Help us keep bringing you the Adirondack information you value.
Email
Twitter
RSS
Facebook
The eastern tiger swallowtail lives in deciduous woods along streams, rivers and swamps and can be seen flying along the roadways here in the Mountains. Eastern tiger swallowtails are loners but are known to be quite friendly to humans and have been observed following people around their yard or in Fields.
Males are yellow or yellow-orange with black tiger stripes. Their wings are bordered in black with yellow spots, and there are black “tiger stripes” running across the top of their wings. Their long black tails have blue patches on them.
Females can range in color from the yellow of the male to an almost solid bluish-black. The black form of the eastern tiger swallowtail is most common in the southern part of its range in areas also inhabited by the pipevine swallowtail, a butterfly that has an unpleasant taste. The black form of the eastern tiger swallowtail may be an example of deceptive coloration using mimicry by pretending to be the poisonous pipevine.
Pollinators are animals and insects that carry pollen from one plant to another. Pollinators are responsible for much of our food and flowers and are responsible for the reproduction of 1 out of every 3 bites of food we eat. In order to understand pollinators, we need to know a little bit about plants.
Many flowers attract insects and animals with the promise of a sugary liquid called nectar. Their smell and bright petals advertise fresh nectar to passing insects and other flying pollinators like hummingbirds. In return for the gift of nectar, the flower deposits pollen on whatever comes to visit. Pollen is like the sperm of plants – and is the way that plants spread their genes and mate with other plants in the same species.
DEC staff, in partnership with researchers from SUNY ESF, are conducting a study to better understand what drives changes in fisher populations in the Central Adirondacks specifically, and more widely across the Northern Zone.
Pollinators are vital to creating and maintaining the habitats and ecosystems many animals rely on for food and shelter. 
Photo Credit: Gary Lee
The DEC’s Hudson River estuary education staff has created 
Editor’s note: This is part two of a two-part series.
Editor’s note: This is part one of a two-part series.
A trail cam can be beneficial for observing wildlife without disrupting their natural environments, as well as for teaching kids about nature, tracking movement, hunting, and birdwatching.
One of the most beloved signs of spring across the state is the 
When it comes to pollination it seems that honey bees are give the spotlight, but they’re not the only bees that shine for their ability to pollinate. Bumblebees have their own unique abilities that honey bees don’t. 
A smaller member of the Canidae family, which includes wolves and coyotes, red foxes are found in multiple habitats throughout North America, Europe and Asia, their numbers increasing in areas where their larger canid cousins have been hunted, trapped or otherwise extirpated. 
General inquiries about the Adirondack Almanack should be directed to editor 
Recent Almanack Comments