As it comes to my final phenology post I see the final stages of my spot leaving winter and entering Spring/Summer. I have used this same spot from the start, I have seen leaves on the few Maples and Oaks as summer turned to fall. I watched them change color in fall too and eventually saw my spot get blanketed in snow. And then melt. And then snow again. And then melt…again. It was a constant change in weather all winter long, but honestly not much has changed. All of the coniferous trees still have all of there needles and are going strong. Nowadays I see the Ferns starting to pop up again and all of the hardwoods starting to bud out for the spring once again.

The biggest “landmark” that I have become familiar with is this log that lays horizontal on the ground (about halfway up the picture taking up the whole frame). That log is where I immediately go to each visit. It’s where I sit down and be quiet, observing the animal life around me and seeing any new changes the trees have to offer. I have become familiar with centennial woods as a whole as I have been there many times, both for phenology and many times for my own enjoyment. I love visiting the woods by myself, it is the perfect space to clear my head and have some peaceful alone time with nature.

Pictured here is the sketch I made of my site. It features my landmark sitting log positioned horizontally through the drawing. It also features the trunks of large White Pines behind my log with many smaller deciduous hardwoods filling in behind. In front of my log I have some fallen dead wood, a large standing dead tree, and the many ferns that are beginning to pop up. Sitting and sketching is actually pretty nice, it provides time to listen to nature while deeply observing what surrounds me.

Nature and culture intertwine in many ways, more than I would even know to talk about. Humans are nature, so we need nature. Nature plays a pivotal role in the culture of being human, we all need access to nature and natural green spaces in order to feel one with the world. Without nature so many people would be lost in this world. Nature brings humans together, especially in a place like VT. Here we have so many ways culture and nature intertwine, from many VT hikers, birders, and outdoorsmen and women, to what I think the biggest cultural connection to nature in VT is with Maple Sugaring. Maple Sugaring provides income for many Vermonters and is essential to the culture of Vermont. While these are just a few ways, Nature and Culture go hand in hand.

I 100% consider myself a part of my place. If I didn’t consider myself a part of my place where/what else would I be? While I am not originally from VT, I certainly consider myself as part of my place here in Vermont. I feel one with the people here, the nature that surrounds me, and I just feel at home. Feeling a part of my place is essential, and in order to feel like a person with purpose, I certainly feel like I am in my place where I am able to be an active member of my community.

As sad as I am to see these phenology posts end, it was super cool to see the change throughout the year and be able to get out into nature every so often. Phenology rocks, signing off- Casey

During the City Nature Bioblitz Challenge I explored the familiar place of Centennial woods. This pin dropped on the map represents one of the species I found (Eastern Hemlock) which was about dead in the middle of my exploration. It was super nice to visit Centennial on the nice warm and sunny day I visited. It was awesome to be able to get outside and into nature after a busy week.

Using iNaturalist was super easy. It was easy to join your lab group and even easier to upload species that I found. All I had to do was take a picture and identify the species, and iNaturalist uploaded to Morgans lab and the City Bioblitz Challenge. I observed 7 species on iNaturalist (as seen on the left). While I certainly observed more species, some I wasn’t able to identify, or were hard to photograph like birds. While in the woods I saw tons of birds. I was able to observe Chickadees, Blue Jays, Gold Finches, Starlings, and more. It was hard to capture photos of birds making it harder to upload to iNaturalist.

What I found most interesting about the other observations in iNaturalist from around the world was that the top species were all found around me. Since this was a global event that nowhere near VT usually wins, I would have expected that the top observed species would be from elsewhere in the world. That being said the top 5 observations were the Mallard, Garlic Mustard (random), Common Dandelion, American Robin, and the Rock Pigeon. All of these species are common to VT and a large majority of the U.S. so in a competition with the rest of the world for species observations I expected a larger variety up front. That being said it was also cool to see some other observations from around the world, like the Indian Mango, which is funny to think about seeing in my day to day life because no mangos grow anywhere close to here. Overall this challenge was fun to go get out in nature and observe. Here are some bonus species photos below!

On this lovely snowy Friday afternoon I ventured over to Centennial Woods to do some tracking. It had been snowing all night and into the morning until I went tracking which did not give me an advantage of any kind. It was easy to tell where previous prints had been, but it was often very difficult to determine what anything was because of a fresh blanket of cold smoke. That being said we were able to make out some small American Red Squirrel prints, and a few Deer tracks. That being said the fresh snow made it very difficult to be for sure on my identifications. The iNaturalist app was very easy to use and a positive experience. It was easy to upload and the app was helpful with identification.

