The Known and the Anomaly

The Known and the Anomaly

September 6, 2019

I went down to Cottonwood Pond in the early afternoon of that breezy, sunny day, glad that it was not a hot one. A Pewee sang its name and the buzz of cicadas emanated from the trees. Spider webs were strewn across open spaces, some sparkling in the sun.

I heard a quick rustle of leaves as a nut fell through the canopy, and a small thud as it hit the woodland floor. Did it loosen and fall from a branch, or was it dropped by a squirrel? Either way, it was a sign that the year was beginning to turn from summer toward autumn.

 Bitternuts fallen onto the bed of Cottonwood Pond

Sunlight was strong and fierce, breaking through openings in the canopy, illuminating the woodland only in intense, bright spots so dappled and distinct that the surroundings were distorted.

 The dry woodland slope

Wooded slope to the southeast

Wooded slope to the northwest

Cottonwood Pond within the light

Though the slope seemed bone-dry, the Creek was dribbling along. I could see dampness and recently formed flow patterns throughout the Cottonwood Pond area.

 The Creek before and after the Barkless Log

The “Island” forming to the downstream side of the Barkless Log

 Debris dammed between the Barkless Log and a smaller log, between the Inlet and the Creek

 Where the Seep meets the Creek – exposed muddy area riddled with animal tracks

 Exposed mud in the flow path under the Cottonwood Trunk – with tracks showing that deer had passed below the Trunk (something I do with great effort), not jumping over it

 Near Cottonwood Pond, moving water has gradually exposed the sinuous roots of two young saplings

The bed of Cottonwood Pond had no standing water, not even a little puddle, but the bottom was muddy, showing signs of a microcosm of activity.

Though it was very still at Cottonwood Pond, I saw the motion of something running toward a crawdad hole (the chimney had been swept away) and disappearing into it. I don't think it was the crawdad, but otherwise I could not see any details.

 Washed-off Crawdad hole with Raccoon track

 Raccoon tracks

Worm trails

A curious anomaly had appeared in the bed of Cottonwood Pond.

It looked as if something had been digging. But, why was it digging there? And, why were the edges of the hole squared off??

Crawdads had built soft, new little chimneys at the edge, likely the previous night, so this anomaly had to happen the day before.

These pieces of roots had fallen from the Root Ball some time ago. Over time, they have been sculpted by rushing water and were gradually being buried in the mud.

The Root Ball, which had started as a full semi-circle, had lost soil over the years due to the actions of weather (mostly rain) and gravity, dropping its soil to the soggy ground below and exposing more of its roots. The Cottonwood had become a world of transition between old and new life, its old roots crumbling, but yielding to and supporting new tree saplings.

 The Root Ball, seen from the north, showing the Mud pile and the bed of Cottonwood Pond

The Root Ball Top, seen from the north, showing the Root Ball Top, the Cottonwood Trunk, and the bed of "little pond"

 Large roots exposed where the Root Ball Bottom meets the Mud Pile below

 A long root exposed on the Root Ball Top

Earlier this year, one of the saplings at the north edge of the Root Ball lost its footing as more soil eroded from around its roots, then the whole sapling tipped over across the nearby Isthmus.

I wonder at the fate of the other saplings growing from the Root Ball. They grow from side edges, the top edge, and even from the base of the Trunk, and along the top of the Trunk. Some are larger than the fallen sapling.

Will they all tip over before maturity, sliding to the floor below, or will some experience the fortune of maintaining a strong foundation of soil beneath them, and continue to grow fairly straight?

Meanwhile, critters had been chewing away at old wood in the area, looking for food, or making burrows for shelter or egg-laying, and creating sediment for new soil.

And, critters have been chewing at leaves all summer, feeding themselves and hastening the demise of the leaves, which would someday fall and also become soil.

 Wood Nettles

 Boxelder

The stiff leaves of Hackberry trees were also quite chewed up, but I noticed groups of new, supple, bright green leaves at the ends of branches.

All of this activity, all of this cycling of Life, continued to support new growth, even at this seasonal tipping point.

 Blue Mistflower

Orange Jewelweed in bloom on top of the Mud Pile

Orange Jewelweed in the bottoms area near Cottonwood Pond

Tribbles on the Cottonwood Trunk?

Nope - a slime mold called Comatricha typhoides

Virginia Smartweed

The same pretty shelf mushroom I showed in the previous blog post, but now showing deterioration

I may never know the answer to how the strange anomaly on the bed of Cottonwood Pond was created. But, I will always observe, seek answers to my questions, and learn more along the way. And, the more one learns, the more questions one has.