The Woods are becoming a bright spring green all over. The native hawthorn Crataegus viridis scattered here and there in the Woods are in full white bloom and light up the understory canopy. Good time to find them all and mark their locations. The forest floor has been transformed. The past two weeks of wet and cool alternating with spring sunshine and mild warm days has been pulling life upward from the roots in the winter soil, up to the buds and new leaves. The elms have broken their flower buds and the green scales are beginning to fall on the forest floor.
The honeysuckle is well out. The Eleagnus is fully out. Most of the Ligustrum privet has open leaf buds although new leaves are unexpanded.
Tim Chorley set turtle trap in the larger eastern pond of the west two. He observed two snapping turtles there yesterday.
The ravine trail is partially closed by a big hackberry break and drop down from up slope by the rusty old truck seat remains. A tree top looks to have been damaged in the past with some decay following and weakening the junction which then snapped with the fairly strong north winds of the past two days.
Returning from OJAS in Ada and judging papers I was wanting peace and went to the Woods with my axe to clear the larger stump stubs from Hackberry Alley and elsewhere.
I walked all the trails and was struck at how green everything was. The Woods are changing rapidly. Fortunately the foot trails are holding up nicely and remaining fairly clear.
At the Beaver Dam, water was a few inches deep in the channel but not flowing. From the SW Gate the trail was dry (well, soggy/ mushy but no standing water) until about 50 feet before the jct with the Two Friends Trail.
I saw no deer again this afternoon.
Saturday, March 27, 2010
Saturday, March 20, 2010
March Woods Warm to Rain to Snow
Woods have had quite a change. After a mild cool week of spring like weather, Friday was the warmest day of the year, 72F. Light rain, a few hundredths of an inch, swept through at 5 PM, a harbinger of an arriving winter storm. I walked in from the entrance by Rudy's at 6 and was delighted by the fresh smell of a warm spring garden freshly wet by rain. First time to encounter that this year. The honeysuckle leaves have really popped out and everywhere the Woods was a fresh spring yellow green. Birds had largely finished feeding for the day and were quiet.. only a male cardinal and one or two others. Three adult white-tailed deer ran from the Big Trees off to the north.
The ground was soft and moist with microbial fertility. The trail we had walked all winter had blended in with the surrounding duff of the forest floor. Now it stood out boldly a narrow, well-defined ribbon of soil winding through a bright new carpet of green.. a subtle change that had happened mostly on that day. We'll see how long it remains open and clear of new brambles and spring regrowth.
By the beaver dam a few inches of water stood in the channel but there was no flow. The lower 200 feet of the drainage, close to the service road, had suddenly gone dry two days previously.. seemingly overnight.
Overhead in the branches of the taller elms, the wind had shifted to the north and was bringing in the oncoming storm with rapidly cooling air as I left.
Overnight more rain and then snow in the early morning with wind gusts to 40-45 mph. By midday there was a hiatus. With little snow evident on the roads I returned for another walk in the Woods.
I was surprised to see the Woods a good bit snowier than the surrounding grassy areas; but the well established trail was mostly clear of snow.. now a distinct trail of brown soil through a white surround. The Woods were lovely with green leaves of honeysuckle and juniper all peaking out from under their fresh new white snowy coverings. The NNW face of the tree trunks were lightly filagreed with snow revealing the prevailing direction of the storm winds. On top of logs crossing the trail, tracks of squirrel and bird were fresh in the fluffy snow.
Two white-tailed adult deer ran away from me as I walked north to the northeast corner of the Northern Loop. The regular trails of the deer were clearly visible up and across the escarpment and crossing the Woods.
With over half an inch of precipitation, water was flowing again through the Beaver Dam. I should set a flow and depth gauge there. By the Elm Bridge water had submerged the lower logs. A solitary dark bird like a phoebe flycatcher flitted from one low perch to another near the stream. Up in the sky a flock of a dozen Canada geese flew over.
The snow began to pick up again by 5 and I left the Woods for the evening.
The ground was soft and moist with microbial fertility. The trail we had walked all winter had blended in with the surrounding duff of the forest floor. Now it stood out boldly a narrow, well-defined ribbon of soil winding through a bright new carpet of green.. a subtle change that had happened mostly on that day. We'll see how long it remains open and clear of new brambles and spring regrowth.
By the beaver dam a few inches of water stood in the channel but there was no flow. The lower 200 feet of the drainage, close to the service road, had suddenly gone dry two days previously.. seemingly overnight.
Overhead in the branches of the taller elms, the wind had shifted to the north and was bringing in the oncoming storm with rapidly cooling air as I left.
Overnight more rain and then snow in the early morning with wind gusts to 40-45 mph. By midday there was a hiatus. With little snow evident on the roads I returned for another walk in the Woods.
I was surprised to see the Woods a good bit snowier than the surrounding grassy areas; but the well established trail was mostly clear of snow.. now a distinct trail of brown soil through a white surround. The Woods were lovely with green leaves of honeysuckle and juniper all peaking out from under their fresh new white snowy coverings. The NNW face of the tree trunks were lightly filagreed with snow revealing the prevailing direction of the storm winds. On top of logs crossing the trail, tracks of squirrel and bird were fresh in the fluffy snow.
Two white-tailed adult deer ran away from me as I walked north to the northeast corner of the Northern Loop. The regular trails of the deer were clearly visible up and across the escarpment and crossing the Woods.
