The site in January is beautiful, path marked in well worn treads of ice and golden brown leaves curled dry in the snow. The high contrast of dark bark against white snow isolates each tree as its own individual, no longer an undergrowth of brown and green against brown and green the snow steals the camouflage that once dominated the forest floor. This allows for usually unnoticed details to stand out, specifically animal tracks and deciduous tree twigs. Within the site itself there are three deciduous trees I have identified, sugar maple, yellow birch, and striped maple. All of these drop twigs that are clearly visible on the snow.
In the image above, I identify the several deciduous trees within my site as well as categorize the various parts of a Sugar Maple Twig. Identified through its opposite branching, brown buds on a brown bark twig, and the pointed bud not present on other maples from the same area.
The small ferns still growing are some of the few pieces of green life within my site, resilient through the recent snow. Faintly visible in the bottom right of the image are the foot prints of a gray squirrel. This squirrel would have jumped from the tree besides the path onto the log on which the ferns grow.
Whatever tracks were left from animals have since been overrun with tracks from hikers boots, however several twigs are visible within the photo surrounded by leftover dead underbrush poking through the snow. January’s effect on the local wildlife is drastic, many creatures and plants have since retreated until the coming spring.