Nathaniel T. Wheelwright
Is climate change just a hoax? It’s not … but why not follow Ronald Reagan’s advice and “trust but verify” by looking for evidence — pro or con — in your own backyard? If you pay attention to animals, plants and weather, you may discover that your neighborhood really is getting warmer.
Those splotches on rocks, tree trunks and twigs? Lichens! Lichens are actually a symbiosis between two major divisions of life, neither of which is a plant. And you can find them everywhere, as long as the air is not polluted.
Trees provide us shelter, fuel, food, protection from climate change, and beauty. But they also have deep spiritual importance. In a treetop conversation, forest ecologist Nalini Nadkarni points out the connection between trees and religion.
If you live in an old house, you probably are acquainted with these three home invaders: long-bodied cellar spiders, western conifer seed bugs, and multicolored Asian lady beetles. Although they’re not native to the northeast, they’re completely harmless and really quite companionable.
Have you ever noticed tumor-like growths on plants? Fungi, insects, mites and bacteria are like “body snatchers,” penetrating plant cells and manipulating them to produce galls, cankers and witch’s brooms for the parasites’ benefit. Fortunately, most are benign.