Waterfront Phenology 2017

Since my last visit the ground has dried, and the birds have moved back home for the season. The pines have begun to show signs of pollen (oh no! Allergies!). The oak buds have gotten bigger and the grass in the area is a newly vibrant shade of green. The thunderstorms of last night and whipping rain have fed the ground well, but stripped a good number of needles from many of the pines.

In terms of whether or not I feel like a part of my phenology spot, I don’t. While it is a natural area, it was made and is used constantly by humans so while I personally don’t feel like a part of it, many people at UVM who frequent the area surely do. I feel like if it was a more secluded, less busy area I’d feel more in tune with it, but the constant human noise and lack of seclusion makes it continually hard to connect.

Nature and culture in my phenology spot cross relatively often. In the natural space there is a constant culture of meeting, “hanging out” (some times literally hanging, in hammocks), and of relaxation. The fact that the natural area is so close to campus pathways and busy buildings lends itself to the human culture, and since it’s part of a larger campus that heavily incorporates nature and natural spaces. 

As a preface to this it’s important for my readers to understand that Redstone Forest is a man-made micro-ecosystem, no more than a quarter mile in diameter. While many other phenology spots host many pieces of ecosystems, some in forests, some near lakes, mine is just a small pocket of tree. I chose the spot for that reason, because it forces me to do truly CLOSE observation of the very small phenological details and changes in my spot as opposed to over-arching changes.

That said, since my last visit not much has changed. There are no signs of amphibians, which makes sense since it is not a wetland environment. There are however signs of birds, for the first time in a long time. Despite the weekend of unpromising weather the birds seem undeterred, filling Redstone campus with their song. In addition, the squirrels have more readily returned to the area, as is evident in their frantic running up and around the pines.

The red oak is starting to bud, enticed by a string of warmer, sunnier days. Its pinecone-like small buds are lightly coated in ice today considering the weekend of cold wet weather. The ground in coated in pine needle litter and a thick layer of mud and ice, making it less ideal for the usual crowd of dogs and dog-owners, so today the squirrels are emboldened, venturing to the edges of the forest, chirping at passersby near the Interfaith Center.

Since I guess you could consider Redstone forest an “edge” in itself, due to its not being part of a larger network forest or wetland ecosystem, it does not house “interior species”.

The natural communities in my home town and the surrounding area are devastated right now. A colossal Nor’Easter swept the area and within a matter of hours thousands of trees were split or completely uprooted and thrown. At a glance driving through on might think a tornado had hit. Birds encouraged to return North are now evicted from their woody homes by the brutal winds and tree-chipper crews.

 ( tree branches blocking traffic down the street)  A truck in town catches on a fallen log

Phenologically and ecologically the loss of all ages and species of tree is hugely impactful. Birds are flocking to our feeders, desperate for a place to rest for a second. Black birds dominate, knocking their unwanted seeds to the ground were red cardinals and nuthatches can enjoy the leftovers . The returning squirrels have lost their tree homes and dive wildly into bushes and untouched sapling branches hoping to find a new place to make a nest. Climate-wise the temperature has fluctuated wildly over the course of a week, from snowing and freezing to sunny and mid-40s.

spot: my back yard and the neighboring nature reserve

https://www.google.com/maps/place/65+Pelham+Island+Rd,+Sudbury,+MA+01776/@42.353167,-71.3975915,17z/data=!4m13!1m7!3m6!1s0x89e38f6816a67aa7:0x40efa9930c624f54!2s65+Pelham+Island+Rd,+Sudbury,+MA+01776!3b1!8m2!3d42.3531631!4d-71.3954028!3m4!1s0x89e38f6816a67aa7:0x40efa9930c624f54!8m2!3d42.3531631!4d-71.3954028

Redstone Forest is a pine stand. In terms of determining the type of natural community that I would classify Redstone Forest as, it’s not particularly difficult, since there is very little plant species variance. Even on maps and GPS programs it is listed as “Redstone Pines” instead of Redstone Forest. In that sense it is safe to assume that the soil in the area is of high or relatively high acidity.

General phenological changes are not abundant, since a pine stand experiences very little foliage shift seasonally. With the recent warming weather and snow melt much of the ground around the pine stand has become a muddy, needle-littered wasteland. Any sign of animals present in the area save for dogs and humans is gone. A few brave squirrels have ventured out in hopes of finding food, only to find the mud has swallowed everything. In addition, the bitter wind has rattled the pines, leaving a new layer of dead needles. A few inexperienced hammockers in search of a sunny spot In the nice weather have left scars in the pine bark but nothing major enough to change the trees’ growth pattern.

Upon returning to the Redstone Pines not much has changed that is widely visible. Since pines are evergreen, the sight has not changed much in terms of foliage.  The ground is covered in a 2-3in  thick layer of ice, making decent exploration in the area relatively treacherous without crampons. Since the normal squirrel population is resigned to their nests for winter, animal activity is at a minimum. This means the most common track found is, unfortunately, human. Other than human tracks, the most common were domestic dog, which makes sense considering Redstone Forest is used by the Burlington community for recreation year-round. Aside from the human and dog traffic around the pines, there was a large amount of bunny tracks, in and around the bases of the larger pines, indicating they’re clearly searching for food in the small amount of exposed undergrowth.

