But winds could break and kill trees that otherwise might bounce back, he said. Maine's wildlife should be resilient. Mac Hunter, a professor of wildlife ecology at the University of Maine said mice, voles, squirrels and pine martens will probably stay safe looking for food under the snow. Foxes and raccoons, with their insulating layers of fat, may nap until the storm passes. Deer and moose will shelter amid dense evergreen stands, while bears are already hibernating.
Birds are likely to be the hardest hit.
Maine will be unable to break the ice around the fruit they seek. Chickadees may fare better, aiming their beaks at the undersides of branches where the ice is thin or nonexistent. Like every winter, Markowsky said eight out of 10 of the songbirds will die. This winter may be harsher than others, but she said the frigid deaths are normal, and the birds make up for the abundantly in the spring. Return to top of this page.