In the Midst of Summer
July 21, 2015
The heat of summer normally brings our Creek down to a
trickle (or less), and the last couple of years have shown that Cottonwood Pond
shrinks, also. After a spring and early summer full of heavy rains, we had a
stretch of no rain and plenty of heat and sun. How had Cottonwood Pond fared
after going from one extreme to another?
The Creek, still running a little, could barely be seen.
Evidence of its route was but a vague, blurry dark line through the dense
greenery.
A wide spot in the greenery where the Creek passes
under the Barkless Log and dams up a bit
The puddle that forms to the side of the Creek, next
to the Barkless Log
The Creek just downstream from where it passes
Cottonwood Pond – can you find it?
With so much greenery (and mud), I decided to walk the Very
Rotten Log over the Creek to get to Cottonwood Pond.
The VERY Rotten Log, after all of that rain – actually,
slimy. To the right is where it gave way under my foot. At every step, I could see moisture
squish up around my shoes from the moss and rotted wood. This was
the most careful crossing on the Very Rotten Log I had ever taken.
“Sawdust” where burrowing creatures have been
accelerating the rotting process
How long will it be before I cannot use this log to cross?
Looking to the southeast where the Very Rotten Log
extends between Cottonwood Pond and the Creek, disappearing into the cover of
Orange Jewelweed (Impatiens capensis) plants, then eventually disappearing into
the ground, from rot
The Seep was hardly visible at all, except where, at its
meeting with the Creek, the Bark Ledge was exposed - only a tall clump of grass
gave away the location of the Dam, or Zig-Zag in the Seep
Approaching Cottonwood Pond, I could see that the pond water
had gone way down, though not quite to a puddle.
Looking to the northwest
There was only soft mud under the Barkless Log at the Inlet,
which was very wide and clear (I measured it as a 6-inch tall space.) No rain
water had been flowing through for some time, allowing animal prints to remain
in the mud.
To the north, the Pond corner, Seep origin and Isthmus were
nothing but mud. And Mud Pile #1, below the Root Ball Bottom, was covered in
very tall Jewelweed and Clearweed (Pilea pumila) plants.
Would the Pond still be supporting life? I got a closer look.
Frogs!!
Possibly Western Chorus Frogs (Pseudacris triseriata) or
young Green Frogs (Rana clamitans melanota) , or both.
Some squeaked and jumped into the water.
Some stayed in the water, heads poking above the surface ...
... some sat still on the mud ...
… and some escaped into the relative safety of the Cove,
among the rootlets at the base of the Root Ball.
There were also Raccoon tracks up to the Cove, so maybe it
wasn't so safe for frogs.
In fact, mud was covered everywhere with Raccoon prints. They,
likely a whole family, had been very busy.
At Pond edge, near Inlet
Prints on other side of Inlet, where Raccoons were
walking through
There was a tunnel at the edge of the Pond, near the Cove,
the opening halfway under water, and a “skid mark” in the mud where something
slid in or out of the tunnel. What animal did this? A Crawdad? A Frog? A Water Snake? Whatever it was, the Raccoons likely captured it (well, maybe not a snake.) Their “finger” prints
skirted the top of the hole like the semi-circle of bricks above a railroad tunnel. The many
prints nearby, including those of long Raccoon heels pressed deeply into the
mud, left evidence of Coon determination. One hind footprint was halfway in the
water, above the skid mark. I imagined the Coon bending over, grasping at the
creature with its hand-like front paws as it tried to slip either into the
tunnel or further into the water. By this, I cannot tell if it was captured,
but I know Raccoons don't often miss.
There were plenty of fresh Crawdad chimneys around Cottonwood
Pond, conditions being very favorable for building them, including this one,
built around a grass stem and a Jewelweed plant ...
… and this very tiny, skinny one.
Pond Snails and water insects were active in the
water, mostly near edges.
One spider was, unfortunately, no longer active ...
… but there was plenty of evidence of active web weavers
around.
Web on the Root Ball Bottom
I went around to the other side of the Inlet, toward the
Swampy Spot on the east side.
And, what to my wondering eyes did appear?
The Mystery Plants had
bloomed!!
As I had suspected, they were Monkey Flowers (genus Mimulus)
– but what species?
Do you see the monkey face in the flower?
Finally, I could identify the Mystery Plants. They were
Mimulus alatus, or the Sharp-winged Monkey Flower. I could distinguish it from
a similar species (M. ringens, or
Allegheny Monkey Flower) by the longs stalks on the leaves, the short pedicels
on the flowers, and the “winged” sepal at the base of the flowers.
