Month: March 2020

Giving Thanks for Home

For this blog post, my sense of place will be my hometown as I am home for Thanksgiving break. I live on Cape Cod in Massachusetts. Here, the weather is mild, the days are sunny, and the wind is blowing across the narrow stretch of The Cape that I live on, which makes it the perfect weather for surfing today. Of course, I will not be surfing today because I am cleaning the house and helping my mother cook for all the guests that will be coming tomorrow.

Cape Cod is an area that is always moving with life. While in the summer here, the population increases by at least two thirds, the fall and winter hold their fair share of exciting happenings. The Cape is home to many species as well, birds, deer, rabbits, raccoons… most common focal species of southern Massachusetts. One thing important about The Cape is it is actually a focal point for many migratory species that effects the life of the people as well. When the Bonito and False Albacore and Stripped Bass come further north in the summer, there is a buzz in the air as the fisherman get ready to go out, the Martha’s Vineyard derby is afoot.

Of Course, now, in November and approaching December, the fish are long gone from the waters. But, it seems that everyone around has caught enough food to last a lifetime and it soaked fish is sure to show up on the Thanksgiving Day table. (It did.)

That is how Cape Cod is in the summer, fast paced and never ceasing, similar to Thanksgiving Day itself if you are in my household. Once the day is over though, the activities of the cape become much more calm. The fish are no longer swimming in Buzzards Bay and Vineyard Sound in mass quantities, and the tourists have disappeared like the fish. This leaves the year rounders like my family, who go to school, come home, and do it all over again the next day.

For me though, growing up and living on the cape still meant more than the day to day. It meant riding my bike on the nike path all the way down to woods hole to go to the the lab at WHOI, taking in the sights of the salt mashes and ponds as a flew by. It meant walking my dog on the cranberry bod and holding my ground as she pulled toward mallard ducks that sat in the trenches.

To me, Cape Cod is beautiful and full of life, even when everyone leaves when august comes to an end. We still have species that depend on the waves and the water. We still have life.

While in my visit to Centennial Woods, I failed to find living organisms that would ordinarily come to mind such as squirrels, rabbits, or even large/small bugs. So instead, I decided to focus this blog post on the living organisms that are often looked past. These organisms have always been beautiful and interesting to me, and I find their silence, hardiness, and life captivating in all their perplexity of survival.

Moss. Trees. Grasses. Ferns. Even those organisms which might be considered weeds if they were to pop up in a suburban lawn.

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These species characterize my sight because they are the unseen, the opposite of the bigger picture. These small pieces of greenery mixed within the large speak to the peacefulness and calmness of my chosen space: the bend in the stream.

Even as the weather is changing, it seems that these species, these organisms are going to stay green and kicking until the snow starts falling. This is fascinating to me, and highlights the how life continues to thrive within centennial.

The change in these organisms has not been much. While I am sure that they have had some, it is hardly noticeable to me, as my appreciation for these small but vital parts of the wooded ecosystem is new.

I have noticed, however, that the soil is becoming harder overall, but the fallen leaves are becoming softer as the degrade into a soil and contribute to the fertility of the soil and decompose into a rich organic material.

Mapping:

While creating the map of my natural area, I focused on how the landscape transitioned from the wooded path that leads to the winding stream in Centennial. There is a bridge that crosses the stream, and I included this in my map as well. This is because, while it is manmade, it speaks to the use of the land. Not only is Centennial home to living organisms like mosses, ferns, and trees, but it is also a place to take walks, runs, and find species to learn more about.

My sense of place was effecting by the mapping of my chosen phenology area because I was drawn to the fact that the presence of people in Centennial certainly has an effect on the species in that area.

Before the mapping activity and the focus on the species which was the purpose of this blog post, I never thought of the two worlds interacting in such a way. Footpaths effect plant growth, bridges do the same. Where humans don’t trek is where the vegetation becomes thicker and where they’re might be more evidence of larger living organism that initially began searching for like squirrels, rabbits, and deer.

My Map:

Transferred and made online, this map highlights the simplicity of my place on a bigger scale, showing how the dense trees somewhat hide the stream.

Phenological Change and Sense of Place

Sense of place is, as described in NR001 : The relationship or connection that a person has to the place and community that they live in. This is a developed relationship that stems from the experiences they have, the history of the place, and the natural area.

In Terms of location:

When it comes to the location of my chosen place, I find it easy to connect to due to the similarity of a stream that ran through the backyard of my childhood home. It is also a place that is connected to just because of the fact that centennial woods is in Burlington, Vermont. Burlington is now my home, and has become a big part of my life.

In Terms of history:

When it comes to history of my chosen place for the phenology blog, I do not know much. I do know, however, that Centennial Woods is a protected area in Burlington. It is an essential piece of land not only for the community but the focal species of Burlington.

Centennial was, at one point deforested like most of Vermont but has since been restored to a strong and sturdy hardwood stand.

How has my relationship with my place evolved with phenological change? I will admit, that with the cold coming more and more everyday, that the tranquility of the landscape has diminished for me. I am still taken away by how beautiful it is, especially with the leaves all sorts of colors, but it is certainly becoming a harsher environment as the cold comes in. It no longer holds the same sense of a great place to study, read, or hammock as my fingers start to become numb as I hold onto my note and textbooks.

