Volume 22 Issue 4, Winter 2017 by Marion Constante Some of us root for Peter Rabbit on his tales of adventure while many others side with Mr. McGregor, as he tirelessly tries to protect his garden from Peter and his family. Regardless of which side you are on, cottontail rabbits are abundant in our literature and […]

Vol. 22 Issue 1, Spring 2017 By Dr. John Hadidian Beaver (Castor canadensis) fur provided an important economic foundation for the European colonization of North America. To their great misfortune, this semi-aquatic mammal’s dense underfur happened to be ideally suited for the type of gentlemen’s hats favored throughout the 18th and 19th centuries. The tremendous industry in pelts underwrote the rise of the first […]

Vol. 21 Issue 4, Winter 2016     Photo by Katherine Daniels By John Griffin, Director, Urban Wildlife for The Humane Society of the United States Many articles about the red fox begin by introducing readers to the fact that they are the most widely distributed of any wild carnivore, and this is certainly true, […]

Vol. 21 Issue 1, Spring 2016 By Nan McCarry   Sometimes people ask, “Why don’t I see any birds? I put up a bird feeder.” In this issue, we read about the sounds of nature. How can we bring these seasonal sounds to our own backyards? The answer lies in the garden: Our gardening practices […]

Vol. 19 Issue 3, Fall 2014 By Lindsey Brookbank Groundhogs (Marmota monax) are gentle, often times comical, vegetarians. They are celebrated on February 2, but may not be as welcome in your garden later in the year. Conflicts with groundhogs usually occur over who gets to eat the vegetables. Despite their attraction to what grows […]

Vol. 19 Issue 2, Summer 2014 By Belinda Burwell, DVM, Blue Ridge Wildlife Center When living in close proximity to humans, wild animals become injured in various ways. At the Blue Ridge Wildlife Center (BRWC), where we rescue and care for thousands of injured native wild animals each year, we gather data on the many […]

Vol. 18 Issue 4, Winter 2013 By Emily Cook We spend considerable time trying to deer-proof our yards, purchasing plants that are considered “inedible” only to have them grazed through like a cheap buffet. We net our berry bushes and fence off our gardens in an attempt to save a small fraction of the harvest […]