Field Trip 2 Journal Entry

Today was a particularly windy day. It was a significant contrast from last week which had light breezes through the conifers. This week, trees were shaking and there was a biting cold. During the 15 minutes of silence, I heard many dead leaves being rustled by new animals which appeared since last week. There were significantly more birds (peepers maybe) going back and forth from trees to build a nest. There were more flies/bugs near us which we could hear buzzing in our ears. This week it was warmer so we heard walkers alongside us venturing on the road. Sitting in silence really helped me realize the powerful force of the wind. It seems like a mere obstacle when we're so focused on finding organisms under the soil surface, and we seem to forget what a huge role it plays. Its power disperses seeds, creates new habitats, and destroys old ones. During the spurts where the wind disappeared, I felt the fresh rays of the sun briefly before their pleasant warmth was disrupted by louder wind. Meanwhile, the conversational chatter of the birds was pretty consistent in the background.

This week we found many of the same organisms such as different types of fungus and mosses, but also a plethora of new ones that we needed notice before. We spent more time digging in the dirt this week, since last week taught us that they are countless things hiding beneath our feet. We were able to see skunk cabbage sprouting up near a wetland that was beginning to form at the edge of the forest, most likely from the recent excessive rain. We tried to dig up the soil in the water but did not have as much luck finding organisms there as we did in the dry soil. This week, I surprisingly found a tiny salamander buried near a moist tree stump. This was easily by far the highlight of the trip. This little guy was extremely excited and jumpy (probably from fear), and I was able to capture a video of him. We also found many bundles of spiders on the forest floor. There were some more brown droppings scattered on the floor, as well as new plants with varying shapes. We found a dead caterpillar covered in black fuzzy which we could more closely examine as it wasn't moving. The fact that we found such different species from last even though we were in the same tiny plot of land amazed me. There is so much more biodiversity surrounding us than I realize, and a simple walk in nature can be tremendously eye-opening.

Posted on 23 de abril de 2019, 03:24 AM by arnimbalkar arnimbalkar

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