A UVM blog Josie’s Phenology Blog

I haven’t exactly picked a name for my place but it is off of a street called “Ledge Road”, so as of now, I’ll call it the ledges. You get to the ledges by walking past redstone, and past the country club, which takes you onto Ledge Road. Walking down the hill of the road you’ll notice a few streets that you have to walk past until, on the left side of the road, there is a little clearing for a path. You take the short path all the way to the ledges and that’s how you get there! I chose this place literally because it’s pretty and has an overlook. There are all types of trees here at the ledges as well as more understory plants on the path. Theres also some moss and grass growing between the rocks. The trees are all changing colors and are super vibrant at this point.

Most common woody plants

• Eastern Hemlock 
• Sugar Maples
• American Beech

11/7/22

Today was very windy but still very peaceful at the ledges. In my 15 minutes of peace, i heard the hind whistle of the wind and shockingly the tweets of smaller sounding birds (for some reason I feel like birds dont exist in November). I heard geese that were probably migrating south. Lots of crows were circling around overhead. A very big bird day I suppose! Some of the Sugar Maples still have their bright yellow leaves but most of the other trees are bare at the moment. The rocks are dark from rain that had just happened. The moss and grass previously thriving between the rocks is now starting to die. An interesting moment was when I saw something red fly by and I thought it was a cardinal (which is the state bird of Virginia, where I am from), so that was a very exciting moment for me. Even though it was most likely not a cardinal and just a red leaf it was like a spiritual connection I felt to the place. Now that most of the trees, aside from the cedars, are bare, I have a pretty good view of the lake and was able to enjoy a nice sunset.

My new phenology spot is in my hometown known as Lake Brittle. Lake Brittle is a big lake surrounded by forest in Warrenton, Virginia. I went to the lake at sunset which looking back on wasnt such a great idea because it was darker than expected and I could see much of the trees. From what I did see though, there were many Yellow Poplars, Red Oaks, and American Beech. My spot in Vermont similarly has American Beech as well. Experiencing the lake was very different than my original phenology spot, as the lake has aquatic organisms such as frogs that I could hear croaking, while my other spot has strictly terrestrial animals such as birds and squirrels. As Virginia is way more southern than Vermont, it is a lot warmer and some of the trees still have their leaves.

Looking back at my first phenology post, there was an abundance of leaves on basically all of the trees. Throughout the season, all but a few trees lost their leaves. The trees that toughed it out were the firs and the pines, keeping all their needles. The ground at my spot was mostly covered in dead leaves with little sign of decomposition. I did notice some squirrel poop on the rocks nearby where I was standing. I could hear some scuffling in the trees  and a few birds flew out, there were also crows circling around the site. In contrast to my first visit, there was less noise from wildlife, though that could have been from the wind howling. I also saw more animals during my first visit such as squirrels and chipmunks. The aspects I love the most about my site are the views, the rocks overlook the small woods behind cute neighborhood houses and you can see the lake. This was overall an enjoyable experience and I’ll definitely be making visits back to my spot.

Returning to my spot after a good long break made the phenological changes really stand out. There are no more leaves on the trees, except for the cedars, and as far as I can tell, the grass and moss between rocks is still dead. There were no berries left on the bushes. Usually I can see the lake and the New York mountains from my spot, but with the snow, it made visibility hard. Snow covered every part of my spot so it kind of sound proofed the area so I couldn’t really hear much wildlife. Although I did one track of animal prints that I believe to be Rabbit or Hare!