17 August
The Wetlands and Forest will undoubtedly experience more hot days, but today showed evidence that the summer may be winding down. There is rain in the forecast--not a minute too soon, as the foliage and mosses all are alarmingly dry.
The leaves and branches of red osier dogwood beside the path show the effects of drought--the leaves are drying, and the colour of the branches is fading.
A mossy nurse log, nurturing huckleberry saplings, shows drying moss along its sides.
For reasons that might bear investigation, slime molds and fungi seem to be doing well despite the heat and dryness. A dog vomit slime mold looks as though it's about to take off to explore its environment, putting out fibres from its central aggregate of cellular matter.
These conks are growing energetically.
A small jelly fungus (which needs further identification) is the first we've seen this season.
The "Irish harp" beside the path is gradually becoming obscured by cattail moss.
Cascara certainly seems to be re-establishing itself in this forest.
I suppose it's a left-over from my childhood, but I keep seeing disheveled Muppets in mossy log-ends.
An unoccupied hornet nest looked to have fallen from a tree. We hadn't seen it before, and felt fortunate to have come across it long after it had fallen and lost its occupants. They can't have been happy.
The water level in the Marsh is sinking.
Standing water is now surrounded by mud.
A small frog observed us calmly.
Although it lacks the visible tympanum that is typical of the species, I'm afraid it's just an immature bullfrog. There are other frog species in the Marsh but their numbers are being reduced by the big, voracious creatures.
Birdlife seems very quiet just now, awaiting the autumn migration. The dried blooms of a stand of cinquefoil adds colour to the sedges and reeds.
I'll apologise for repetition, but I still find myself saying, "It's just so beautiful," after every visit.
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