Snowy owls have recently been seen in Vermont. We’ve all heard that they leave their arctic home when food there is scarce but another reason for these erratic irruptions might instead be that they occur following an unusually successful breeding season – successful because of an abundance of prey.

You might also like

The white pine needle damage you’re seeing is caused by a fungal pathogen complex, and its severity is linked to weather conditions from a year ago. Perhaps the dry June will lessen the severity of next year’s outbreak.

As of 11 a.m. this morning, the storm has dumped 26 inches of snow in Dorset.

Nice warm weather has gotten carpenter ant queens up and about. Lots of winged females looking to start a new colony in any rotting wood that’s lying around.

The temperature was -12.8 here last night, the coldest night of the winter thus far.

Cow parsnips are setting seed and Canada lilies are flowering – two field edge favorites.

Daily check of the broad-winged hawk nest near our house, high in a maple tree, sometimes reveals a head on the nest and sometimes a tail; the incubating female taking in the view from both directions, as she sits there for 28 to 31 days, giving new perspective to our present stay-at-home situation.

Maybe it’s the heat. All things green seem to be extra large this year, despite it being droughty. Wild raspberries are also plumper than in years past

April, Part 2