May 21

Last Saturday, Remi and I traveled 100 miles west of Alma to hike at the 189-acre Lake Harbor Park near the coastal town of Muskegon. The midday weather was sunny with a temperature of 70 degrees and a gentle westerly breeze off Lake Michigan. From the parking lot, we followed an earthen trail west into a dense forest of mature broadleaf trees and conifers where I noticed the leaf litter had large patches of both Periwinkle and fragrant, but toxic Lilly-of-the-valley Also, I recognized a few pink blossoms of Lunaria Silver Dollar and yellow blossoms of what appeared to be Rough Cinquefoil. Continuing west to the lakeshore, I paused to see that the water level remained high. It’s amazing to me that just three years ago, the level was at an all time low and since has risen four feet to near record high. Next, I turned around and headed inland on a boardwalk that took me over a sand dune down into a wooded area where I easily spotted a perching male cardinal. I’ve often wondered how these birds can be so conspicuous and yet survive predation. It turns out that they are probably bright and loud for the same reason: to advertise what good mates they’d make. Brighter males have higher reproductive success, hold better territories, and offer more parental care. By responding to redness as a sign of a promising mate, females have encouraged the evolution of bright coloring in males. Furthermore, they tend to have high survival rates because they don’t endure the stress of migration. Further down the path, I paused to enjoy the variable call of a perching Catbird. Continuing east, I came upon a tree whose bark had been recently eaten by a Porcupine. Also, beside the sandy trail, I spotted a few tiny white blossoms of Lyre-leaved Rock Cress. Finally, the trail led back to the car and we headed back to Alma.

Whitecaps ride the wind

Surf pounds the sand.

Scenes of the coast

Vistas that are grand

Sandpipers wade

Ring-bills soar

Scenes of spring

Up and down the shore

Freshwater treasure

Living things depend

Great Michigan Lake

Glad to see you again

D. DeGraaf