WHAT'S NEW IN NATURE?

Do you have something happening in your corner of Washington? - Please call a member or e-mail your observations to have them included here

December:

Snowshoe Hare picture by Jed Schwartz

Jed was out for a walk in a wooded area and was lucky enough to see a Snowshoe Hare recently. The only reason he was able to spot him was because the snowshoe hare had his white winter coat on and we had no snow cover on the ground. His winter disguise was making him easy to spot among the brown ground cover of fallen leaves and brush. The hare didn't grasp right away that Jed could see him so clearly, so when Jed moved in closer to get a picture he realized he better move along and hopped away at top speed zigging through the woods. If he still had his soft brown summer coat on he would have blended in beautifully, but along with the shorter days of fall he molted to his white coat over a ten week period. The lack of snow made him more vulnerable to being spotted.
Snowshoe hare are found throughout New England, across Canada,, and south to the Appalachian and Rocky Mountains. In New Hampshire they are most abundant in the northern three counties. In New Hampshire, snowshoe hares can be hunted from October to March.
They have large hind feet with both front and hind feet heavily furred in winter. Their toes spread out like a "snowshoe", enabling them to hop about in deep snow. Both sexes look similar, although females are slightly larger.
Snowshoe hare are active year-round, mostly at dawn, dusk, or at night. They seek shelter next to a ledge or large rock, or under tree roots, hollow logs, or fallen trees. This shelter will be used by the same hare throughout the year. They are active within a core area of 5-10 acres; they may range up to 25 acres.
They breed from March to August, producing up to four litters per year. Their young, known as "leverets," average three per litter. Unlike rabbits, hare are born fully-furred, with eyes open. They begin hopping at one day old.
In summer hare eat clover, grass, dandelions, berries, and ferns. In winter they shift to twigs, buds, tender bark of shrubs and trees, and stems of bushes and saplings including aspen, alder, spruce, fir, hen-dock, birch, willow, and pine. Lowland spruce-fir forests with dense softwood understories and a mix of hardwoods are ideal habitat.

NPS photo by Donna DiFalco
Keep your eyes peeled for the snowshoe hare when you are walking in the woods this winter.You may just see his tracks in the snow or a pile of scat but if you are really lucky you might catch a glimpse of this elusive animal.
Information on Snow Shoe Hares found at: NH Fish and Game

November:

Feral pig picture by Joerg Mikus

Feral pigs picture by Scattoselvaggio

Yikes! Wild Boars in our back yard.
Recently Arin read that wild pigs are found in New Hampshire. Carol said she thought they were escapees from Corbin Park in Croydon. She is right, the state Fish and Game Department considers them escaped private property and you need permission from the owner to hunt them.
Since their introduction to North America, wild pigs have become one of the more serious wildlife problems in the United States. A confirmed feral swine population in New Hampshire, primarily in Grafton, Sullivan and Cheshire Counties, presents a unique management challenge.
Natural range expansion and illegal introductions, coupled with the extreme adaptability of feral swine, fuel the continued spread of this destructive animal. There is help through the state if you experience damage to your property or agriculture, due to these wild pigs. To report feral swine damage or sightings, contact: Tony Musante at 603-223-6832, USDA/APHIS-Wildlife Services, 59 Chenell Drive Suite 7, Concord, NH 03301
In southwest New Hampshire, where the vast majority of our feral boar exist, they are considered property of Blue Mountain Forest Association, a privately owned preserve located in Croydon, N.H (Corbin Park). Permission is required to hunt free-ranging wild boar that escape from their property. If granted permission (which typically is granted), you need to have a current regular N.H. hunting license, and you must hunt within legal hunting hours.
Corbin Park has an interesting story - it is a private, enclosed shooting preserve with a very limited membership.
The 24,000-acre preserve was founded in 1890 by Austin Corbin II, a Newport native who grew to prominence in the late 1800s as a founder of modern American banking.
Corbin used his fortune to buy up as much land as he could in the Croydon-Grantham area to establish a gigantic hunter’s playground, Originally, it was stocked with bison, white-tailed deer, black-tailed deer, mule deer, European red deer, bighorn sheep, moose, antelope, caribou, Himalayan mountain goats, pheasants and wild boar from the German Black Forest.
The bison, deer, elk and boar all flourished, but the pheasants flew over the fences and the rest of the species proved unable to survive. Corbin Park once had the largest bison herd in the country, and supplied bison and deer to refuges, parks and zoos all over the U.S.
Information on wild boar found at: NH Fish and Game
Information on Corbin Park found at: B Meyette
More information on wild boar damage from USDA at: USDA

