It’s always nice to have a few days off during this time of year. While a lot of folks are busy with family, or having cozy times at home, I can wander through the snowy woods looking for the signs and tracks of all the other animals who we share the land with.

For today’s show I am just telling some stories of some of the trails I have been on over the past week, detailing some of what I have been observing and learning. Fondling icy Coyote tracks, to learning about a new species of Poison Ivy (new to me), to finding a flayed Cottontail carcass, it’s been a ton of fun this past week.

Hope you enjoy!

To learn more : Peterson Field Guide to North American Bird Nests by Casey McFarland, Matt Monjello, and David Moskowitz. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2021.
Minnesota Wildflowers entry on Western Poison Ivy (Toxicodendron rydbergii)Minnesota Wildflowers entry on Eastern Poison Ivy (Toxicodendron radicans)
Field Manual of Michigan Flora by Edward G. Voss & Anton A. Reznicek. University of Michigan Press, 2012.The Nature of Oaks by Douglas W. Tallamy. Timber Press, 2021.
American Wildlife Plants: A Guide to Wildlife Food Habits by Arthur C. Martin, et al. Dover, 1951.
The Deer of North America by Leonard Lee Rue III. Lyons Press, 1997.
Acorns and Deer Management article by Dr. Craig Harper and Jarred Brooke (pdf)