A UVM blog Phenology Blog in Centennial Woods – Tate Mullin

Throughout April, there have been periods with and without snow, but I visited just after we received a heavy dusting overnight. Because of this, Centennial Woods looked quite similar to how it has throughout the winter, with a blanket of snow covering the ground, and the canopy and branches of trees clinging onto the last of the snow.

Even with the snow though, signs of Spring are readily apparent, in both the plants and wildlife of Centennial. Poking through the layer of snow are some ferns in the early stages of unfurling, and among the trees, maples, beech, and oaks, buds are starting to form and expand, a light green tinge beginning to be visible.

It seems that there’s also been an increase in small mammal and bird activity since earlier in the spring as well. I heard a variety of bird calls, and saw a few of them swooping through the canopy. And I also noticed many sets of tracks in the thin snow from what was probably from squirrels and foxes and rabbits. The squirrels were active as I was there, as I saw many chasing each other up and around trees.

Going home to Virginia for spring break, the new place I chose to visit was Potomac Overlook park, which is a local park near my house. At this time of year, the climates of Burlington, and Arlington, Va differ drastically, so it was a big change going from the still snow covered ground of Centennial Woods to the bare landscape of Virginia.

The park was still showing signs of winter, with most trees being leafless, but signs of spring were also appearing, as sprouts of green could be seen poking out of the ground. Woody plants, though had not started to bud out yet, they were still in their bare winter conditions. I don’t know the exact composition of the trees at Potomac Overlook, but from quick observation, it’s apparent that it differs from Burlington. Silver Maples are prominent, along with some varieties of oak, and there aren’t any coniferous trees. During my visit, I heard intermittent calling from birds. There were a few different species calling, but the one I was able to pick out was a Mourning Dove.

Potomac Overlook began the process of being designated as a park in the 1950s, and prior to that, it was owned as private land, and has Native history as well, with artifacts dating to 2500 BCE. The land was never clearcut like much of Burlington was, given its rocky and sloped terrain, but some farming did take place, and still does on some of the flat pieces of the land. Since it has been designated as a park, there is just a system of trails and a couple visitors centers managed by the couple rangers who live onsite.

During the City Nature Challenge, I was only able to stay around campus to find different species. Because of this, many of the species I encountered were the focal species we’ve learned about this year. I saw many of the original twenty-one trees we learned last semester, along with some varying shrubs and squirrels. Of course, I also saw some birds, but my bird identification skills are minimal, so I don’t know what species.

From using iNaturalist in the past, I find it fairly straight forward to use, I like that other people can see and identify your posts along with you, so you don’t have to be certain of a species to make a post. Globally, I think it’s interesting how many cities participate, and how spread out they are around the world. Looking through the list of participating countries, it was definitely surprising to see how many cities participated in countries like the Czech Republic and Malaysia.

Below is simply a map of the UVM campus, as that is where I looked for species for the challenge.

Since the last time I visited, the snow has melted, and now signs of spring are abundant throughout the woods. Ostrich, and other varieties of ferns have started to unfurl, along with some leafy ground plants, and many trees have started to bud out. As sun is filtering through the canopy, there are intermittent bright spots of wildflowers popping up.

Aside from these visual changes, the forest is also much more vibrant with sound that it had been throughout the winter. Although I cannot recognize bird calls, there was a constant cacophony of several different species of birds calling in unison. In the underbrush, there was plenty rustling from squirrels digging around in the leaves from last fall.

In this location, nature and culture intertwine quite readily. It is a space that is home to many species of plants and animals, but throughout the past couple centuries, it has also gone through many phases of being due to human involvement. In its current phase though, there are several paths through the woods that allow for humans and this natural space to meet, without major harm coming to either. Unlike many other connections between nature and culture in urban settings, Centennial Woods feels like a place where we are the visitors, instead of the other way around.

I don’t think I consider myself a part of this place, but I definitely do feel a connection to it. I haven’t played any part in taking care of the area, and I have no real long term connection to it, but over the several times I’ve visited it this school year, it has become a place that is peaceful and comfortable for me.

This past week, I took a trip to Centennial Woods looking for tracks and other evidence of animals. I found a few examples and took pictures to post to inaturalist.

The first, and most exciting, animals I saw evidence of was a porcupine. Near the entrance to Centennial Woods, by the river and small bridge that crosses it, there is a dead tree that has had all the bark chewed off the top branches. I had noticed this on previous trips, and the accompanying spray off wood chips on the ground, but it wasn’t until Walt’s lecture on porcupines that I figured out what it was. Upon seeing the tree again with new knowledge, I am fairly confident the markings matched the description of a Porcupine.

