Hamilton Wetlands and Forest

A visit to the forest and wetlands on a warm Sunday afternoon.  Summer is making its way into the forest and marsh, with mature foliage and bloom.   Unfortunately, the snowpack on Mount Arrowsmith looks much like it should in July.    Salal, which was only just starting to show new growth last week, is now showing the beginning of fruit.   At least one bear is awake and searching for grubs in fallen logs. Last week I wrote about "mysterious tracks."  Here they were again, but with the evidence of the bear's search for his brunch, their origin was more clear.   Other evidence of a search for food: There are many trees in the forest that have been similarly drilled.  To judge by the size of these holes, this is likely to be the work of a pileated woodpecker searching for insects in the dead tree.  Their nest holes are much bigger, but this is evidence of a very busy bird.   The activity of this bumble bee was less evident than those of the bear and the bird. It is identifie

 A Saturday visit to the Forest and Marsh.  After a hot week, the forest felt a bit cooler.  Mosquito spray was a good idea. A hemlock hosted a generous collection of cat-tail moss. We've been puzzling over surveying tape on this branch, stuck in the earth in the midst of an approximate circle of trees that are marked with numbers one through six.   There have been various speculations about the purpose of these markers, but so far nothing definitive has presented itself.  One of those things that need to be monitored... A resilient young alder is growing  from a stump that has broken off at about ten feet up.   The foliage is increasingly lush.  Soon the ocean spray will bloom. The false lily of the valley is blossoming. Although they are seldom visible, woodpecker work is evident. Out at the marsh, there are now so many dragonflies that it has become impossible not  to photograph them.  These are only a sample of the species we saw--now the challenge will be to identify them. The

The warm weather of the past week has brought forward the growth along  the path into the forest and marsh.    Yesterday was a bit cooler, with a friendly breeze in the less heavily forested areas.  Unfortunately, in the not so breezy spots,  mosquitos filled with blood lust have arrived.   The bracken fern has shot up. In among the bracken and swordfern,  a mystery fern has sprouted.  I think  it's deer fern. There was just this one little patch of them, with very narrow leaves.   The huckleberry is forming fruit! ...as is the salmonberry. The trillium is changing from white to a pale violet colour. I'm told that when it turns colour like this, it tells pollinators that the pollen is no longer available and that they should seek pollen elsewhere.  .   The marsh is now a lush green and the snowpack is leaving Mt. Arrowsmith. The alders look as though they're now fully leafed out. The marsh was teeming with a variety of dragonflies.  I'm going to need to develop my drago

  8 May A fine morning for a visit to the Hamilton Wetlands and Forest. The warmer weather of the past week has brought on the growth of vegetation dramatically.  Last week the bracken fern was just starting its growth with elegant scrolls.  This week it was mature and abundant. False lily of the valley has spread on the forest floor, in this frame "photobombed" by a salmonberry blossom. The resilience of huckleberry vines can be startling.  They often root themselves on logged off stumps, with beautiful effects. The leaves of skunk cabbage, which have been emerging over past weeks are now almost fully grown. The forest has a beautiful assortment of plantlife. Count the species...*  An energetic caterpillar explored the growth.   The on-line Bug Guide warns us:  " Like several kinds of wooly-bear-type caterpillars, these have venomous, stinging hairs, which can cause a burning sensation and/or a rash in sensitive people - look, but don't touch!"  We left it unto