Break is over, going back home to my family and friends, taking in the sunny weather and going to the beach every chance I had was fun until it lasted. Don’t get me wrong – I’m extremely excited to experience my first ever full winter, but is going to be though!
This semester, I’ve decided to stick with my same phenology spot. So last Thursday, since I didn’t have early classes, I grabbed a coffee and headed there. I was expecting a lot of snow, but to my surprise, there wasn’t. You could see patches of land, and the snow wasn’t fluffy, but hard and slippery. Still, I was able to spot some animal and human tracks. I’m pretty sure the animal tracks are mostly from dogs since many people come to walk here and usually bring their dogs. Because of this, there isn’t usually much wildlife around. However, I think I found some squirrel tracks by comparing them to the “Mammal Tracks and Scat” pocket guide book. In the fall, I could hear and see the squirrels in the trees, but now with the lower temperatures, they’re surely staying in the trees or underground in warmer places.
The trees and plants were still bare, with only thin, sad branches left. Without heavy snowfall, the trees can’t be covered in snow, imitating a “snow-tree” – which I think looks very pretty. I was glad to be back, though. I sat on my bench, drinking my coffee and breathing in the cold air. They’ve closed the waterway in this section, so there’s less water movement, making it easier for the water to freeze. Because of this, I couldn’t hear the sound of the water running either.
As I walked out, I saw a red-headed little bird, which I think is a woodpecker, chipping away at some wood from a tree. This was my first bird spotting here, so I was very excited.
I’ll definitely walk down here again, preferably when there’s more snow. I’m excited to see everything slowly grow back and the colors return in the upcoming months.
