Brown, So Brown

Yesterday was heavenly. We walked in the Woods without our coats!

Mostly, things were still brown, like this Beech nut hull,

this exceptionally gnarly tree,

an owl pellet,

Shagbark Hickory bark,

and a Raccoon snoozing 50 feet up a tree (the second we saw that day!),

We wondered why she wasn’t holed up in one of the many snags, then realized she was probably enjoying the spring warmth and fresh air as much as we were.

Behind the Woods is a patch of old field in succession.

We easily saw--without even trying--20 Praying Mantis egg cases,

and the pretty fish scales of last year’s milkweed.

Back in the Woods, the Swamp is relatively dry for this time of year. We very briefly heard Spring Peepers peeping, as if they were just checkin’ things out.

If you’re willing to get your knees muddy, there’s green to be seen, like Spring Beauty leaves (yippee!),

and tender green moss.

I’m no bryophytologist but it appears to me that some of these capsules have released their spores while others have yet to do so.

Here’s a neat 1-minute video about moss reproduction:

Back at home, O photographed the Fox Squirrel, filling up on corn

and I took the weekly shot through the kitchen window.