In terms of twigs and buds, the red oak has not made a comeback since it has had a bitterly cold winter. So for twigs and buds I just chose to sketch a branch of one of the Eastern White Pines within the plot. 

I am saddened upon my last visit to the Redstone Pines, since I’ve become so familiar with the area, leaving it is almost like leaving a favorite vacation spot behind.  For the past few months Redstone has provided me with insight, peaceful moments, good hammock spots, and an overall beautiful area to watch the world go by.

Although not much has changed at a glance, a closer look reveals minor yet impactful changes in the area.  For one, the red oak has shed the last of its leaves, leaving a kind of sad skeleton to mark the coming of winter. In addition, the few squirrels in the area seem to have cleared out, with no sign of a nest.

In terms of human history for Redstone there isn’t much. It is unclear whether or not it is owned by the City of Burlington or by UVM, and when exactly it was planted or established is unclear, however it is marked within the Redstone Historical Site.

https://www.google.com/maps/place/Heard+Pond/@42.353035,-71.3871718,16z/data=!4m5!3m4!1s0x89e38f6032150d33:0xd9cbc6b230aeae87!8m2!3d42.3532508!4d-71.3831796 <– here's the google maps pin!

  (this is an outdated photo)

For my “At Home” phenology spot I chose the pond on my street, called Heard Pond, named for the Heard family farm a mile walk from my house.

The energy of this place has always drawn me to it, ever since we moved to the US.  Switzerland is gorgeous and I felt my young self struggling to find places in Massachusetts that felt similar to where I had grown up. Heard was the first place I felt like I could genuinely connect with the land a begin to build a sense of  place in nature.  The pond phases beautifully from season to season in a way I’ve never seen anything change. In the spring the birds and water lily’s come in like a Monet painting.  The cat-tails at the waters edge grow tall among the other water grasses. Great Blue Herons and swans return and reestablish their homes, young fish begin to jump. In the spring the pond also floods out much of the road looping around it, so children come eagerly, rain boots sealed tight ready to puddle jump.  Come summer the floods drain the lilies bloom, swan signets  leave the nest and begin to explore the pond more, grazing on the submerged vegetation. People are more drawn to the pond in summer, bringing with them fishing rods, kayaks, and dogs. Come fall the trees marking the landscape change between pond and farm light up like Bob Ross’s paint palette, bright oranges and vibrant reds take over the maples. Clear of the vegetation, the water now looks mirror-like and the fish grow bolder. By winter the animal activity has died down save for a few brave foxes and a lonely goose. Snow grabs the trees and frosts their skeletons.

Because Redstone Forest is comprised almost entirely of evergreen trees, there hasn’t really been a notable seasonal shift, other than the ground changing texture and there being less animal activity. In terms of plants also, the pond has much more moisture-depedent vegetation and trees surrounding it, and the area has much more ground cover/leaf litter than Redstone. In addition, the animals that reside in the area are different, as the pond is less used by humans than Redstone forest is, so animals are less skittish in the area. Deer, fox, coyotes, muskrats and many others live in relative peace, whereas at Redstone there’s seldom even a squirrel. Ecologically a difference between the sites that we cannot necessarily see is the soil composition/ type. Since Redstone is dominated by pines it is safe to assume that the soil is very much more acidic than that at Heard, as well as it is probably drier since there is not a readily available water-uptake source for the pines as the maples in Heard.

All in all, my Phenology at home spot was in many ways very different from my spot on Campus, but my sense of place and feeling of belonging in both is very strong.

In terms of an event map within Redstone forest there isn’t a whole lot of ecological events, since the trees and landscape are manmade and effected almost exclusively by humans and small mammals, but I did observe a fair amount of action in the undergrowth.

It continues to amaze me how even in what would be considered a more “busy” forest area in terms of human traffic, animals still find ways to continue their lives and play and maintain a solid habitat. That is not to say that the humans in the area are obnoxiously disruptive, it’s just that any human activity at all can lead to animals being spooked.

Redstone//haiku :

There are no leaves falling

Sounds of the world around me

At peace close to home

Redstone POEM:

Perhaps, the small patch of forest is like society

fragmented, at best

the only unique species, pushed to the edge

maybe

biodiversity loss

is like assimilation

but what do I know

I’m just an outside observer, like a traveler in a foreign land.

Hi there Phenology blog world,

Since my last entry I’ve changed spots since my first spot was too close to urban activity for there to be much animal or plant natural action. My new spot’s center lies in the middle of “Redstone Forest” parallel to the UVM Interfaith center. The spot consists of mostly young-mature Eastern White Pines, although there is one Red Oak on the edge of the spot (see the leaf from it, below).

Right off the bat I noticed major differences between my original spot on the waterfront and my new spot. For one, here there is more native and healthy vegetation, like the Eastern White Pines . There’s also more animal activity, as I watched two squirrels chase each other and heard birdsong while I sketched. Here, despite the human traffic still there is much less, and the animals seem much less skittish.

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