A number of Mimulus blossoms had already fallen, scattered,
on the Swampy Spot mud below. These pretty, delicate blossoms, as well as the
bright orange, dramatic flowers of Jewelweed, will become part of the soil.
(Note I was able to walk through the Swampy Spot without
boots this time, though my shoes got somewhat muddy)
Other plants in the vicinity:
A tall grass species (I have yet to identify any grass, sedge of rush species here).
A Boxelder sapling (Acer negundo), which, when young, can be
confused with Poison Ivy.
Elderberry (Sambucus canadensis) shrubs with unripe
berries.
False Nettle (Boehmeria cylindrica) in bloom.
I looked southeast of the Swampy Spot to the Temporary Creek,
which feeds it. This creek has been leaning toward being not so Temporary. It
even brought along an old rubber ball that I had seen before, well upstream in
the regular Creek.
I assumed it entered our woods years ago when grandsons of
our then neighbors across the road kicked it with too much vigor. Those boys
all grew up, so it is amazing the ball has stayed inflated so long, if that was
the source.
Looking to the north from the Swampy Spot: Cottonwood
Trunk below, upper limb of Barkless Log above
Closer to the Trunk base – Barkless Log lower limb,
Cottonwood Trunk, Barkless Log upper limb, extended branch of Bent Blue Beech
I worked my way over the Barkless Log's lower limb and the
dense vegetation toward the Trunk base. Under the base, I could see through to
“little pond.” Sometimes water continues from there to the other side of the
Trunk.
Here, also, was the other side of the Cove.
Here was where I saw frogs go to hide, and where Raccoon
prints almost entered from either side. Maybe young Raccoons would be able to
fit through.
I stooped under the Trunk and looked to see how it was doing.
Where bark had fallen off and wood was exposed, various
clawed wildlife had been gouging at the wood, searching for tiny creatures
within, hastening the deterioration of the Trunk.
Some of those tiny creatures had been burrowing in the Trunk,
also hastening deterioration, and leaving a pile of “sawdust” on the mud below.
Fungi found the Trunk to be a very hospitable place to grow,
with shade and an increasingly softer, more textured surface from moisture and
rot. The fungi would be further disintegrating the wood by its mycelium below
the surface growing between wood cells, deriving nutrients.
Currently unidentified shelf fungus
Looking up the Trunk, I saw that it was almost completely
devoid of bark, which had fallen in sections to the woods floor, gradually
becoming soil.
On the wood surface there were old burrows of insect larvae
and claw marks of mammals.
When part of the Trunk completely deteriorates, how will that
affect the balance of the Root Ball? And how long will this process take?
I stood at a vantage point from the northeast to look at the
whole area encompassing the Root Ball Top, the Trunk and “little pond.”
2-Trunk Tree to right, Isthmus between it and Root
Ball
How different this was from the spring time! I could see no
water through the vegetation, and the Root Ball Top was becoming a miniature
woodland.
Going closer, I could see that “little pond” was all mud.
Raccoon prints went from the far end of “little pond”, under
the Trunk, and probably to the Cove, as well as around to the other side to
pass through the Inlet to the main Pond. If only I could be there to secretly
watch the Raccoons at night.
Mud from the corner of “little pond” (left) to the
2-Trunk Tree (right), through the Isthmus, to the corner of the main Pond (upper left) and down the Seep (upper right)
It was time to finally identify the 2-Trunk Tree. After
examining the opposite leaves to see that they had seven leaflets with soft
surfaces and smooth edges, I determined it was an Ash, most likely a White Ash (Fraxinus americana.)
In fact, that's what the Young Tree at the edge of the main
Pond turned out to be, also.
The vocabulary changes, then, to 2-Trunk White Ash and Young
White Ash.
Note: The plants I had
seen earlier in the year growing in the water of Cottonwood Pond were no longer
there, though the spot was never dry.
********************************************************************************
After the visit, it occurred to me that I need to keep a list
of all species found at Cottonwood Pond and close by: plant, animal, fungi,
etc. (some animals determined by the signs they leave or songs heard.) So,
someday a Cottonwood Pond blog entry will be that list, possibly with
accompanying photos. I am excited to see what may be added to the original list
over time.
***********************************************************************************
Bonus photos:
Turkey Tail fungi on nearby log (Polyporus
versicolor)
Jack-in-the-Pulpit (Arisaema triphyllum) with green
fruit on slope between Cottonwood Pond and home
I bet this is all dried up now. WHiNE....
ReplyDelete