Across the four days of the BioBlitz Challenge, I explored a multitude of areas surrounding the Greater Burlington area. Most of these areas were within Centennial Woods, where I frequented for a few days in a row to see how the development of different species changed across the few days that I visited them. I used iNaturalist to identify many of these plants, and I would say I discovered around a dozen or so. After I had identified these dozen plants, I returned each day to check how they were doing, and many of them, being ferns, showed vast and rampant growth. One plant that I found that was particularly eye-catching was the illusive cinnamon fern, which was strangely fluffy when I first saw it (pictured below).
As other areas began reporting findings in their area, I found it interesting how much farther many other cities are in their spring than Vermont is. I have never lived quite this far North, and it’s staggering to see photos from home and southern cities where spring is in full bloom, where we occassionally (and still might) have snow spells. Seeing the vast array of flowers and vegetation from other areas in comparison to ours just coming out, I realized just how unique of an ecosystem we foster here in Burlington.