How has my site changed as a component of a larger scale? My sight has changed on its own of course, but the question becomes how has the small change that is my chosen phenology site affected the surrounding hardwood stand that is Centennial woods as a whole? I am certain that as the weather grows colder, the desirable vegetation that grows on the banks of stream starts to recede and die leaving species like deer perhaps to graze on more hardy foods like tree bark.

As mentioned earlier, the history of the site is long, as I understand, the land that is now centennial was once owned privately by a plethora of people [last names and dates pulled from researchguides.uvm.edu: Baxter (1891), Ainsworth (1904), Hickok (1908), Kirby (1938), and Unsworth (1968)] And was bought by the University as they expanded.

Citation for the link above: UVM Libraries Research Guides: Centennial Woods Natural Area: History. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://researchguides.uvm.edu/centennialwoods/history

My Place:

When walking into Centennial Woods, the pathway goes down into the woods, getting more denser and denser. Eventually, you should get to a sort of clearing where you have the option of turning left, right, or going straight. If you choose to go straight, you should stumble upon a meandering stream flowing through the woods with soft banks made of a combination of sand, silk, and possibly, but not confirmed – peat.

It is not necessarily crystal clear flowing water, possibly and probably due to its proximity to the city and university, however, if you just sit in the grass and watch the water move amongst the pebbles, branches, and aquatic plants, it is a very peaceful place to be.

Definition:

What defines my place I am not exactly sure of, but my choice of a space for a phenology blog certainly feeds into the larger ecosystem that is Centennial Woods. It is certainly a resource for the species living in the area as it is moving water that provides for the plants and animals alike, but is also enjoyed by people who visit.

How Do I know I am There?

When you come upon the stream, there is a small man-made bridge that connects the two banks. If you cross the bridge, and take a right there is a yellow birch tree, not very wide, but large enough to support your back when you sit on the grassy spot right below it. There, you should be facing upstream at a fallen over tree that has created a buildup of sand and silt, and as a result a small waterfall.

The Experience:

Peaceful. That is the best way to describe being tucked away under the tree at the bend in the stream. Listening to the water fall down and flow along the pebbles and rocks is calming and instils a respect for the woods that you sit in as you listen. Here, It is easy to focus your thoughts and recenter yourself.

I hope if you end up here, you find it the same way.

Here Is a link to a video I took of the water flowing just after the bend in the river. To me, this is the best place in centennial woods to string up a hammock, read a book, or do your homework.

The Turkey.

Turkeys, for me, have always been interesting. This is because on Cape Cod (where I live) there is a surplus of the species. This is especially true on the islands that are off the coast of the cape. So, when I entered centennial and spotted a turkey track I knew I focus on this bird as my species for my blog post.

When it comes to identifying the turkey, their track is pretty recognizable. For example, the foot of the turkey is made up of three long toes, the middle one being the longest. I was able to identify this bird using my tracking book. For you, I have included two photos that show key characteristics of turkeys.

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The first photo (Left) is an example of all turkey characteristics and highlights how scat can vary whether coming from a male or female bird, much like in Naturally Curious (pg 405).

The second photo (Right) shows the print of a turkey compared to other birds similar to it. In this photo, it is clear the size of the print (4 inches) as well as the shape which is more symmetrical than others in the image on the right.

While I personally found no evidence of scat, I do think it is important to highlight how scat is different between males and females. Female scat is round and less stiff while males scat is in a log like or J like shape and much stiffer than females. This is depicted in the leftmost image above. (labeled: Hen and Gobbler droppings)

What Do the Turkeys Do?

During the Day, turkeys are hunting for food. However, they are no longer grazing in grass for insects due to the snow taking over the grazing fields. Instead, turkeys enter into forested areas (like centennial) in search of nuts and other sources of easy sustenance like seeds and buds that can be found under heavy forest cover.

During the evening, turkeys roost in trees. One interesting thing though, is that turkeys do not roost in the same tree in the winter, however can be found doing so in the spring.

 ––––– Carolyn Lorie. “Wild Turkeys: The Outside Story.” Center for Northern Woodlands Education, 17 Nov. 2014, northernwoodlands.org/outside_story/article/wild-turkeys.

Other Species:

I have had small interactions with other species in the area. Some of these species include Grey Squirrel and Chipmunks. Both of these species can be seen searching the ground for food. I often see the chipmunks closer to the ground running around in and between fallen trees in areas with less snow and occasionally I see them closer to my designated spot near the water. I find myself seeing squirrels the most through. Our interactions are brief and it is mostly just a rustle of a branch in a tree and then a flash of their tail and they are gone again.

Since my last visit to my sight, not much has changed besides the amount of snow on the ground. Most of the snow that we received in January has began to subside and as a result the water level of the stream that I chose to base my location off of has risen slightly.

As you might remember from my last blog post, I talked about how slippery and icy it was making my way into Centennial Woods… This time I did decide to wear more sensible shoes than Converse but besides that there was much less frozen water on the ground.

––– Amelia McCabe 🙂