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Outdoors

OUTDOORS: Why do we try so hard to tame the wildflowers?

OUTDOORS: Why do we try so hard to tame the wildflowers?

There is a 'delightful variety' of wildflowers in our midst if we only leave them alone, says columnist
OUTDOORS: Debunking the myth of the so-called 'fire lizard'

OUTDOORS: Debunking the myth of the so-called 'fire lizard'

Salamanders — there are 11 species found in our region — are easily overlooked, even when they are at their peak activity, which is in the early spring
OUTDOORS: Suit up for sunny days — and blackflies

OUTDOORS: Suit up for sunny days — and blackflies

Outdoors columnist offers good news, bad news, and tips to repel pesky fliers
OUTDOORS: Absence of porcupines bit of a prickly issue

OUTDOORS: Absence of porcupines bit of a prickly issue

At one time, seeing a porcupine on a woodland walk was commonplace; outdoors columnist explains why that is no longer the case in our region
OUTDOORS: April tests the resiliency of region's migratory birds

OUTDOORS: April tests the resiliency of region's migratory birds

For eons, species have been forced to push their limits of survival to discover that what doesn't kill them may just make them stronger, says columnist
OUTDOORS: To feed or not to feed ... that is the burning question

OUTDOORS: To feed or not to feed ... that is the burning question

'There is across the land some no small level of discussion as to whom shall be rightful, and to whom shall scorn be placed upon,' says columnist
OUTDOORS: Battle in war against invader reed set to take a turn

OUTDOORS: Battle in war against invader reed set to take a turn

While experts warn it's not a silver bullet, the introduction of bio controls could help turn the tide against invasive phragmites, says columnist
OUTDOORS: Is that a cottontail? A snowshoe hare? A jack rabbit?

OUTDOORS: Is that a cottontail? A snowshoe hare? A jack rabbit?

Cottontail typically claim the garden shrubs, the snowshoe hares tend to dominate the conifer swamps and the 'giant jacks' have mostly disappeared, says columnist
OUTDOORS: Scarlet cap fungus a show-stopper in local woodlots

OUTDOORS: Scarlet cap fungus a show-stopper in local woodlots

The brilliant red stands out like a blast against the dull brown and blacks of old wet leaves on the forest floor in early spring, says columnist
OUTDOORS: Chipmunks looking for love after wintry slumber

OUTDOORS: Chipmunks looking for love after wintry slumber

While it is an anomaly to see a chipmunk in the winter, they do not hibernate, often due to an 'urge to merge with a female,' says columnist