Month: May 2022

Since I last posted about my phenology place, a lot has changed. The snow is gone, birds are chirping, and new growth is taking place. The Redstone Pines area has started to return to how it looked when I first visited. The grass is getting greener, and leaves are starting to come back. Although many of the trees are pines and never lost their needles, there is a new sense of life to the place and it is an exciting thing to witness.

At my phenology place, nature and culture intertwine in a special way. This area is somewhere that students go to take a break, socialize, or just enjoy being in nature. I use this area as a place of serenity and relaxation, and it holds a special place in my heart because of this. The culture of the Redstone Pines is care-free, fun, and pleasant. Nature contributes to this because it allows students to get out into the fresh air and enjoy time with their friends. I definitely consider myself a part of this place, because I am one of the many people who regularly use and enjoy it. I am a member of a community that finds joy in sitting under the cover of these towering pines.

During the four-day City Nature Challenge iNaturalist BioBlitz, I explored my own phenology spot, the Redstone pines, as well as the waterfront park and Perkins Pier. I really enjoyed being able to document my findings using the iNaturalist app, because it allowed me to look back at everything that I found, and I also liked being able to see what other Burlington residents were observing. When looking at reports coming in from other areas of the world, I wanted to specifically look at Columbus, OH, which is where I am from. I found it interesting that there were so many more flower observations in Columbus than Burlington, and fewer animal sightings. I was not surprised by the fewer animal sightings because Columbus is landlocked and surrounded by development, which is unlike Burlington. However, I never realized how many species of flowers are present in Columbus until I looked at the city’s nature challenge page. The species that I encountered included American Robins, Eastern Gray Squirrels, Northern Cardinals, ladybugs, worms, and house flies. I also observed many plant species such as dandelions, garlic mustard, blue violets, border forsythia, and many of the native trees that we studied during first semester. I think in total I observed about 15 species.