This is my google maps location of my thanksgiving phenology place.
In the style of Mabel Wright
Barren and solemn naught in the overhead but a spare leaf here or there. A squirrel passes by chittering away looking for its stored nuts to stave off the hunger the wintry weather brings. When the wind blows the rattling of leaves is a reminder of the likes of a long forgotten music. The occasional chirp of birds can be heard though it is rare and scarce to be heard. A leaf pile can be found in the open clearing like a long forgotten coat left on its own to decompose. There can be found the skeletal remains of long gone wine berry bushes scattered around the outskirts of the clearing. The topography and landscape reveals a southerly decline while a deer trail meanders westwards. A great oak spreads its branches skyward with the remains of an old tree stand showing itself in the form of leftover rotted planks of wood. Northwards a family of boxelders can be found to the east and west of a trail until you reach a dilapidated fence. The sweet briars can be found with their red berries and thorns luring those yearning to touch and leaves them pricked and bloody. Prickly lettuce remains underfoot and finds ways to cause discomfort by becoming caught in-between articles of clothes.
The comparison of ecology and phenology in the words of Aldo Leopold
As November comes and goes so do the leaves found in both this new place and the old place in friendly Burlington. It is brisk and barren looking in both places with little foliage above but plenty underneath the foot. When considering the wildlife that runs through the sites it is clearly apparent that grey squirrels inhabit both places. Comparing the view at each spot while one is on a hill and the other is not both have a nice view of the landscape through the tree branches. Both places provide a source of food for wildlife in the forms of twigs and bark from trees and bushes. Looking at the climate of each place they are startlingly similar even thought the Vermont spot is more northern. The rabbits found in both the new spot and in Burlington have adapted their coats to be brown like their background and remain alert to predators and the sounds of crunching leaves.
Photo Credit: Liz McDonnell