Category: Quality Of Life

It’s really dry

As noted by WMUR in a Sept. 11 online report, New Hampshire is very, very dry. According to the report, a small portion of Grafton County, about 7 percent of the state, is suffering from conditions of “extreme drought.” Conditions in much of the rest of the state are classed as “severe drought.” “Just three months ago,” WMUR reported, “100% of the state was not considered to be even abnormally dry, but the situation has progressively worsened since the end of May.”

QOL score: -2

Comment: The New Hampshire Department of Forests and Lands said on its X, formerly Twitter, feed (@NHForestRangers) on Sept. 11, “The predicted Fire Danger in all FDRAs [fire danger rating areas] is HIGH.” See a map of the different fire danger rating areas at

nhdfl.dncr.nh.gov; click on “Daily Fire Danger” under “Forest Protection.”

But there are lots of falcons

According to a Sept. 15 online report from NH Audubon, the number of peregrine falcons in New Hampshire has risen dramatically since last year. “NH Audubon staff and volunteers confirmed a record-high 37 territorial pairs statewide,” the report read, “up a remarkable 30% from 28 pairs found in 2024. This is the largest single-season jump for NH’s state-threatened Peregrine pairs in the last half century!”

QOL score: +1

Comment: NH Audubon counted a slightly smaller number of peregrine hatchlings in 2025 (44, as opposed to 50 in 2024), “but NH recovery data suggests that rebounds often follow down years,” the report continued, so more territorial pairs now could lead to more fledglings next year.”

Ending the season with a W (6 Ws)

The New Hampshire Fisher Cats have wrapped up their 2025 season in triumph. A Sept. 14 Fisher Cats press release game recap said, “The New Hampshire Fisher Cats (27-41, 56-81) ended the 2025 season with their first six-game sweep in franchise history by taking down the Chesapeake Baysox (28-41, 59-77) at Delta Dental Stadium on Sunday afternoon, 7-3.”

QOL score: +1

Comment: The Fisher Cats will open their 2026 season with a home game in Manchester on April 3 against the Binghamton Rumble Ponies.

QOL score last week: 72

Net change: 0

QOL this week: 72

What’s affecting your Quality of Life here in New Hampshire?

Let us know at news@hippopress.com.

A little off the back, and not so fluffy

WMUR reported in a Sept. 5 online article that a family of baby squirrels was rescued from a Manchester barbershop on Tuesday, Sept. 2. “[The squirrels] had become trapped inside the wall of a local barbershop after a repair accidentally sealed them in, locking their mother out,” the story read. Staff at the barbershop became aware of the problem — presumably by frantic scratching on both sides of the wall — and re-opened the wall.

QOL score: +1 for a happy ending

Comment: “Manchester Animal Control safely removed the babies and reunited them with their mother,” WMUR reported.

Emu spotted

The Concord Monitor reported in a Sept. 5 online article that an unidentified emu was spotted near the shore of Penacook Lake in Concord on Wednesday, Sept. 3. “The owner of the emu is still unknown,” the Monitor story read. “Authorities from the Concord Police Department said no one has reported an emu missing. While not their normal missing animal post, Granite State Dog Recovery did alert its followers that the emu was spotted on the loose in Concord. ‘Is anyone missing an emu?’ the alert read.”

QOL score: +1

Comment: Good luck catching the emu. According to the Smithsonian’s National Zoo website, “The emu is a fast runner and can reach speeds of up to 31 mph (50 km/hr). Their long legs enable them to walk considerable distances or outrun danger. Emus are also strong swimmers.”

Butterfly survey

In a Sept. 1 press release New Hampshire Audubon (84 Silk Farm Road, Concord, 224-9909, nhaudubon.org) conveyed the results of its Butterfly Survey earlier this summer. “On July 26, 32 volunteers divided into 5 teams and surveyed 14 sites across the Capitol Area,” the statement read. “Together, NH Audubon volunteers and staff counted a total of 482 individual butterflies of 35 species.” While fewer species were spotted this year than in 2024, that might be explained by our extremely wet spring, followed by the area’s hot, dry summer, the report concluded.

