Winter Treasure Hunt

A walk through the woods in winter is like following a treasure map. You never know what might be hidden for you to discover. So gather your bullwhip, put on your Indiana Jones hat, and let’s go on an adventure! How many of these wild “treasures” can you find?

Spy the Year’s First Butterfly

Mourning cloak butterflies spend the depths of winter huddled in tree cavities or hiding under loose bark. On warm winter days they wake up and flutter around looking for tree sap to slurp.

Bag Some Blooms

Ozark witch-hazel is among the first plants to flower in Missouri. Even when there’s snow on the ground, look (and sniff) along streams for this woody shrub with yellow, frilly, sweet-smelling flowers.

Get Scolded by a Squirrel

Bushy-tailed nut-munchers hate to be interrupted when they’re gathering acorns to eat. Listen for a grumpy cherk-cherk-cherk if you startle one.

See Pepper Jump

Tiny, insect-like creatures called snow fleas become active on sunny winter days. To find them, look for pepper-sized specks in the snow at the base of trees. Snow fleas have spring-loaded tails that catapult them into the air when they want to flee.

Note Some Nests

Bare branches make it easier to spot nests that were once hidden by leaves. Look for the cup-shaped nests of songbirds, large, papery nests of bald-faced hornets, and messy leaf piles made by squirrels.

Hear a Hammering Headbanger

Woodpeckers talk to each other by drumming. They pick something hollow — like a dead branch — and hammer at it with their beaks. The drumlike rat-a-tat-tapping tells other woodpeckers someone is looking for a mate or claiming a patch of trees as their own.

Find a Fungus

Colorful funguses can be found growing on trees (usually dead ones) at any time of the year. Look for multi-colored turkey tail mushrooms, creamy white oyster mushrooms, and reddish-orange cinnabar polypores.

Turn up a Tunnel

If you notice a tangle of tunnels in the grass under the snow, you’ve found the work of a vole. These mouselike rodents with stubby tails snip grass to eat. As they do, they build — mouthful by mouthful — a maze of trails used by a variety of small creatures.

Scratch an Artist Conk

If you find an artist conk mushroom growing on a tree, use a stick to scratch its snow-white underside. Like magic, wherever you scratch will turn dark.

Witness a Rabbit Rumble

In late winter, eastern cottontails show off to attract a mate. They chase and hop over each other. Sometimes they even punch or kick with their paws.

Spot a Hungry Hawk

Cooper’s hawks and sharp-shinned hawks get their dinner by bagging birds. The agile raptors dive-bomb through trees to catch unwary prey by surprise. If you find a pile of feathers, you’ve probably found the scraps from one of their meals.

Marvel at Migration

The airways over Missouri become a highway in the sky in February as thousands of geese migrate north to nest. Listen for the honking looook of Canada geese, the noisy, nasal honking of snow geese, and the squeaky, laugh-like yelps of greater white-fronted geese.

Search for Sheds

When mating season winds down, a buck’s antlers become wobbly, like loose teeth. Eventually, they fall off. Search for “sheds” on south-facing hillsides, in crop fields, and along deer trails.

Match the Species to its Feces

Every animal eats. Every animal poops. Biologists call these droppings “scat.” Deer leave raisin-shaped pellets. Rabbit pellets are rounder, like chocolate puffs. Coyote scat is usually furry from the animals they eat. And raccoons often leave seeds in their scat.

Peruse Some Pawprints

Most of Missouri’s mammals come out at night, so they often go unseen. Footprints in fresh snow (or a muddy bank) offer clues to who’s been prowling around.

Watch for Waxwings

Cedar waxwings are named for the waxy red nubs on their wing feathers. In winter, waxwings form noisy flocks to search for cedar berries and other wild fruits to eat. Listen for their breezy, trilling calls to help find a flock.

Spot a Sleepy Screecher

Look closely inside tree cavities and along branches. You might find an eastern screech-owl taking a nap. The camouflage pattern on its feathers makes the tiny owl all but invisible against a barky background.

Find a Foraging Flock

In winter, birds band together to search the forest for food. If you hear a foraging flock but can’t find it, hiss through your teeth to make a loud pish-pish-pish sound. This mimics the alarm call of a wren, and curious birds might fly closer to investigate.

Hear Some Hoots

If you stay out until sunset, you might hear a lovestruck owl calling to its mate. Here’s how to tell hoo’s hooting: Great horned owls give a deep hoo, huh-HOO, hooo, hooo. Barred owls sound like they’re hooting: “Who cooks for you? Who cooks for you all?” And eastern screech-owls give a high-pitched wavering whinny.

Welcome Returning Robins

Some American robins spend winter in Missouri. Others fly south where there’s more food to be found. In early February, watch for flocks of wandering robins returning from their southern vacations.

Spot a Hungry 'Munk

Some eastern chipmunks sleep through winter. Others nap only during cold spells. And a few stay active all winter long. By mid-February, nearly all chipmunks emerge from their underground dens to search for food.

Call a Coyote

Coyotes yip, bark, and howl to tell other coyotes “I’m lonely” or “stay away” or “let’s find some rabbits to eat.” If you hear coyotes calling, give a loud howl. Who knows? They might howl back.