The two weeks of freezing temperatures has killed off most of the vegetation. Squirrels and chipmunks scavenge the ground for the remnants of hickory and oak nuts. With the removal of leaves many bird and squirrel nests are revealed, and the warm spell of temperatures causes high activity of ground dwelling insects.
The sun gleams through barren trees, the last bit of warmth before winters long lasting darkness. Birds pick off bugs and bees, meanwhile bore beetles strip white ash leaving them barkless.
