oneillcw's Journal

Today, since I am home for fall break, I decided to walk in the woods behind my house which has several types of plants. I walked with my mom and my two dogs. It was about 60 degrees Fahrenheit with no wind and it was mostly sunny. It was a very beautiful walk as it is the middle of fall and all of the leaves on the trees are changing color. I know that the change in color is a sign that the trees are deciduous. I saw many maple and oak trees in the woods (maple trees are in the observations). I saw many flowering plants as well such as white snakeroots. I also saw many coniferous trees. The majority of trees in the woods are deciduous, but several smaller pine trees can be seen in the observations. These are gymnosperms. At the base of many of the tall oak and maple trees, moss was growing. Moss was also seen on some rocks and the pathway that I walked on. Moss is Bryophyta. Lastly, I saw several ferns which are polypodiopsida. They were usually surrounded by other plants. It is interesting how many different types of plants can be seen in the same half-mile radius. Plants can grow near each other or separated, some grow next to water while others grow out of dry dirt, and some grow off of dead branches with fungi. I am glad that I was able to complete this walk and see a vast amount of biodiversity away from campus, where I have done my other walks close to.

Today, I went for a walk by the Chestnut Hill Reservoir. Unlike my last nature walk, the temperature today was much cooler and the wind was steady and strong at around 12 miles per hour. The reservoir surface was rippling. It was still nice to get outside and enjoy some fresh air before the sun goes down. On my walk, I encountered several cases of stereum, all located on different trees scattered throughout the woods. I also saw a few mushrooms at the base of a large oak tree. I saw lichens at the beginning and end of my walk on several trees as well. The coolest thing I saw was the bleeding oak crust, which were present on a dead oak tree trunk. These fungi help decompose the tree.

Today, I went for a nature walk to the Hammond Pond Reservation. It was only about a mile from campus. The weather was nice and sunny with a light breeze and around 60 degrees Fahrenheit. Fall is definitely upon us as it is much chillier in the late morning than it was even a week ago. On my way to the Hammond Pond Reservation, I saw several squirrels (one of which is documented). Most observations are from the reservation but the squirrel was outside near the street. It was nice to see plants (both in water and on land) and animals (birds, insects, and mammals). Overall, I enjoyed being in nature away from the stresses and constant noise of a college campus.