October:

Porcupine picture from US Parks

Porcupine picture from NH Mountain Hiking

Watch out for Porcupines this time of year, they are on the move!
The porcupine is a rodent with black to brownish-yellow fur and strong, short legs. It has hairless soles on its feet that help it climb trees. It has a round body, small ears and a small head, but the most recognizable feature of the porcupine is its quills. A porcupine may have as many as 30,000 quills. The quills are hairs with barbed tips on the ends. The porcupine has quills on all parts of its body, except for its stomach. The longest quills are on its rump and the shortest quills are on its cheeks.
The porcupine uses its quills for defense. It cannot shoot its quills but when a predator approaches, the porcupine will turn its back, raise the quills and lash out at the threat with its tail. If the porcupine hits an animal with its quills, they become embedded in the animal. The porcupine is not an aggressive animal and it will only attack if it is threatened.
Porcupines mate in late summer and early fall. Seven months after mating the female gives birth to a single baby. When the baby is born, its quills are soft and they harden about an hour after birth. The baby porcupine is called a porcupette!
The porcupine is a solitary animal, although it may den with other porcupines in the winter. It makes its den in caves, decaying logs and hollow trees. The porcupine doesn't hibernate, but stays active all winter. It may stay in its den during bad weather, though. The porcupine is a good swimmer and its hollow quills help keep it afloat! It is also an excellent tree-climber and spends much of its time in trees. The porcupine is an herbivore and it eats leaves, twigs and green plants like skunk cabbage and clover. In the winter, it may eat bark and loves to chew on salty wood.
It is a very vocal animal and has a wide-variety of calls including moans, grunts, coughs, wails, whines, shrieks and tooth clicking.
Keep a lookout for the porcupine when you are taking a walk this time of year, especially if you have your dog with you!
Information found at: NHPTV Natureworks

September:

Flicker picture from NJ Birds

Arin said she has seen quite a few Flickers, recently.
This flashy bird is actually a large brown woodpecker about 12 inches in size. Flickers appear brownish overall with a bright white rump patch that’s conspicuous in flight and often visible when perched. With a closer look you’ll see the brown plumage is richly patterned with black spots, bars, and crescents with a black "bib" on its upper chest. Males have a black or red "mustache" that runs from its bill down to its cheek. The undersides of the wing and tail feathers are bright yellow.
The Flicker is the only woodpecker in North American that commonly finds food on the ground, where it often forages for ants and beetle larvae. It will sometimes perch on tree limbs to eat berries. The flicker's diet is mostly insects, including ants, but they also eat termites, beetles, caterpillars, fruits, berries, seeds and nuts.
The Northern Flicker can be found in open forests, woodlots and groves and is common in parks and gardens. They build their nests in holes in trees, telephone poles or birdhouses.
Like many woodpeckers, its flight is undulating. The repeated cycle of a quick succession of flaps followed by a pause creates an up and down rollercoaster effect.
During courtship, flickers peck or "hammer" on dead tree limbs or tin roofs. In some parts of the United States, flickers are known as yellowhammers.
Keep an eye out for these pretty birds. If you see that flash of white as it flies away, you'll know you saw one.
Information found at: NHPTV Natureworks


August:

Johanna by Jed Schwartz

Johanna's Swim!
On August 27th, Conservation Commission and Energy Committee member Johanna Young swam the length of Millen Pond as a memorial to Rich Cook and to bring some recognition to water quality issues. She enjoys competeing in triathlons and thought this swim would be a great way to use her swimming skills to raise awareness about water quality and conservation in our lakes in Washington.
She began her swim at the town beach at Camp Morgan and swam along the town forest side of the lake.


She was accompanied by Millen Pond resident Dennis O'Malley, in his boat, carrying supplies and ready to help Johanna if needed. Jed and Nan also followed along in their canoe to take pictures and give encouragement to her. One of the Millen Pond loons swam along most of the way to keep an eye on things and comment periodically on the action taking place in his lake!


There was a hurricane expected to arrive on Sunday but luckily Saturday turned out to be a beautiful day for Johanna's swim. It was quiet and peaceful on the lake with most of the lake's boats already secured for the coming storm.


The swim took about and hour and ended at the Brighton's beach at the far end of Millen Pond. Congratulations Johanna!! You did it.


In future years, Johanna hopes to swim the length of each of the lakes in Washington and then move on to other lakes in our region. She would love to have other swimmers join her next year.

