Sapsuckers peck holes into trees to create reservoirs called sap wells, collecting it with brushlike tongues. They also become food repositories that serve butterflies, beetles, moths and flies, while sapsuckers’ nest cavities get used by squirrels and owls.

Harvard students of the early 1900s took young squirrels to raise, “carrying them about in their pockets until more than half grown, and letting them run about the tables at Memorial and Randall halls at will during mealtime.”

Many people have anecdotes about the intelligence of crows, which have brains accounting for almost 2 percent of its body mass – similar to that of humans.

Though they have ratlike tails, muskrats are not rats. And since muskrat pairs mark the border of their territory with musk, you might think this is the origin of the name – but you’d be wrong again. What is true about these creatures?

The white-breasted nuthatch hops down tree trunks head first like a squirrel, “wonderful little gymnasts [that] keep their nerves as cool as the thermometer in January.”

There are only about 50 breeding pairs of loons in Massachusetts, where the birds were once abundant. If you are lucky, you might see a loon on Fresh Pond.

The white-throated sparrow is a fascinating bird with unique characteristics not found in other bird species whose behavior raises many questions – even about us.

The common grackle, native to North America, is a member of the blackbird family and, as the name implies, is quite common and abundant. You can spot grackles in Massachusetts all year long.

Urban skunks are peaceful and tend to mind their own business. As long as we do not threaten them, they will live peacefully nearby, perhaps letting us watch from afar their maternal antics. So if you should find one living under your porch, don’t worry.

The peregrine falcon is the fastest bird on Earth. They’ve been clocked diving from great heights at more than 200 mph in the service of deadly accurate hunting.