Marcia Bonta

  • Owls of Winter

    January is great horned owl month on our mountain. Not only are their hoots the quintessential signature of long, silent, moonlit, winter nights, but they are also more visible in the day time. During the rest of the year I may have an occasional glimpse of one as it flies from a roost, but my…

  • Furry Raiders

    I knew there was going to be trouble last autumn when the acorn, black walnut, beechnut and hickory crops failed. Our mountain then supported the largest population of eastern gray squirrels in the 26 years we have lived here. Every acre of forest contained leafy squirrel nests tucked high in the tallest deciduous trees. And…

  • Wily Hole Digger

    Forget Groundhog Day! It’s a scam. Around here most woodchucks don’t appear until March, although we have recorded them as early as February 25. But March is the official wakeup month for most Pennsylvania woodchucks and when they emerge they are interested in sex, not in predicting the weather. First the males appear and wander…

  • Irrupting Birds

    Every winter birdwatchers hope for an irruption of boreal birds from the northern forests. This “irruption” or irregular migratory movement southward of birds that ordinarily live and breed in Canada and Alaska include glamour species such as pine and evening grosbeaks, purple finches, red and white-winged crossbills, pine siskins, common and hoary redpolls, red-breasted nuthatches,…