If you would like to make a donation in honor of Johanna's swim, please send a check to the Conservation Commission with "memorial swim" in the memo line. Donations can be sent to Conservation Commission, 7 Halfmoon Pond Road, Washington, NH 03280.
A special thank you to Dennis O'Malley for coming along and supporting Johanna's swim!

July:

Loon Family Picture by Charles Johnson

Wildlife in Washington!
With all the recent wildlife sightings in Washington reported by Conservation Commission members this month, we thought we would share some wildlife pictures and video we have received from people around town. See our minutes for more sightings: WCC July minutes

We received these wonderful shots of loons on Island Pond from Charles Johnson, including the one above.


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Here's a treat from Ed Thayer, he caught a bear on video, swimming in a pond in East Washington! Click here to view: Ed's YouTube video of a bear
Here is a video of a grouse, also caught by Ed Thayer, click here to view: Ed's grouse movie

Ed has quite a few videos he has posted of his farm and animals, too. You can find the links for them at either of these you tube links, he posts them under the name "whighway". Enjoy!
Ed caught this beautiful water snake near Carol's culvert.


The Paquin family captured a bear who visited their back porch in East Washington, looking for goodies.


While on patrol around town our police chief Steve Marshall always has his camera handy for wildlife shots like these:

Mr. Beaver

Mr. Red Fox

It's not wildlife but here's a pretty shot of a rainbow over the middle of Washington by Tom Noonan:


Johanna Young's lovely picture of a Luna moth:


A magnificent Bald Eagle that Robin Collins photographed in a tree near Parker's Point on Millen Pond:


The glowing eyes of a Fischer were caught by Becky Denslow last winter:


The Washington town website has even more pictures to see, click here for the: Washington Wildlife page

Thank you to everyone who gave us their wildlife shots to use! Have you seen any wildlife recently that you want us to know about? Email us your pictures to this address: WCC email


June:

Postcard from NHFG

Time to go Fishing!
Fishing season is open and Washington has many great spots for angling. New Hampshire Fish and Game has all kinds of information and resources to help get you out there catching fish. The following are helpful links from their website: Fishing in New Hampshire

• Weekly fishing Reports - find out what is being caught and where
• Public access maps - find a public boat launch
• Fish Stocking report - find out where F&G has stocked in the past week
• Tips on how to fish - all you need to know about fishing techniques and how to tips
• Get a 2011 fishing license on-line - print it out for immediate use
• Depth maps for Washington ponds - find the sweet spots
• Be aware of aquatic nuisance species - take action to protect our water bodies
• Guidelines for eating fish safely - use extra precaution for fish caught in May Pond and Ashuelot Pond because of high mercury levels. Note: stocked trout are always safe to eat.
• Information on using non-lead sinkers and jigs - help protect Loons and other water birds

Whether you catch and release or eat them for dinner - good luck and happy fishing!

Here's a treat from Ed Thayer, he caught a bear on video, swimming in a pond in East Washington! Click here to view: Ed's YouTube video. He's also got some other videos from his farm at the same link. Enjoy!

May:
 
Picture by Mike Marchand NHFG                          Picture by Mike Marchand NHFG

Watch Out, Turtles Crossing!
Spring is a welcome time in New Hampshire, and one of the signs of the season is turtles migrating to nesting habitat. We can help them survive by slowing down and keeping an eye out for turtles crossing the roads in coming weeks. Turtle nesting season in New Hampshire typically lasts from late May into early July, reaching maximum intensity in early to mid-June. Today, the biggest threat to turtle populations in New Hampshire is being struck by automobiles on roadways.
To find an appropriate nesting habitat, female turtles may travel several hundred yards or more, seeking a sandy or other well-drained area that is open to sunlight.
Predators are generally not catastrophic for local populations but the impact of development and the associated increase in amount and speed of traffic on our roads is taking a toll.
Here are a few things you can do to help New Hampshire turtles survive:
• Slow down and watch for turtles in roadways!
• Help turtles cross roads safely. If you see a turtle crossing a road, and it is safe for you to do so, help it cross in the direction it was traveling.  Never create a dangerous situation for other motorists or yourself.  Snapping turtles should be handled with care or allowed to cross on their own.
• Don't take the turtle home or move it far from where you found it. A turtle taken to your home is a turtle lost from the local population. (Also, all New Hampshire native turtles are protected by state law during nesting season).
• If a turtle is injured, visit wildlife rehabbers.com or call Fish and Game's Wildlife Division at (603) 271-2461 for a list of wildlife rehabilitators in your area. For more on what to do if you find an injured turtle, visit NH Wildlife - Injured Turtle.
• Report turtle sightings to N.H. Fish and Game's Reptile and Amphibian Reporting Program.
• Work with land trusts and town officials to help conserve important natural areas in your community.
• Another tip:  Mulch piles can be attractive places for turtles to nest when located near wetland areas.  Spreading mulch into gardens soon after delivery will reduce turtles from nesting in a mulch pile that is likely to be disturbed later in the season. If mulch will be in place for several weeks or more, covering with plastic will help reduce attractiveness for nesting turtles.
By taking these steps, we can all help to ensure that New Hampshire's turtles stay abundant and healthy. So slow down and give turtles a brake this spring and summer!
Information from NH Fish and Game

