Riverbend Recreational Area, Findlay, OH.
Located along the river here, a small area contains tons of dead logs, twigs, leaves, etc; layer upon layer contains this organic matter. There are also many nuts, remnants of corn, small, sprouting plants, spider webs, and what looks to be animal-made holes (I am assuming many species have began to reside here in all of this matter). The spot looks quite untouched and dry so my best guess is that it has been here for quite some time, without any large disturbances having been in the area recently. I spotted many smaller bugs: beetles, flies, dragonflies, ants, and spiders. I sat there long enough for them to start crawling over me. I peered into a large hole in a log on the ground and saw a daddy long leg spider and ants making their way in. It was quite interesting to observe this small area of habitat but I wished that I could see what all was actually beneath the organic matter.
The weather here today was very hot and humid; 83 degrees Fahrenheit and partly sunny.
Unknown Species: I noticed this plant (pictured below) stretching along the trail near the river. The plant itself feels dry and the “spikes” are hard and slightly sharp.
Unknown species: Carex grayi, also known as Gray Sedge; I uploaded the photo above into Plant.id and got the species’ name.
*Seed heads of this species are often used in fresh or dried flower arrangements, which I had never noticed before, so I thought that was quite interesting.
Sketches I made while out in the site:
Overall, I found sketching relaxing and extremely helpful. Any object at first glance may not look like much, but once you really take a closer look, which I had to in order to sketch, there are many smaller details that can be noticed. Sketching helped open my eyes a little more to see all the parts and I find that fascinating. However, it was a little bit challenging at times sketching because of all the little details that could not be seen from farther away (from a normal perspective).
Next time I visit the site, I would like to remain in the little organic matter-filled habitat and take a closer look to see if I find any specific species living within (I want to poke around more but without disturbing the matter at the same time).