The snow covered tracks were definitely difficult to identify, but some tricks helped us ID what they could be. The red squirrel prints were easy to spot, with distinguishable larger hind feet in front of the smaller back feet (seen above). The tracks were far too small to be a Gray Squirrel’s so that narrows it down to a Red Squirrel. The deer tracks were easy to identify because there was a clear hoof print in the snow the size a deer print should be (top track next to book, going left-right). They also followed along through the forest. There is also a K9 looking print next to the deer tracks we found which we might’ve thought to be a Red Fox, however after a closer examination of the X paw pad and nail direction I think it looks more like a domesticated dog.

This is my Phenology spot located in the heart of Centennial woods! Since I have last been there in the fall not much has changed. There is definitely some more snow on the ground, at least 2ish inches still fill the forest floor here. All of the deciduous hardwoods have zero leaves remaining, unlike in the fall when a few red oaks had a few leaves still lingering. The Coniferous hardwoods like the Eastern Hemlock and Norther White Pine are unchanged besides being topped with snow!

As far as tracking animals in this spot, all i was able to find were some human bootprints and their accompanying dog. Unlike the fall where I was able to find little pinecone seed piles from red squirrels, nothing from the woods has visited my spot in some time. Just some old pinecone piles covered in snow remain.

I am excited to be back visiting my Phenology Spot and hopefully I will be able to track some cool animals throughout the snowy winter!

Since my last visit to my Phenology spot on November 7th some small changes have taken place. All leaves have fallen off of the various deciduous hardwoods in this stand. The one White Oak and two Red Maples lay empty, no leaves left straggling around just bare branches for the rest of winter. That being said the majority of the trees in this spot are Northern White Pines and Eastern Hemlocks. All of these species continue to have all of their needles and are thriving into the oncoming winter. The vegetation on the floor of the forest is also coming to a close, as the Ferns that rule the forest floor begin to wilt and stay dormant for winter. The leaf litter has also not changed much, most of the forest floor was frozen with snow on top when I was there as well, preventing any decomposition.

This log is the epicenter of my phenology spot, it is what attracted me to it the first time I stopped and it’s where I sit do observe my phenology spot. When I visited it was COVERED in little footprints from what I know to be red squirrels that completely fill Centennial. Little piles of White Pine pinecones were also present on the log where some Red Squirrels were going ham. From what I can tell it appears that animal activity has increased in thus area as there has never been pinecone piles on this log like before. A better picture of the pinecone piles can be seen below.

My favorite part about my phenology spot was getting to go into Centennial woods every so often, escaping from my loads of schoolwork and providing some time to clear my head amidst a busy life. This time always served me right as I always felt better about myself whenever I would leave these woods. There is something special about connecting with nature like this, and I hope to do more next semester.

Location: My Thanksgiving Break Phenology spot is on top of a hill in Harriman State Park, a fairly large state park in southern New York which is just about twenty minutes away from my home in New Jersey. The spot is located right off trail and offers a quiet vista point other hikers often don’t visit. For a better look at where this location actually is, here is a bigger look at the area.

Why is this place special? This place is right off trail from my favorite hike in Harriman State Park. I have done this hike multiple times, both by myself and with my best friend from home, Teo. Every time I do this hike I take the time to go off trail for this view. This lookout is better than any of the others that are actually included on the hike. Since this if off trail too, it has very little foot traffic making it a quiet escape.

Ecology and Phenology Comparison: This spot is drastically different from my Centennial Woods phenology spot. Here on the hilltop there are only two trees (one of which is pictured) and neither of which I could identify. Very different from the plethora of Northern White Pines and Eastern Hemlocks in Centennial. Instead on this hilltop there is mostly tall grasses that wave in the wind. The two trees on top had also dropped all of their leaves already, quite different than the coniferous trees in Centennial keeping their needles all year long.

Honorable Harvest: While I forgot to bring a gift to leave behind, I couldn’t leave one of my favorites places behind empty. I wrot into some sand “Peace+Love” to remind whoever goes up there next to express Peace and Love in their everyday lives. Especially around this time of year and with current global affairs, we all need to remember to incorporate peace and love into our lives.