April:

Picture by Victor Young NHFG

Arin brought us a beautiful pair of Spotted Salamanders to look at during our meeting. She found them crossing the road at night on their way to a vernal pool.
The Spotted Salamander is a large dark salamander measuring 4.5-7.5 inches. The base color is generally black or bluish-black and it has up to 50 round yellow or orange spots arranged irregularly down the back and sides.
It is found throughout NH in mixed woodlands with slow moving streams, swamps, or vernal pools. The adults spend their time underground or under logs, boards, or stones in hardwood forests and on hillsides.  At night they will emerge to feast on insects and other invertebrates. It uses its sticky tongue to catch worms, insects, and snails. Some spotted salamanders can live to be 30 years old! 
Warm, rainy spring nights after the winter thaw, between mid-March and the end of April, trigger a mass migration to their isolated breeding pools. They usually breed in vernal pools because they do not contain predatory fish. Once there, they breed and the females lay several jelly masses containing 100-200 eggs, which are attached to submerged sticks and vegetation.

  
Picture by Trombley/USDAFS               Picture by Victor Young NHFG
The larvae hatch in one to two months, depending on the water temperature. They look something like dull, yellow-green speckled tadpoles, with long feathery gills protruding from their heads. They spend the better part of the spring and summer growing into their legs and feasting on the many aquatic insects in the vernal pools, becoming salamanders in two to four months.


Picture by Dan Drake USGS
By the time the vernal pool dries up, they are ready to use their lungs rather than gills. They set out to find their new terrestrial home, usually within a few hundred feet of the now empty vernal pool.
The rest of their year is spent hibernating in the ground or under rotting stumps.
Spotted salamanders are particularly sensitive to development. Destruction of vernal pools will interfere with breeding, while destruction of forests within a half-mile radius of the pools will destroy adult habitat. Roads are particularly dangerous during their migratory seasons. Do your part to protect salamanders by being aware of vernal pools and protecting them from development.
Come visit a vernal pool on Faxon Hill Road with the Conservation Commission on May 7th at 11AM. Wear your boots and be prepared to see all kinds of creatures. Call a member for more details.
Information found at: New Hampshire Fish and Game, NHPT and Heart of New England.com

March:

Picture by Jed Schwartz
  
Picture by Sue Hofstetter                     Picture from UNH

It’s Maple Sugaring time!
This wonderful and delicious gift from nature comes only once a year and now is the time to enjoy it. The maple trees are tapped and sap is boiling in the sugarhouses.
Maple sugaring time in New Hampshire runs from mid-February to mid-April and the maple season usually lasts 4-6 weeks. The days and length of the sap runs depend entirely on the weather. As the frozen sap in the maple tree thaws, it begins to move and build up pressure within the tree. When the internal pressure reaches a certain point, sap will flow from any fresh wound in the tree. Freezing nights and warm sunny days create the pressure needed for a good sap harvest.
In late February, New Hampshire maple producers tap their sugar maples by drilling a small hole in the trunk and inserting a spout. A bucket or plastic tubing is fastened to the spout and the crystal clear sap drips from the tree. It is then collected and transported to the sugar house where it is boiled down in an evaporator over a blazing hot fire. As the steam rises from the evaporator pans, the sap becomes more concentrated until it finally reaches the proper density to be classified as syrup. It is then drawn from the evaporator, filtered, graded and bottled. It takes approximately forty gallons of sap to make one gallon of pure maple syrup.
We hope you will visit a sugar house during the maple season and learn for yourself just how this ancient tradition is carried on. New Hampshire's maple producers take great pride in the high quality of their maple products.
Washington has several local sugarhouses to visit including:
Fletcher & Family Sugar House, Ed & Jane Thayer, at 2528 E. Washington Rd. in East Washington
Atkins Family Sugar House, Shawn & Kathy Atkins, at 504 South Main St. in Washington
Crane Farm, South Main Street in Washington
There are many back yard sugaring operations to visit, as well. Don't delay, the season won't last for too much longer. Make a plan to get outside, enjoy the warm spring weather, watch the sugaring fun and get your supply of fresh maple syrup!
Information found at: NH Maple Producers