With over half an inch of precipitation, water was flowing again through the Beaver Dam. I should set a flow and depth gauge there. By the Elm Bridge water had submerged the lower logs. A solitary dark bird like a phoebe flycatcher flitted from one low perch to another near the stream. Up in the sky a flock of a dozen Canada geese flew over.
The snow began to pick up again by 5 and I left the Woods for the evening.
Monday, March 15, 2010
The Woods are Waking Up.
Lovely spring days this last week.. cool (50's F) pleasant, light overcast.
The Woods are waking up. First two small (nickel-sized) brown frogs leaping into the stream in the west wash a week ago. Southern leopard frogs "chuckling" (Tim's description) four nights ago in the west pond half an hour after sunset. Tim says ditch/pond SW of Woods was alive and loud with calls last week.
Ticks are returning too..few in number but yesterday after a walk I found three on me.
Saturday week ago out with Liz found a cascade of large feathers tangled in vines below a leaning elm tree. Up in the tree was the carcass of a red-tailed hawk .. maybe killed by bobcat(?) and taken up on tree for consumption.
Tim says he saw a turtle in west pond (first one) a few days ago.. and also says deer herd has increased from 3 or 4 to 7-10 with young spotted fawns in the herd.
Eleagnus Russian Olive just began opening fine slender short scimitars of early leaves last week. Multiflora rose unfurling new leaves now for two weeks. Honeysuckle some purplish green new leaves unrolling. South and east end of the northern ridge by the west wash is suddenly turning a soft green with growing Stellaria chickweed, Galium bedstraw, Lamium deadnettle, Cardamine mustard and new grass. I need to start an herbarium for the Woods. Green leaves with no flowers for recognition of spring herbs.. and overwintering green perennials Ligustrum privet, Liriope monkeygrass, Euonymus vine, Lonicera japonica honeysuckle, Lonicera fragrantissima bush honeysuckle, Hedera helix ivy, Ilex americana holly. Flowering spring ephemerals.. Stellaria, Lamium amplexicaule henbit, Veronica speedwell, Lamium purpureum deadnettle, Cardamine spring mustard.
Water fills the SW Trail drainage barely flowing through the beaver dam although it is 3-5 inches deep through the channel there.
No mosquitoes yet but they will not be long with the acres of water. No predator larvae or adult dragonflies or gerrid water striders etc. In the central, dry Woods along the E-W Fence line trail, cut grape vines are oozing sugary yeasty sap and various flies including calliphorids, mycetophilids(?), other nematocera like flies are there. Tim is finding beetles in his bucket traps.. (and a couple mice and a shrew).
Birds are active.. mostly robins as usual but also chickadees, cardinals, titmice, a couple mallards in the west pond. One great blue heron Tim observed in west pond. Chris observed hawk with decapitated pigeon on the S Boundary Trail.
The west and southwest woods are mostly all wet along lower Chautauqua. The South Border trail is dry. The trail to the Two Friends is submerged.
Bob N. says this meets legal requirements of wetland (soil development with manganese and iron nodules down in the profile; swollen tree buttresses on the green ash.
The Woods are waking up. First two small (nickel-sized) brown frogs leaping into the stream in the west wash a week ago. Southern leopard frogs "chuckling" (Tim's description) four nights ago in the west pond half an hour after sunset. Tim says ditch/pond SW of Woods was alive and loud with calls last week.
Ticks are returning too..few in number but yesterday after a walk I found three on me.
Saturday week ago out with Liz found a cascade of large feathers tangled in vines below a leaning elm tree. Up in the tree was the carcass of a red-tailed hawk .. maybe killed by bobcat(?) and taken up on tree for consumption.
Tim says he saw a turtle in west pond (first one) a few days ago.. and also says deer herd has increased from 3 or 4 to 7-10 with young spotted fawns in the herd.
Eleagnus Russian Olive just began opening fine slender short scimitars of early leaves last week. Multiflora rose unfurling new leaves now for two weeks. Honeysuckle some purplish green new leaves unrolling. South and east end of the northern ridge by the west wash is suddenly turning a soft green with growing Stellaria chickweed, Galium bedstraw, Lamium deadnettle, Cardamine mustard and new grass. I need to start an herbarium for the Woods. Green leaves with no flowers for recognition of spring herbs.. and overwintering green perennials Ligustrum privet, Liriope monkeygrass, Euonymus vine, Lonicera japonica honeysuckle, Lonicera fragrantissima bush honeysuckle, Hedera helix ivy, Ilex americana holly. Flowering spring ephemerals.. Stellaria, Lamium amplexicaule henbit, Veronica speedwell, Lamium purpureum deadnettle, Cardamine spring mustard.
Water fills the SW Trail drainage barely flowing through the beaver dam although it is 3-5 inches deep through the channel there.
No mosquitoes yet but they will not be long with the acres of water. No predator larvae or adult dragonflies or gerrid water striders etc. In the central, dry Woods along the E-W Fence line trail, cut grape vines are oozing sugary yeasty sap and various flies including calliphorids, mycetophilids(?), other nematocera like flies are there. Tim is finding beetles in his bucket traps.. (and a couple mice and a shrew).
Birds are active.. mostly robins as usual but also chickadees, cardinals, titmice, a couple mallards in the west pond. One great blue heron Tim observed in west pond. Chris observed hawk with decapitated pigeon on the S Boundary Trail.
The west and southwest woods are mostly all wet along lower Chautauqua. The South Border trail is dry. The trail to the Two Friends is submerged.
Bob N. says this meets legal requirements of wetland (soil development with manganese and iron nodules down in the profile; swollen tree buttresses on the green ash.
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