Our fairy friends Thimble Hickory and Blossom Dewdrop wrote back and answered your questions about North Country nature and the lives of fairies. While they're settled into the warmth of the tropics for winter, they're already excited to return to the North Country next spring and they wanted us to say thank you for all your great questions! 

1. Olivia, 21, Are magaritifera known to occur in this stretch of the Grasse?

Hi Olivia! Yes, we find margaritifera (a freshwater pearl mussel) in the Grasse River along with other cool mussels, yet margaritifera are the most abundant. They make wonderful water friends with us fairies. They also can be found in Little River and Elm Creek too!

2. Sophia, 7, What does poison ivy look like because I keep forgetting?

Hi Sophia! Great Question! When you’re on the lookout to avoid poison ivy, they have leaves that are smooth with rounded edges, kinda like a mitten. We look for smaller green plants that grow in clusters of three leaves found near the roots of trees and try to avoid those plants as it usually means... poison ivy. Additionally, where the three leaves meet there is a red dot on the stem, which is a good trick for spotting it if you’re unsure. We included a picture of it to help you out!

3. Ophèlie, 7,  How did you build the fairy house?

Hi Ophèlie! Blossom and I work together to pick up bark, pinecones, sticks, and other woodsy supplies in the area, and make the houses stand tall using tree sap. Sometimes we use our fairy pixie dust to help us move big and heavy materials like rocks. We have a fun time creating our own homes. You can make houses for us using the same materials too, and we just might stop by!

4. Anahita, 4, What do you eat?

Hi Anahita! I love to eat a lot of different things! My favorite meals are acorn soup and walnut cereal. Thimble enjoys eating honey cakes for dessert. We also love to snack on all types of small berries in the area, but we have to be careful not to eat a poisonous one - good thing Thimble is an expert!

5. Roberta, Do fairies actual carry pixie dust and what do they use it for?

Hi Roberta! We absolutely do carry pixie dust! We actually have different dust that helps us do different things. Some dust makes us invisible when we want to stay hidden and some can make things fly! We of course don’t need help flying because we have wings but sometimes it’s fun to share the adventure with friends!

6.  Desiree, 8, Where do you go when people are at your house.

Hi Desiree! Sorry we missed you. We may have been out for a walk collecting acorns for our favorite soup, or sometimes we miss guests because we’ve recently used our invisibility dust and can’t control how long the effects last. We’ll be back again in the spring so make sure to keep an eye out for us then!

7. Claire, 6,  Why don’t I ever see fairies?

Hi Claire! We’re very shy and sometimes we get startled easily. Usually we use our invisibility dust when people are around because we don’t want to show ourselves until we know them. We’ll be sure to keep an eye out for you on our next visit because we’re sure you're very nice!!

8. Scout, 7, How long has it been here

Hi Scout! We’ve been in the North Country since the summer. We like to spend the warmer months up here before traveling south for the winter. We love to explore new places so we usually don’t live in the exact same place twice, but don’t worry we’ll be somewhere around here next year. Keep your eyes open in the spring, that’s when we come back from the south!

9. Noah & Zach,  22 & 21, How long have they lived here? What do they eat? Y is there no furniture in the house?

Hi Noah and Zach! We don’t live here all year round, but we’ve been making stops in the North Country during our journey south for a couple years now! Thimble and I typically stay in the houses for two or three days to explore the area and make new animal friends before hitting the road. Some of our favorite foods are flower petals, clovers, and berries (especially elderberries), but Thimble makes excellent acorn soup. We usually only go inside to sleep, so we don’t need much in the way of furniture. When we get tired, we just bring our leaf blankets inside and go to bed. Thanks for the questions, guys!

10. Matt, 20, Why are these houses actually here?

Hi Matt! The houses are here to give us places to rest on our migration south for the winter. We love to stop in for a couple days, explore the North Country wildlife, and catch up with our bird, squirrel, and insect friends!

11. Ethyn, 10, Where do you travel to in the winter?

Hi Ethyn! We travel all the way down to the tropical rainforests wayyyy south of Canton to escape the cold winters up north. It’s a long journey but it's worth it to feel the sun on our wings all winter long. 

12. Iris, 18, What is your favorite type of hot tea?

Hi Iris! Blossom and my favorite hot tea is acorn tea! The best part about it, is it is very plentiful in the North Country! We especially love to dip honey cakes in the tea, but that’s a sweet treat for special occasions only!

13. Finn, 4, Why do caterpillars turn into butterflies?

Hi Finn! Great question! Just like you get bigger and taller as you get older, so do caterpillars. Then once they are big enough they turn into butterflies and become adults. Blossom and I have very many butterfly friends, we love to fly and play with them! 

14. Lily, 11, ​​If you left the fairy house here, would mice live in it? It would make a cute mouse house, I thought that's what it was at first.

Hi Lily! That is a great observation. We love sharing our home with the mice when we are away, they are great friends of ours! They help keep other critters out of our home while we spend the winter in the tropical forest. 

ABOUT ASK A FAIRY

Each spring and fall, a merry group of fairies migrates through the North Country. In the fall, they head south for the winter, in the spring, they are northern bound for the summer. These aren't just any fairies – these fairies live in the woods, where they spend their days bonding with birds, talking with trees, buzzing with bugs, and getting friendly with fungi. As you might guess, over time they’ve become expert naturalists. Each season during their visits, you'll have the chance to visit their fairy houses on new North Country trails and ask them any questions you have about nature. Thank you for participating. Please contact info@natureupnorth.org with any questions or feedback. Thank you!