I keep expecting to see signs of spring in the woods, even though I know it's not quite time for that yet. Just to remind me that winter's still here, the paths at Naugatuck State Forest where I went for a walk this afternoon showed a thin layer of packed snow, left over from the few inches we got last Thursday:
Maybe because my mind is already in spring mode, though, I honed in on the color green during my walk today. There wasn't much in the way of new things growing, but it was nice to notice some of our plants that keep their leaves all winter. As it turns out, there's quite a bit of living green out there among the brown!
The shiny purple-green leaves of Round-leaved Pyrola, for example, dotted the side of this bank:
And this Spotted Wintergreen contributed a lovely blue-green hue to the mix -- one of these plants is still holding on to the dried remains of last year's flower:
Partridgeberry stretched chains of its tiny dark-green leaves across the ground:
My favorite discovery of the day was this lone Downy Rattlesnake Plantain, one of our native orchids, growing in a different part of the forest from where I found it blooming last summer. Its intricately patterned leaves practically glowed from its setting on the brown forest floor:
Isn't this just the prettiest little plant? I'll keep an eye on it to see whether it blooms this year.
The Hemlock trees looked especially green today, making a roof above the path:
And I love the extensive patches of sea-green lichen on this tree -- I've often noticed it, but neglected to photograph it until now:
And of course, what list of green things in the winter woods would be complete without some moss? There are so many different types of moss out there, and maybe one day I'll try to learn to identify them -- for now, I'll just marvel at some of the interesting textures and vibrant colors that presented themselves today:
The only real sign of spring I've seen so far remains the Skunk Cabbage, and those plants are getting stronger by the day, with little mottled maroon-and-yellow balloons popping up all over the swampy areas of the forest:
And what's this? A hint of new-green Skunk Cabbage leaf unrolling as well?
Maybe spring really is on its way after all. :D
The weather is definitely getting cooler. Or at least, it was quite cool this morning -- almost chilly, really -- when I went for a walk around my usual loop in the Naugatuck State Forest. As always, there were plenty of exciting things to see.
I've been keeping my eyes out for this plant ever since I first learned it last year, yet somehow I managed to completely overlook this patch right next to my normal path until today, when the flowers are already mostly faded. This is one of our native orchids, Downy Rattlesnake Plantain (Goodyera pubescens):
I love the patterns on those leaves, and the tiny white flowers are quite pretty as well. But really, I think all orchids are wonderful. Just so you can get an idea of this plant in its full glory, here's a close-up picture of these flowers when we found them last year (July 31, 2010) in West Rock Ridge State Park (photo courtesy of Paul):
I learned a couple of new plants today as well, and they both happen to be hawkweeds. Here's Canada Hawkweed (Hieracium canadense):
And Panicled Hawkweed (Hieracium paniculatum), whose flowers seem almost to be floating on those thin stems:
The waterways were bursting with life today. I startled this small Green Frog from its rock into a shallow stream, where it watched me carefully with its feet just touching the sandy bottom (what a beautiful shade of green you have on your face, little frog):
A pair of aptly-named Ebony Jewelwings (a species of damselfly) were fluttering above another stream -- this creature was even brighter in real life, if you can believe it:
And on the stream's surface, big water striders (family Gerridae) skimmed about:
It's quite an amazing ability these insects have. The water looks like pliant plastic under their limbs, or like a trampoline ready to spring. From a distance, the striders were visible mostly by the interesting paw-print shadows they cast in the stream:
I saw some birds today that I'd never seen in this part of the woods before, which makes me wonder if the fall migration is imminent.... The seasons continue to change, but summer isn't quite done yet!
