December 5

It’s in the upper 30’s and overcast as I start my morning hike at the Lumberjack Park Nature trail. After crossing the boardwalk through a green-less landscape, I approach the bridge over Mud Creek where I stir up a Black-capped Chickadee, darting through the underbrush as it gives out a warning call that sounds just like its name, “chickadee-dee-dee”. These non-migratory birds have many different calls, communicating information on identity and recognition of other flocks. Their summer diet is mostly caterpillars and other insects, spiders, snails and berries. In winter, Chickadees feed on insects (especially their eggs and pupae), seeds, berries and small fruits. These birds hide seeds and other food items to eat later. Each item is placed in a different spot and they can remember thousands of hiding places. Standing on the bridge, I gaze west as Mud Creek flows slowly through its stark surroundings toward a confluence with the Pine River. After passing through a mature plantation of Red and White Pine trees, I make my way to the edge of the Pine River where I’m pleased to see the flowing water is clear enough to see the sandy bottom. Heading west, I cross the Lumberjack Rd. bridge, turn east along the riverbank where I notice a patch of snow remains from last week’s storm. Up ahead, I watch a melanistic Eastern Gray Squirrel scamper across the river on a downed tree trunk. The squirrel’s black color is due to a variant form of a specific gene that produces more dark pigment. The range of the Gray Squirrel stretches across the eastern half of the country extending well into Canada. Several studies have shown that the dark morph squirrels had lower heat losses and lower basal metabolic rates compared to the regular gray squirrels during winter. The dark-morph squirrels have lower energy costs for living in cold and wintry conditions compared to the gray ones. Not surprisingly, there are more of them sighted as you move north from here into Canada. Just ahead, I pause to listen as river water flows over some embedded rocks. Turning south onto the Campground trail, I come upon a healthy patch of moss growing on the south base of a tree, debunking the myth that moss only grows on the north base. Nearby, in the crevice of tree bark, I spot an old egg mass of a Sponge Moth (formally called a Gypsy Moth). While making my way back toward the car, I spot several patches of Christmas fern whose sterile fronds accumulate carbon compounds, mostly in the form of plant sugars that act as a natural antifreeze and keep them green throughout the winter.

 

She whispers to me in the wind

Beckons with calls of the wild

She displays profound beauty

Makes me curious as a child

She surrounds me with life

With death and life anew

She shows a delicate balance

Harmony through and through

She teaches me lasting truths

Joins me to the cosmic whole

She feeds my body and mind

Nourishes my earthly soul

 

D. DeGraaf