Hardwoods
Softwoods
New England Forests
Forestry Practices
Forest Critters
100
The capped nuts of this hardwood genus are famously a favorite food of squirrels, but are also enjoyed by a wide range of wildlife including coyotes and turkeys.
What are oaks (Quercus spp.)?
100
One of the advantages that most conifers have over their deciduous counterparts is the ability to continue this process throughout the winter.
What is photosynthesis?
100
New England states are responsible for 60% of the domestic production of this sap-derived forest product, an iconic symbol of our rural economy.
What is maple syrup?
100
According to the US Forest Service, this is "the art and science of controlling the establishment, growth, composition, health and quality of forests to meet the diverse needs and values of landowners and society."
What is silviculture? ("What is forestry?" also acceptable)
100
This forest-altering mammal was the primary target of the European settler fur trade in North America due to its thick waterproof pelt.
What is the North American beaver (Castor canadensis)?
200
New England members of this hardwood genus include three white-barked species, one golden-barked, one pinkish, and one whose bark is a dark gray (not quite black!).
What are birches (Betula spp.)?
200
An individual of this common and iconic softwood species, found just a 45 minute drive from UMass, is the tallest tree in New England.
What is white pine (Pinus strobus)?
200
This taxonomic kingdom includes species that cause cankers, root rot, and wilt in many New England trees.
What are fungi?
200
This management strategy is often used in pitch pine forests to decrease understory fuel loads and improve habitat quality.
What is prescribed burning?
200
According to a study published in 2016 by the Massachusetts Department of Conservation & Recreation (DCR), the Prescott Peninsula in the Quabbin Reservoir is perhaps the only area in Massachusetts where this browsing species outnumbers white-tailed deer.
What is moose (Alces alces)?
300
While not as recognizable as its sweet-sapped cousin, the US Forest Service estimates this tree species to be the most common hardwood in southern New England.
What is red maple (Acer rubrum)?
300
This species is the most shade tolerant softwood in our local forests.
What is eastern hemlock (Tsuga canadensis)?
300
Measuring at almost 800,000 acres in area, this national forest is the largest in New England (though there are only two to choose from)!
What is the White Mountain National Forest?
300
If you wanted to reset succession in a forest stand, you would use this straightforward (and sometimes controversial) prescription.
What is clear cutting?
300
The large, roughly rectangular or oval-shaped cavities shown here were excavated by this woodpecker, native to New England.
What is the pileated woodpecker (Dryocopus pileatus)?
400
This vase-shaped hardwood was the most popular street tree in the United States before a fungal disease caused mass mortality in the species.
What is American elm (Ulmus americana)?
400
Softwood trees fall under this botanical group, whose name directly translates to "naked seed" due to their seeds' lack of protective outer coating.
What are gymnosperms?
400
While this sap-sucking invasive insect with cottony egg sacs has not yet colonized the northernmost parts of New England, elsewhere in the region it has caused significant mortality in its host trees.
What is hemlock woolly adelgid?
400
These two tools (only one of which is necessary to get credit for this question) are commonly used by foresters to measure the height of a tree in the field.
What is a clinometer or a Biltmore stick / Merritt hypsometer?
400
This species is known for being elusive and catlike in appearance, along with being one of the only canids that can climb trees. It is one of two similar-looking and similar-named species that live in New England.
What is gray fox (Urocyon cinereoargenteus)?
500
In New England, this "muscular" hardwood is usually restricted to moist understories and riparian areas.
What is American hornbeam (Carpinus caroliniana)?
500
Often found in bogs or forests with particularly cold winters, this species is one of the few deciduous conifers in North America.
What is American larch / tamarack (Larix laricina)?
500
State-managed forests help to filter drinking water as it moves from this 400-billion-gallon body of water to Boston.
What is the Quabbin Reservoir?
500
This common silvicultural practice does not involve dieting or losing hair; rather, it is the selective removal of trees in a stand to improve the growth rate and health of the remaining trees.
What is thinning?
500
This critter leaves distinct, sometimes called “childlike” tracks with out-turned thumbs.
What is Virginia opossum (Didelphis virginiana)?