January 11

Saturday, Remi and I hiked the familiar trails of Forest Hill Nature Area. The early morning weather was rainy, foggy with a temperature of 37 degrees and no wind. I stood at the crest of the hill and noticed the landscape to the west was not as white since an overnight rain had washed some of the snow away. Proceeding down the hill past Mallard Marsh, I spotted deer tracks of a large buck with its splayed hooves and dewclaws. I trudged through Bobolink Meadow and entered North Woods where I saw some Raccoon tracks in the snow. Suddenly, I heard a loud cat-like scream and looked up to see two Raccoons sitting in the crotch of a large Beech tree. Continuing west through the woods, I came upon a freshly dug hole made by a hungry squirrel. I left the woods and circled around Succession Field where I watched a Black Squirrel scamper up a tree and sit still on a branch. Also, there were several piles of rabbit and deer scat next to the trail. I turned east and followed the trail through a stand of Birch before turning into South Woods. Near the edge of Swanson Swamp, I could see pieces of bark, shed from a dying Ash tree had littered the snow. Further along, I noticed a cluster of five needles on the snow that had fallen from a scraggly White Pine tree, the only conifer in the woods. While listening to a noisy crow, I exited the woods, turned east and then south where I paused at Artist Overlook to look over Sora Swale. Following the south trail, I turned south at Frog Fen toward Brady Cemetery where I paused to watch a Red-tailed Hawk emerge from the top of one of the tall White Pine trees in the cemetery and fly north toward Reflection Hill. I entered the cemetery where I could see one of the pine trees had lost several branches from the recent ice storm. I climbed up the hill and gazed west at our neighbor’s crop field. Leaving the cemetery, I headed north through Native Grassland and paused at Grebe Pond. I continued toward the barn where I spotted some Pheasant tracks on the trail. Also, I observed a couple of Starlings on the power lines to the east. At the barn, I turned west and walked past the Observation Platform to the edge of Grebe Pond where the surface was covered with standing water from the overnight rain. Next, I saw a fat Tree Sparrow perched on a nearby tree. Behind the Classroom Building, the bird feeders were busy with Juncos, House and Gold finches, Mourning Doves, Blue Jays, Chickadees and Downy Woodpeckers. Finally, we came to the car and took off for home.

Great bird of prey

Wingspan so wide

You ride the wind

You soar and glide

You perch alone

In a tree so tall

How do you spot?

A mouse so small

You fly away

If I get too near

Red tailed hawk

It’s you I revere

D. DeGraaf