One good thing about the recent bio-blitz is that it forced me to start looking more at things in the natural world that I don't normally look at. I don't usually pay much attention to lichens and/or mosses, and I still can't identify them, but now at least I'm looking at them. In so doing, I'm finding that they are a lot more interesting than my previous inattention would indicate. Here's a tree on Roundtop with several kinds of lichens and mosses on it.
I found a Web site that said Pennsylvania had just under 400 species of them. It had some photos but the photos were such close-ups that I can't really ID my lichens from them. Anyway, I found the lichens on this tree particularly interesting because of the different colors and shapes.
The mountain is very lush with greenery right now. An inch of rain on both Thursday and Saturday nights saw to that. Summer's canopy is so dense at the cabin that I have to walk out to the end of the driveway to see the sky. It will be that way until October or so, when the canopy starts to thin out again. It's a little tough to get used to that each year. One thing I like about winter is the view I have. I can see over to the mountain to the west and the edge of the new pond about .25 mile to the north. Now, I can see no more than 50 feet in any direction and less to the west. The forest both shelters and confines me at the same time.
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3 comments:
The pale blue-grey of the lichen is amazing. Such a delicate shade. PA has 400 species of lichens and mosses? Who knew?
I know what you mean about the forest being sheltering and confining at the same time. I don't think I could live in a place completely surrounded by dense forest; I need a bit of a view.
Kgmom,
I think the actual total is 396 species of lichens. And the only one I can name is the British soldier (it's a red little thing). I've simply got to find a guide to help me identify some of these.
Deb,
Sometimes the forest feels a little confining to me, too, and I'm a a little jealous of people who have woods AND a view. But then I see a golden-crowned kinglet pecking on the window from its perch on a branch, and I change my mind.
Carolyn H.
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