sit spot site tree and leaf cover

Today I got to my sit- spot a slightly different time than usual, as I got out of my chemistry lab earlier than I expected. I arrived around 3:48 pm, and left around 4:56, so I’m calling this session “dusk”, just about an hour before the sunset time of 5:18. I wanted to do my sit-spot on Sunday, so I could pick a different time of day to go, but I got cram-packed with work that I wasn’t expecting and so was left with my usual time slot on Mondays to carry this sit-spot out. I’ll aim for a morning session before the next sit-spot is due!

sky above + bubble bath clouds

The atmosphere was so chilly and dreary today! The sky was this blue-grey that was almost depressing, though it wasn’t necessarily stormy. It was covered in these patchy- like clouds that made it look almost like a bubble bath in some parts, though. To the northwest of my sit spot you could see the beginnings of the sunset, with the warmer yellow and orange colors that provided an interesting contrast. I needed to grab a jacket in order to sit for such a long time, as well, since it was both windy and cold.

So much has changed here, too! Not just the weather (which feels like it changed on a dime from 70s to 40s…). For instance, most of the leaves on the Catalpa tree to my right are gone, while the oak tree I sit underneath still has most of its leaves, with just a fraction of it changed with autumn colors. Most importantly, the large tree that sits in front of me (1/3 of my monitored things), which I have actually officially identified as a Soulangeana Magnolia (since it’s deciduous, as I see only now), has lost all but a few spare leaves here and there. It looks like a bare skeleton! Because the leaves have all dropped over the last two weeks, I was also able to grab a picture of the buds on the tree which helped me identify it as the Soulangeana (aka Saucer Magnolia).

bud of soulangeana magnolia 

Celebrate this development with me please because I’m so relieved I finally know what it is. The leaf cover on the ground, which is another factor I monitor, has somehow also exponentially increased. While I was walking around the tree and checking out its newfound barrenness it felt as though the leaves beneath me were so layered and cushiony that I would fall through into some nether underneath. My third monitored factor is the number of animals I observed here. Some of the notable occasions were one where a pair of grey squirrels (with soft white bellies!!) racing along the tree and the leaves gave me a Heart Attack because of the skittering and the running-through-leaves-at-an-abnormally-fast-rate sounds. Another observation was a trio of crickets that sung somewhere off to my right (north) which was a lovely break from the incessant noise of planes crossing right above me. I wasn’t able to see any birds during my sit-spot, but I believe I heard two very different species to the west. The final notable observation that I have is that there WERE NO MOSQUITOS AT ALL, not a SINGLE ONE, and I was SO HAPPY about this. I literally combed the ground for a Trace of any bug or 6-8 legged creature but I came up completely empty! No flying leech passed my line of sight! Celebrate THAT too!

I just thought this was pretty (oak tree)

Until next time

Cheers,

Emily