QOL score: +1

Comment: Highlights included “two Common Sootywing — a species which is uncommon in New Hampshire … [and] the newly described Midsummer Tiger Swallowtail,” the Audubon said.

QOL score last week: 69

Net change: +3

QOL this week: 72

What’s affecting your Quality of Life here in New Hampshire?

Let us know at news@hippopress.com.

Fashion-forward vultures

The New Hampshire Audubon Society announced in an Aug. 18 online article that it is celebrating its newest “”animal ambassador,” a turkey vulture, by sponsoring a T-shirt design contest. “We’re inviting artists, illustrators, designers, and creatives of all kinds to submit original artwork” the announcement read. “The winning design will be printed on the back of the T-shirt (with NH Audubon’s logo on the front) and offered in a variety of colors, like our previous Barred Owl artist-designed shirt.”

QOL score: +1

Comment: According to the announcement, his project is open to New Hampshire-based artists, and submissions must be original artwork and must include the label “Turkey Vulture” somewhere in the design. The deadline is Monday, Sept. 8. Visit nhaudubon.org.

Lights, camera, abduction!

New Hampshire Public radio reported in an Aug. 27 online article that the supposed alien abduction of Barney and Betty Hill in New Hampshire in 1961 is set to become the subject of a feature film starring Demi Moore and Colman Domingo, based on the podcast Strange Arrivals by New Hampshire podcaster Toby Ball. The Hills’ story was one of the first alien abduction stories to receive public attention.

QOL score: +1

Comment: This movie will be made by SeeSaw Pictures.

Colorful foliage predicted

An Aug. 19 forecast by NewEngland.com predicts an especially “vibrant foliage display in New Hampshire this autumn.” Apparently this is a result of this spring’s unusual weather. “It rained (or snowed) for 12 Saturdays in a row! Beautiful weather during the week, then … a wet weekend,” the report read. “If we get a string of warm, sunny days and crisp, clear nights leading up to the trees changing, it will set the stage for a spectacular color show,” the forecast concluded.

QOL score: +1

Comment: If dry conditions persist, the article reported, this foliage season will be brighter but shorter. Visit newengland.com/foliage.

QOL score last week: 66

Net change: +3

QOL this week: 69

What’s affecting your Quality of Life here in New Hampshire?

Let us know at news@hippopress.com.

Welcome, Titan

Manchester’s most recent police horse has a name. As reported by WMUR in an Aug. 21 online article, there was an online contest earlier in August to find a name for the Mounted Patrol’s 6-year-old equine officer and voters picked Titan.

QOL score: +1

Comment: Titan is the equine officer’s working name; his official registered name is Tally Ho Alphie’s Fritzmon.

Back to school, looking sharp

For many families, back-to-school shopping puts a strain on already strained budgets. This year, local businesses and organizations have stepped up to lend a hand. As reported by WMUR in an Aug. 24 online article, for the third year, Get Faded Barbershop (282 W. Hancock St., Manchester, 628-2867, getfadedbarbershop.com) organized a back-to-school event to provide returning students with free haircuts, braiding and other services. School supplies were also given away. Meanwhile, for the 30th year, the Nashua Soup Kitchen and Shelter (2 Quincy St., Nashua, 889-7770, nsks.org) held its annual Backpacks for Back-to-School program last week. As reported by Nashua InkLink in an Aug. 24 article, “Each backpack is loaded with age-appropriate school supplies”

QOL score: +1

Comment: According to the InkLink story, the NSKaS distributed 1,600 backpacks this year, and 42,000 since 1995.

Nature in Nashua

As part of this year’s City Nature Challenge (citynaturechallenge.org), communities across New Hampshire took time out to count how many species of wildlife they could find, and register them on a smart-phone app. According to an Aug. 15 article on Nashua InkLink, the Challenge “is a bioblitz-style competition where cities embark to find and document the most observations of plants and wildlife in their city.” This year, the article continued, Nashua residents found the most species: “405 observations of 184 species, such as staghorn sumac, American toads, blue herons and barred owls,” the InkLink article read.

QOL score: +1

Comment: See citynaturechallenge.org for information about 2026.

Last week’s QOL score: 63

Net change: +3

QOL this week: 66

What’s affecting your Quality of Life here in New Hampshire?

