Woods Journal 9/18
So far, I’ve explored the Wright State woods twice, both with the class. I’ve seen an array of fungi, trees and other plants, and heard/seen different kinds of animals. For a split moment we got to see two white tail deer along our second walk; I grew up with white tail deer in my background when I was younger, so it was interesting to see them again. During the first walk, piebald deer were mentioned and so after seeing the white tail deer I was inspired to illustrate the piebald deer in hopes to someday see it (see right). We also saw two woodpeckers who flew around each other, flying from tree to tree. Based on the information given by our scientific guide, Dr. Rooney, I learned a couple things about woodpeckers.
Woodpeckers typically hit wood to attract mates, which could’ve been what the woodpecker we saw was doing. There’s another type of woodpecker that creates square holes rather than circular ones and they’re called pileated woodpeckers. Another type is the shrike woodpecker which was built like a prey animal but is a predator. So, it takes lizards/bugs and impales them on spikes to kill them since they aren’t naturally built to do that. Along with that we learned of different types of trees. The image to the right is that of a red oak which can be spotted via the ski slope-looking bark. Some would even equate them to braids. Another kind is the sugar maple, a larger one could likely take up to four taps (for harvesting maple syrup) per season. The white ash tree is also an interesting tree to look at due to its brick like structure; however, in the Wright State woods, they’re slowly dying, when there used to be thousands, there’s likely hundreds. Something that was really fascinating to learn about was the spice bush. We tried the pestels in class (the thing connecting the leaf and the branch) and to me it tasted like an essential oil. However, the catch is that it tastes different to everyone due to individual taste buds. It even uses the taste to ward off animals that are lurking. |
|
Woods Journal 10/12
|
Since my last woods journal entree, I’ve walked throughout the woods twice, both times with my class. During the most recent walk, we walked with Professor Vahn who showed us an array of plants and discussed different animals found within the Wright State woods. For instance, he discussed honeysuckles and how they’re an invasive plant to our woods. By staying around longer after the fall season and growing quickly before the spring season, they’re able to smother other plants and block the sun from letting other plants grow. They have red berries that are spread by birds, squirrels, and other animals who drop them in a variety of places. Honeysuckles can typically be seen with their trumpet-shaped flowers that bloom before the berries. Along with honeysuckles, plants like the mayapple and foamflower can be found in the woods surrounding Wright State.
The mayapple is distinguishable by the umbrella-like leaves and the white flowers that appear similarly to daisies. All parts of the plant are poisonous and therefore should not be ingested. Similarly, to the mayapple, the foamflower can be distinguished by its white-like flowers (sometimes with a pinkish hue) that resemble that of a lavender plant. It’s typically found to be a groundcover that spreads for a rather large length. These two plants aren’t the only distinguishable plants found within the Wright State woods, in fact, our only tropical plant currently is the pawpaw tree. As seen in my second image, the pawpaws are green fruit that grows on a tree with leaves that look akin to palm leaves. They’re clonal plants, meaning that they asexually reproduce and are exact clones of the other plants around them. They’re all connected due to this bond and are genetically identical. Sometimes, they can take up to 5-6 years to blossom with fruit, and not all pawpaw trees harbor fruit. Their seeds are typically spread via birds or other small creatures, something in which the Wright State woods are filled with. There are around 100 different types of birds found in the woods, some of which are on a pit stop due to their migratory patterns. Due to migration patterns, it’s difficult to tell which birds are there for a couple minutes or a whole lifetime. Some birds include robins, Carolina red birds, red belly woodpeckers, etc. They’re essential to sowing the seeds of different plants around the area, the state, and possibly even the country. Overall, there is so much life and personality to the woods that we don’t see within our day to day lives, and it’s something that must be appreciated so that future generations can appreciate it too. |
Woods Journal 11/12
For this woods journal I want to not only talk about our regular walks, but also the short amount of time we spent meditating in the woods. Meditating is absolutely not my thing, I’ve tried meditating before, but ultimately sitting somewhere quietly and trying to quiet my thoughts is not for me. When we attempted meditating in the woods, it was… nicer than regular meditation. Probably because of the sounds of the woods, keeping it from being just plain silence. With the leaves falling and someday turning into dirt and mud for the Earth, it really does make you think more about your connection with the Earth and other aspects of nature. I also enjoyed how enthusiastic our guest speaker was about the woods and meditating. Her enjoyment and enthusiasm definitely added to the situation and kept me more interested in the topic.
On the walk before that, we found an eastern box turtle! It’s not often that one finds a creature while walking in the woods, especially when in a group who all together make quite a large racket. So, to be able to take a photo and research it and learn more about it was amazing. I even chose it as part of my eco-narratives story, talking about a turtle’s lifespan and how it interacts with things like mushrooms and flowers like dandelions. To see a creature roaming through the woods, doing its own thing, really puts into perspective how much of life we don’t see/realize. I didn’t even notice the little guy until someone pointed him out because I don’t look down enough and understand the plants/animals around me. For instance, a specific mushroom that might be able to be found in a turtle’s diet is the velvet shank, which is also edible to humans. The eastern box turtle is an omnivore, so they’ll also eat smaller animals and insects, especially in their younger years. In their older years, they’re more preoccupied with mating and eating easier to find vegetables and mushrooms. Not many people know about them, and so to find one and be able to learn about it and appreciate its contribution to nature is an incredible feeling. |