed for ourselves, friends come in many shapes, sizes and species. Some have scales, some have fur and some have feathers among other sordid wild attributes. Friendships aren’t limited to humans or domesticated animals, they exist where ever we choose to express our love and appreciation. Little did we know one day we would have friends with feathers who would fly into our hearts. Each of these winged pals are responsible for countless hours of joy in our lives and a true blessing from the natural world.
Labors of Love taking Place on The Adirondack Wildlife Refuge
“A foundation is only as sturdy as its mitochondria.” — Wendy B Hall, Adirondack Wildlife Refuge co-founder
Birds of a Feather Flock together and that’s definitely the case on The Adirondack Wildlife Refuge.
This year started with a time of strategy, dedication and labors of love, beginning with the renovation of the Wolf Dome in honor of Debbie MacKenzie.
Debbie was a devoted and dedicated friend of the Refuge whose love for wildlife exuded from the inside out. She had a special spiritual bond with every wild animal she came into contact with and a particular fondness for song birds. Debbie and her husband, Kevin, assisted in the recovery of wild creatures in need of rescuing and rehabilitation. This duo touched the hearts of like-minded people and developed a close friendship with Steve and Wendy Hall, owners of the Wildlife Refuge in Wilmington. You can imagine the pain and sorrow when Debbie passed away. In a time of reflection and remembrance, the plan to renovate the Wolf Dome came about.
Native bees make due with honeydew
March 21st marked the first day of spring and here in the mountains the warm early spring temperatures have begun to prompt the native bees to wake from their hibernation. Like many creatures, most native bees store up food during the warm months in preparation for a cold long winter.
The first thing waking bees do is perform a cleansing flight, they expel any excrement that has accumulated during their winter’s rest.
The next thing they do is search for food. Its not hard to see that there are no trees and flowers in bloom as the snow begins to melt and once again bare ground is exposed.
So what do these amazing little creatures do to survive until blossoms appear? Unlike colony-building honeybees, solitary bees don’t stockpile honey for times when blossoms are scarce.
Flight of the cicada: Insect gears up for big event
Meet the Cicada Beetle. They are big, noisy and make an appearance by the billions every 13-17 years.
May 2021 marks the month and year that we here in New York will experience a natural phenomenon of the insect world. This phenomenon about to happen is named Brood X or The Great Eastern Brood. Starting in May of this year, for five to six weeks, it will be virtually impossible to miss Brood X, which will be the most widespread and prolific of the known generations of cicada in the U.S.
Cicadas are members of the superfamily Cicadidae and are physically distinguished by their stout bodies, broad heads, clear-membraned wings, and large compound eyes.
There are more than 3,000 species of cicadas, which fall into roughly two categories: annual cicadas, which are spotted every year, and periodical cicadas, which spend most of their lives underground and only emerge once every decade or two. While annual cicadas can be found throughout the world, periodicals are unique to North America. Periodical broods are concentrated in the central and eastern regions of the United States, and some areas are home to multiple broods.
Woodpeckers: Nature’s Tree Drummers
If you have a love for the great outdoors, chances are you have heard and or seen “Tree Drummers,” the creatures we call woodpeckers. There are nine species of woodpeckers here in New York; Pileated Woodpeckers, Red-headed Woodpeckers, Red-bellied Woodpeckers, Yellow-bellied Woodpeckers, Downy Woodpeckers, Hairy Woodpeckers, Northern Flickers, American Three-toed Woodpeckers, and Black-backed Woodpeckers.
Dragonflies: Learning to swim before they fly
Dragonflies are nature’s little aerial acrobats. Likened in bodily shape to a helicopter with numerous maneuvers, they can fly straight up and down, forward and backward, hover and even mate mid-air
There are 7,000 species of dragonflies and mayflies, the dragon flies smaller cousin, in the world.
The Adirondacks are home to approximately 30 species of dragonflies. They typically stay close to water; most species of dragonfly spend the majority of their life underwater or close to the surface of the water. Depending on the species, dragonflies prefer ponds, marshes, or streams.
A dragonfly has a life span of more than a year, but very little of that life is actually as an adult dragonfly. There are three stages of the dragonfly life cycle, the egg, the nymph, and the adult dragonfly. Most of the life cycle of a dragonfly is lived out in the nymph stage where they aren’t seen at all, unless you are swimming underwater in a lake.
Red Foxes: Truly Magnetic Creatures
It takes a matter of seconds for residents here in the mountains to identify a fox. These small, doglike creatures stick out like a sore thumb as they roam above the now cold, white landscape in their pursuit of their next meal. Foxes are amazing creatures built for the hunt with numerous abilities that aid in survival. What are these abilities?
Enhanced senses
It’s not evident from a distance but if you’re privileged to come into close proximity, you would see foxes have vertical pupils. This allows them to see well in the dark as well as giving them a wider field of view, 200 degrees compared to humans at 180 degrees. Their eyes also have six to eight times more rod cells, allowing the fox to sense motion in the dark.
Foxes have quite the proboscis! They have a very keen sense of smell and have been known to find carcasses of livestock buried under deep snow and several inches below the surface. Their snouts are long and their noses are wet, allowing them to smell by dissolving the chemicals in the air and indicating the wind direction.
Latest News Headlines
- Can art encourage stewardship of North Country waters?
- Opinion: Climate Doomism Disregards the Science
- Indian Lake's challenge to raise and release butterflies
- Fall color unfolding across the Adirondacks
- Fall paddle on the Oswegatchie
- Exploring a quiet side of the park
- Bionique testing lab proposes to triple in size
- The Beekeepers Who Don’t Want You to Buy More Bees
- PHOTOS: The 50th annual Adirondack Balloon Festival
- Stefanik demands plan to keep Amtrak Adirondack Line operational
Latest News Headlines
- Can art encourage stewardship of North Country waters?
- Opinion: Climate Doomism Disregards the Science
- Indian Lake's challenge to raise and release butterflies
- Fall color unfolding across the Adirondacks
- Fall paddle on the Oswegatchie
- Exploring a quiet side of the park
- Bionique testing lab proposes to triple in size
- The Beekeepers Who Don’t Want You to Buy More Bees
- PHOTOS: The 50th annual Adirondack Balloon Festival
- Stefanik demands plan to keep Amtrak Adirondack Line operational
The Adirondack Almanack
The Adirondack Almanack is a public forum dedicated to promoting and discussing current events, history, arts, nature and outdoor recreation and other topics of interest to the Adirondacks and its communities
We publish commentary and opinion pieces from voluntary contributors, as well as news updates and event notices from area organizations. Contributors include veteran local writers, historians, naturalists, and outdoor enthusiasts from around the Adirondack region. The information, views and opinions expressed by these various authors are not necessarily those of the Adirondack Almanack or its publisher, the Adirondack Explorer.
General inquiries about the Adirondack Almanack should be directed to editor Melissa Hart.
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Standing In The Storm
This storm is culminated by circumstances that test our strength, devour our peace and steal our joy. The truth is there may have been many storms in your life, not just in the past year but sporadically throughout your life. Like weather storms, life storms can come in slowly and leave quickly or roll in quickly and linger for some time. No matter the substance, life storms can feel personally aimed and centered on us. It can be lonely when the darkness creeps in and there seems to be no shelter.
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