February:

Trail Camera picture by Ken Eastman


Red Fox picture Animal Pictures for Kids


Coyote picture by UNH

What Am I?
Ken got a new trail camera and captured this picture the first night! He and Charley have had a beautiful Red Fox living in the base of an old hollow maple tree behind their house and hoped to get a picture of it. At first glance they weren't sure if the picture showed a fox or a coyote but in comparing the pictures above, I think they definitely got their fox! He was attracted to this spot by spilled bird seed and squirrels living in the snow holes.
A glimpse of a cherry-red fox against the backdrop of snow-covered fields is a sight to behold. Both red and gray foxes live in the Granite State, but the red fox is far more abundant and has a widespread range. Gray foxes are more common in southern New Hampshire, and are rarely recorded in Coos County. Unlike red foxes, gray foxes (which can climb trees) are able to co-exist with coyotes.
The larger of the two foxes, the red fox has a sleek, lean appearance, compared to the more stout and robust gray fox. The red fox is generally reddish, though shades may vary, and has a distinct white tip on its tail. The gray fox has a line of black-tipped fur down its back. The upper part of its gray coat is grizzled with guard hairs banded with gray, black and white; the under parts range from light-colored, buff and white to reddish. The gray fox's tail is tipped with black.
The gray fox prefers more wooded and brushy habitat, while its cousin, the red fox, inhabits fields and farm country. Gray foxes have always been here, but have never been as numerous as red foxes. The gray fox's diet changes with the season, ranging from grasshoppers, grapes and apples in the summer months, to small mammals like mice, voles and squirrels at other times of year. In the last decade, New Hampshire trappers have taken about 100 gray fox each year.
Like gray foxes, red foxes can eat a variety of foods, including insects and fruit. They are well known for capturing mice and voles, which generally make up most of their diet. They will also eat larger prey, such as woodchucks, rabbits and the occasional housecat.
For many years, hunting red fox with hounds was a favored sport. In the 1930s and 1940s, as many as 5,000 foxes were taken in New Hampshire each year. Today, hunters take only a dozen or two foxes each year, and trappers have harvested an average of 310 red foxes a year over the past ten years. - Eric Orff, Wildife Biologist
Information found at: NH Fish and Game

January:

Bobcat picture Diane Low

Jed and a neighbor both spotted a bobcat recently in East Washington. It was a big and very beautiful cat!
Historically this area has been known to have bobcats and has suitable habitat for them. Bobcats are associated with uplands or wetlands with dense understory vegetation, and rugged terrain that may include rocky outcrops. The Sunapee Highlands offer this kind of habitat with a large area of protected land where they can move around safely.
Mature males can weigh over 30 pounds, and mature females are usually close to 20 pounds. Because of this size difference, males can be effective at capturing large prey, including deer. Juveniles (males and females) and adult females because of their smaller size must rely on small prey, especially rabbits and gray squirrels, a variety of mice, voles and shrews.
Their coats, in summer, tend to be tawny brown with obvious areas of red. In winter, their thicker coats lean toward slate gray.
Bobcats are a protected species, and trapping and hunting seasons in New Hampshire have been closed since 1989.
Although secretive, bobcats can be detected where they live. With snow on the ground, tracks can be a fairly reliable indication that there is a bobcat hunting your woodlot. Bobcats have very round feet compared to wild coyotes and dogs.


Track picture UNH.edu
In addition to shape and size of their tracks (house cat tracks are much smaller), the stride of a bobcat is usually shorter than that of a coyote.


Track picture UNH.edu
If you have the opportunity to track a bobcat and coyotes or foxes, you are likely to see some differences in their respective behaviors. Foxes and coyotes will often walk along logging roads for considerable distances, whereas bobcats will often just cross them. On the other hand, young bobcats may walk on top of fallen trees and logs whereas foxes and coyotes won't.
UNH has a cooperative project with New Hampshire Fish and Game to track bobcats and learn more about their distribution around the state.
Keep your eye out for this beautiful and fascinating cat and report your sightings here: UNH Bobcat Sightings Website
Information found at: UNH Bobcat Project Website and NH Wildlife Plan Website

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