Nature nips: Ode to a maple; one horse saved; series on hog production summarized; wild turkeys rule New England

Darlyn Brewer Hoffstott's maple (Photo: Kristian Thacker, NYT)

In an ode to a huge, dying maple tree in Pennsylvania, Daryln Brewer Hoffstot writes for The New York Times, "'Standing people' is what the Cherokee called trees. I feel as if I am losing a member of the family."

Ever wondered how that jellied cranberry sauce is made? The Times tells us.

A horse won races, was retired and sold to farmers who sent him to a kill pen when he wore out. Donors to animal sanctuary in New York saved him, Rural Intelligence reports.

Madison McVan of Investigate Midwest has summarized the four-part series he did this fall about changes in hog production.

In New England, wild turkeys "were once hunted nearly to extinction; now they’re swarming the streets like they own the place," The New Yorker reports. "Sometimes turnabout is fowl play."