Up the trail further, I came across a set of tracks from what appeared to be a Fisher. I saw them right in the middle of the trail frequented by humans and their pets, so I wasn’t able to see where the tracks came from or went to, but I saw two clear tracks, and the distinctive five toes, with a long foot pad helped me to identify it as a a Fisher.

In the first time visiting my location since last semester, I noticed a number of changes to the landscape, while other aspects have stayed constant.

At this point in the year, the leaves have fallen from all deciduous trees in, leaving just the needles from the few Hemlock and Eastern White Pine trees in my location. I also noticed that the bark of all the trees seemed to be a much deeper brown than it was a couple months ago. I don’t really have an explanation for this, but I would guess that the bark has become saturated with moisture from snowfall, or it was simply a trick of the lighting.

On the ground of the forest, there is a solid layer of snow, about a foot in depth. I noticed many animal tracks in this snow (pictured below) and was able to identify one set as a ground squirrel, but there were a few other sets I was unsure of. The other effect I think the snow had was dampening sound. While noise from the nearby road was still audible, I felt very attuned to sounds in the forest, such as bird calls in the canopy, and the rustling of branches as animals moved around.

Overall, I think winter sheds a different light on the forest, changing my focus as I walked through it, when compared to in warmer months. My eyes were drawn towards smaller movements near the ground, as opposed to the bustling canopy of the summer and falls months. The forest comes alive in different ways.

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This week, I visited my location the day after it had snowed. The ground was mostly covered with untouched snow, broken only by a few footprints and pockets of snow fallen from trees. I was able to find the tracks of a couple animals (pictured below). While I have no prior experience tracking animals, through consulting a track book, I believe that the animals were a small ground animal, such as a grey squirrel or marten.

The landscape has transitioned to winter, with the only leaves hanging on to the trees being a few dingy maple leaves. On the ground, snow has taken over most greenery, but a few ostrich ferns remain alive above the ferns. Previously, I had assumed that my location would be much quieter during the winter, with the snow dampening outside noise, but I found the not to be the case entirely. While there was less sound from from the plants, I found that it was easy to hear animal movements through tree branches and bird calls throughout the forest. Noise from the nearby road was also still audible, although not a large nuisance.

Below are pictured what I saw on my visit:

As a way of exploring some of the Burlington Area outside of my location, I walked the route from my dorm building to my location. This took me through Athletic campus and across Main Street, down past the hospital, and into Centennial Woods, up to my location. I recorded some of the phenological events I noticed along the way, and here they are below:

This week, I went back to my phenology location in Centennial woods, and just made some observations about the area. I sat for 15 minutes near the middle of my location, and simply listened to and looked at what was happening around me.

Being in the woods, I heard “traditional” nature sounds; I heard leaves rustling, ground animals scampering through the underbrush, and a few separate bird calls. But Centennial woods is also part of an urban landscape, so I could hear constant background noise of cars on the highway, an occasional airplane, and an electric saw that was being used in the nearby neighborhood. I think that it is easy to forget the impact UVM and Burlington have on natural areas such as centennial woods when you are within them, but those background noises are a reminder that the systems are interconnected, and noise and debris from the city has a direct impact on the forests’ health.

While observing the forest around me, I was able to see some changes from the first time I visited, and notice some new features as well. The Norway Maple trees’ leaves had all turned a vibrant yellow, creating patches of yellow in the otherwise green canopy. I also saw that the forest floor was more completely covered in in pine needles from the White Pine. This trip to my location was the first time I had taken notice of the animal activity. As mentioned above, I heard a few species of birds, and I also saw some squirrels on the trees, and many spiders and their webs low to the ground in ferns and other leafy plants.

Below is an updated list of the trees in my location:

-Norway Maple

-Red Maple

-Striped Maple

-Eastern White Pine

-American Beech

My location is right on the edge of Centennial Woods, adjacent to a couple houses with large gardens. I found it while exploring the Woods with some of my friends, and found it to be a very quiet and peaceful place that I will look forward to visiting throughout the year. To get there, you simply follow the main path into the Woods, and when you reach the clearing with a few large hemlock trees, take the path that crosses a small stream, and then go up the hill, and into the clearing. My spot is partially a man made clearing, and partially the forests of Centennial Woods. I have chosen the boundaries of my spot to be the clearing at the top of the hill, and on the other side, a large White Pine that has fallen across the path, part way down the hill. The clearing has been laid with grass, so there is little diversity, but the forest has a variety of species of mature trees, and about 50% of the forest floor is covered with ferns.

Here is a list of some of the species I have noticed so far at my location:

• Eastern White Pine
• Sugar Maple
• Norway Maple
• Black Cherry