Let us know at news@hippopress.com.

Where are all the loons?

An Aug. 18 online article by the Laconia Daily Sun and New Hampshire Public Radio reported that there are fewer loons in the state than expected. “According to the preliminary results of the 2025 New Hampshire Loon Census, numbers are down statewide,” the article read. “There were 541 adult loons — that comes out to 270 pairs — and that’s far under what we expect our population to be,” the Sun quoted Caroline Hughes, outreach biologist for the Loon Preservation Committee. “The results from the 2024 census yielded 359 loon pairs and 100 or so unpaired loons, showing a preliminary decrease of 89 pairs.”

QOL score: -1

Comment: The Loon Preservation Committee surveys New Hampshire’s lakes each year. According to its website, “lead poisoning resulting from the ingestion of lead fishing tackle is the leading cause of documented Common Loon mortality in New Hampshire, accounting for 159 (42%) of documented adult loon deaths since 1989.”

Girls and Crocs

As reported by Nashua Ink Link in an Aug. 12 online article, 160 girls from Girls Inc. in Nashua and Manchester slipped into new school shoes “thanks to a generous gift of new Crocs from Brady Sullivan Properties. The girls — 75 from the Girls Inc. Manchester Center and 85 from its Nashua Center — traveled by coach bus to the Crocs store at Merrimack Premium Outlets to select their new shoes.”

QOL score: +1

Comment: According to the Crocs website, a Classic Clog can accommodate up to 13 charms per shoe.

Keep your copy of Sunrise on the Reaping

The Manchester City Library announced on Aug. 5 that it is no longer seeking book donations for its upcoming quarterly book sale.“Due to overwhelming public generosity, we are unable to accept any additional donations at this time,” according to the library’s website. “…[P]lease visit us on Saturday, Aug. 23, from 10 a.m.-1 p.m. for our next book sale.”

QOL score: +1

Comment: The Library’s quarterly book sales fund its collection of passes that patrons can check out for reduced or free admission to museums and other institutions.

QOL score: 62

Net change: +1

QOL this week: 63

What’s affecting your Quality of Life here in New Hampshire?

Let us know at news@hippopress.com.

Name that horse!

His official registered name is Tally Ho Alphie’s Fritzmon, but the Manchester Police Department is looking for something less formal to call its new police horse — technically a “Mounted Patrol Equine Officer.” As reported by WMUR in an Aug. 7 online article, “the 6-year-old gelding is currently known as Fritz, but a new name will be selected through a community contest.” In an Aug. 6 Facebook post the MPD announced a contest to give a new name to the new officer. Name suggestions can be made through Zeffy.com. Each submission costs $5, which will support the Friends of the Manchester Mounted Patrol.

QOL score: +1

Comment: According to the Police Facebook post, one name suggestion will be accepted per entry, the deadline for submission is 8 p.m. on Monday, Aug. 18, and the chosen officer name will be announced on Wednesday, Aug. 20.

Veterinarians booked solid

Tough financial times are not limited to humans. According to an Aug. 7 online article by WMUR, the New Hampshire SPCA has expanded its available veterinary care for pets in financially strapped households but is already booked to capacity. “It’s open on Tuesdays and Thursdays and has been booked solid.”

QOL score: -1

Comment: WMUR quoted veterinarian Kristi Zimmerman-Lundt, who said the clinic largely performs wellness exams, gives vaccines and provides medicine, all at a low cost. Visit nhspca.org/community-wellness.

Get used to that haze

The Department of Environmental Services has issued eight air quality alerts this year, according to an Aug. 8 online story by New Hampshire Public Radio. “Of those, six were issued because of increased levels of fine particle air pollution caused by wildfires in Canada, which is on track to have its second-most devastating wildfire season on record,” NHPR reported. According to several climate scientists interviewed for the article, this will probably be the “new normal” in our region for the foreseeable future.

QOL score: -2

Comments: Find real time reports on air quality in New Hampshire at des.nh.gov.

QOL score last week: 64

Net change: -2

QOL this week: 62

What’s affecting your Quality of Life here in New Hampshire?

Let us know at news@hippopress.com.