#double pillbug action

[fussypaws]

trick or treat GRAHHHH OOOOO AHHH BOOOOO 🧛🏻‍♀️🧟‍♂️🎃👹👻

Hi friend :D Drew your webfishing cat with a lil isopod :)

[florafaunaravenna]

Final Journal

YI went to my site on June 5th for the last time at 5:00PM. The temperature was 72 degrees Fahrenheit and the weather was sunny and warm.

Taken on April 17th, 2019, a large spatial view of the site.

And a close up shot taken the same day.

A wide spatial shot taken almost two months later, June 5th.

A close up spatial shot taken the same day.

The two sets of photos here depict the radical change that occurred over the time that I spnet observing this patch of wetland next to Ravenna Creek. In mid April the ground was cold, densely packed, and most solid. The air was tepid and the skunk cabbages had barely made any growth from the ground--they were at the very most only a foot or two tall. By the time June rolled around, The ferns, the skunk cabbages, and the horsetails had more than doubled their lengths and added many fronds. I didn’t see anything that might suggest a traditional “blooming”, but the creeping buttercups underfoot opened up and then dropped their petals, perhaps because they weren’t receiving sun light or their cycle ended somewhere between April and June. The number of birds and bugs that I could observe around the site also increased considerably over time. As the weather got warmer, the ground below seemed to contain a greater multitude and variety of bugs--pillbugs, centipedes, and the like. In addition, bees and flies were seen to be buzzing around the site, following their paths and landing on the tree trunks and the leaves of the skunk cabbages.

I didn’t observe a great amount of change in the redcedar or the douglas firs that populated the site, but I did observe that their bark was more fragrant as time went on--the entire site, in fact, was a lot more perceivable by its odors and the texture of the air, which always seemed to be thick with pollen or moisture evaporating and rising up from the muddy ground.

The plants that were directly bordering the site, like the Nootka Rose and the Watercress extended their branches as well and produced many flowers. I chose the rose and the watercress as they seemed plants that thrived well within the As time went on, I could observe that the foliage started to become pockmarked and ragged in the places where they were consumed by bugs, probably crane flies. The thickness of the foliage and the lush denseness of the plant life was a remarkable thing to observe, and in terms of sheer biomass I am impressed by the amount of growth and addition which occurred on the site.

As for the two birds that I saw, the American Robin and the Song Sparrow, I chose the two because they were the most common observable birds at the site, and I saw them often and was able to observe their behavior. The number of American Robins and Song Sparrows that I could observe wildly spiked towards the end of May, and I was able to observe their mating practices, as well as their territorial displays on the branches of trees and on shrubs, as well as several Robins plucking worms from the muddy soil.

A Nootka Rose (Rosa Nutkana)

Watercress (Nasturtium Oficinale)

An American Robin (Turdus migratorius)

A Song Sparrow (Melospiza melodia)

1. My perception of the site has changed in the sense that my understanding of its historical context, as well as the natural forces that contributed to its creation, have deepened my appreciation and ability to distinguish the why and wherefore of its appearance. It no longer appears to me as a “generic” natural setting, but as a place that has been shaped by geological forces, that is composed of 

Through learning the names of the flora and fauna that reside in this area, I was able to learn more about why they make the choices they do--why the skunk cabbages and the ferns and the horsetails seem to grow so wet in the damp and dim, and why the birds and the bugs flock around the area.

2 My knowledge and understanding of the Puget Sound region has developed in two ways. The first is that I’ve become far more aware of the native and indigenous interaction with the plant life and the fauna of the landscape, as well as their historical contributions to understanding it and the impact of the settlers. I realize now that the landscape is a truly rich one in ways that no amount of European or world history could tach me to perceive. After learning that the needles of the grand fir can be boiled and turned into an excellent tea, I became curious and fascinated with the possibilities of living in closer relation to the natural landscape. At the same time, I’ve become more aware of my place in it, the context that I exist in as a visitor, or a guest, essentially, of this place which I do not fully understand. Knowing that the landscape has been shaped by glacial forces has allowed me to explain to many people the reason the streets of Seattle are so steep at times--drumlins.

3 I think that becoming aware of the natural world and becoming intimated with it is a never ending process--knowledge is always partial, and the natural setting always provides opportunities for the subversion of expectation or surprise. I think that at the most basic level, becoming close to nature requires one to look, observe, and remember. To have patterns in mind and to divine the “reason” certain plants act the way they do, or to determine the cause of rainfall patterns adds to ones understanding of nature, but must begin with observation, activation of the senses and presence of mind. After that happens, and the scientific knowledge is obtained, I think a number of interesting options present themselves. Is becoming close to nature necessarily founded on living off the land, or can it coexist with human technology and “advancement”? I don’t know the answer myself, but I think that the search to answer that question is part of what being a naturalist should be. Going beyond understanding nature means acting on its behalf, or being conscious of, in a sense, “ethics” with regard to nature. We at this point have acquired almost complete power over nature, at least crude power in the sense that we’re getting to a point where nature’s splendour can be dried out and exhausted by human industry and activity. Taking some kind of responsibility for the care of nature, or at least coexistence with it so as not to kill it with our negligence, seems to be something that people who want to be naturalists have to do. 

4 My most important personal outcome was quite simple. I wanted to go out into nature so that I could feel good and observe beautiful things. I did so, and in doing so I was also able to become more informed and knowledgeable about the rain, the trees, the birds, and the soil. I wanted to develop a closer connection with nature, so that when my efforts to live a rarefied and purely logical existence fell through, I would have something tangible and reliable to fall back on. Nature’s fundamental characteristic in my opinion is liveliness--the cycle of death and life is conducted on such a massive scale that I feel that it’s almost impossible to exhaust Nature of its wonder.

5 Yes. I’ve become more aware of how my actions as a consumer affect nature, and how important it is for me to change my habits to preserve the natural world. I’ve become aware in a sense of the intricacy and complexity of things that once seemed simple in nature. And I realize that natural history has always been intertwined with human history. Even when the comings and goings and the loud explosions of war, dynastic succession, and invention have made a more visible impact on the human race, nature has always been there, quietly persisting in the strange and manifold manifestation of its unknowable laws. In observing the changes wrought by the creation of the Montlake Cut, for example, I came to understand that the natural landscape of Seattle and the Pacific Northwest has actually changed considerably; its been shaped by human forces. Whether we should or can reverse that change is not something I know with any certainty, but it’s given me awareness of this place as something that can at any moment be shaped further by society if society wishes for something to be changed.