January Post

Wildlife Activity: Lots of gray squirrels climbing up trees, gray squirrel tracks, heard American Goldfinch, Black-Capped Chickadee, American Crow, and White-Breasted Nuthatch. I just heard the American Goldfinch as it flew overhead. The Black-Capped Chickadee and White-Breasted Nuthatch were both perched in the trees and singing. At one point two Black-Capped Chickadees were calling to each other. There were a few crows that called and flew over. Later on, when I was heading back to my dorm from the Redstone Pines, I saw nearly 500 American crows flying together. Perhaps they were all moving to find a place to stay for the night.

Twig Identification: I looked at two types of twigs. I looked at an Eastern White Pine twig and a Norway Maple twig.

Figure 1. Notes from January visit to Redstone Pines for phenology blog, including hand-drawn, labeled Norway Maple twig.
Figure 2. An image of a Norway Maple twig (in center).

Phenological Changes: Most of the snow has melted, leaving an inch or less of snow on the ground. Various pine needles are scattered across the dirt. Animal tracks are visible in the snow.

Notes: For reference of the notes taken at the site, please see figure 1.

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