Heading into April, the bushy shrubs are starting to come back with a vengeance. While walking to the Redstone Quarry, I was poked by quite a few plants on the path that were not there last time I took a trip.
I am not quite sure what this first plant was, but it was jutting out onto the path. Its leaves seemed to just be coming in and were quite sparse. Next, I came across what I believe to be buckthorn. Whatever the plant was, the leaves were incredibly soft and I stopped to touch it for a minute.
As I continued on the path, I ran into another unknown species. This plant was particularly interesting to me due to the shape of its leaves. The leaves were just sprouting though, so I am not sure what they will look like when they are fully out.
After that, I made it to the Quarry. When I arrived at the Quarry I immediately noticed that the birds were singing. I could not see any of the birds, but I could hear multiple different calls. I noticed that the Eastern Hemlock that covers the back part of the Quarry was turning yellow/orange.
The grass underneath the Eastern Hemlock is starting to grow very tall, along with the Barberry.
While I heard quite a few birdcalls, I was unable to see any specific birds. I saw an Eastern Gray squirrel while walking through the short trail to get to the Quarry, but was unable to snap a picture of it before it ran away. I also was not able to find any tracks or scat left behind by the animals that had been passing through previously. I am hoping within the next few weeks I will be able to find some due to the mud that will be accumulating.
