Field Study #4

October 29, 2023

It's been a while since my last visit- I didn't want to go to the park in the rain, and there have been lots of rainy days lately! Today was a nice fall day, so I decided it was the perfect day for my fourth field visit.

Many of the other trees in the park still had their leaves, but when I got to my spot, most of the leaves were gone! I was so surprised. Last visit, the trees were still very green, and this visit, the leaves had already fallen. I expected the park to look different, but I wasn't expecting the change to be so dramatic! To be honest, I was a little disappointed at first. I wish I could have seen the park when the trees still had their colorful fall leaves.

However, the trail was still beautiful, and I got to see amazing things (like bird's nests!) that had been hidden by leaves. I'm excited to see how it continues to change with the seasons!

Field Notes

Date: Saturday, October 28, 2023

Time: 4:14pm-4:45pm

Climate Conditions: Mostly sunny, some clouds

Temperature: 52℉

Length of Day: 7:44am-7:12pm (11 hours, 28 minutes)

Organism Observations:

Even though most of the leaves are gone, the apple tree is still holding on to its leaves and its apples! The apples on the branches look rotten but haven't fallen off. The leaves on the apple tree have changed a little but are still mostly green. The ground is covered in brown, red, orange, and yellow leaves of many different kinds. Some of the leaves look "crunchy" or shriveled. Other leaves have spots, bite marks, or small patches of a different color.

I discovered that the leaves were hiding many bird's nests. I counted about 3 or 4. There were some huge nests in branches of the the taller trees. Those nests were further away, and I only saw them because there were no leaves to hide them. One of the bird's nests, a smaller nest on the edge of the trail, was really close to the ground (about 7 feet above ground). I probably walked past it countless times, but never noticed it because of the leaves! I got to observe and sketch the nest up close which was was really cool. I was surprised that birds would build their nests in branches so close to the ground.

I saw a branch with a bunch of strange bumps growing on it. It was kind of interesting. I wonder if there was something growing on the branch, or if it was just a weirdly shaped branch.

There are always lots of interesting sounds on the trail! I heard the sounds of many different birds, crickets, and cicadas. I also heard the sound of leaves falling and rustling in the wind.

Changes Since Last Visit:

Most of the trees have lost all their leaves, but a few trees still have some left. Surprisingly, the trees that are holding onto their leaves are still green. I wonder if all the rain these last few weeks caused the leaves to fall so soon.

The apples have disappeared from the trail. I wonder why. Did the apples decompose? Were they eaten by wild animals? Maybe they are still there, just covered by all the leaves?

The log has more moss on it than it did last time I was at the park. I wonder if the rain caused the moss to grow more quickly.

The plant/tree I observed each visit doesn't have any leaves anymore! The branches around it are also completely bare. It was the first plant I observed changing color, so I'm not surprised that it lost all its leaves so quickly.

I noticed more logs, fallen trees, and branches today than I have in the past. It could be because of all the rain storms lately. I think it's more likely that they're just easier to spot now that there are less leaves.

Pictures

Leaves on the trail

This interesting branch has something weird growing on it.

A bird's nest!

More moss is growing on the log.

Field Sketch, Sound Map & Video

Since it was such a nice day, I decided to sketch the bird's nest I saw. I tried field sketching last time, and I really liked it! Field sketching is fun, and it helps me observe more carefully. I also made another sound map and sound video. I already made one for my second visit, but I wanted to make a better, more detailed sound map. This time, my sound map includes how many times I heard each sound (1x = 1 time, 2x = 2 times, 3x = 3 times).