On Thin Ice

Whilst sitting on my glider bench, drinking coffee with a blanket around me (it was a brrrisk morning), I watched a red squirrel scamper from the opposite side of the cove, across a thin sheet of ice. As it neared the shore, the fragile ice skin collapsed under its weight, and I watched it frantically paddle the last few feet in icy water. I felt quite sorry for it, but it seemed not to have got fully immersed or sodden, and was none the worse for wear.

Later that morning, I came across this little squirrel, in the exact same spot. It explored the outer edges of the stump where it protruded out into the water, and also tested out the fragile and springy twigs of nearby shrubs, putting its paws down into the water, and then turning back to find a better spot. The ice no longer extends all the way across the cove, and it looked as if this red squirrel was trying to find a way back to the other side of the cove without getting wet. I imagine it was the same individual I'd seen earlier.

It didn't succeed while I watched, so it decided to save face by pretending it was here to munch on acorns instead 😀

 

Psyched ...

Oooh, not only have I just had my second COVID shot, but I've also found a flowering beaked hazelnut (Corylus cornuta), right next to our boardwalk this spring. So exciting! I'd seen a few of the nuts some years ago, but this was the first time I'd noticed the miniscule flowers - they're about half the size of an (unpopped) popcorn kernel. Seeing the catkins and flowers was new for me, and super special. They're so easily overlooked, which is surprising really because once you see the flowers, they pop out at you distinctly amidst the drab browns of twigs, catkins and leaf litter.

The catkins and flowers ripen at different times since they are self-incompatible, and must cross-pollinate with another shrub. The male catkins produce a haze of yellowish pollen that drifts in the air onto ripe flowers nearby. The next pic shows an unopened bud next to the exquisite catkin.

Nature's Lace

I wonder if the delicate lace we humans create with needlework was inspired by nature's very own lacy presentations?

With delicate tassels and filaments, this slow growing beard lichen is common in our woods. I'm not 100% sure of the I.D. but I believe it's in the genus Usnea. Lichens are sometimes mistakenly blamed for killing trees, but the fact is, they opportunistically harness the nutrients from an already sick or dying tree.

This beautiful lacy structure is formed from the leftover veins of leaves that were encased around insect eggs, as a larder for when the larvae hatch

 

Yet more filigreed, fractal-edged delicacy in the woods

Icy Details

 

I love the beauty and uniqueness of each of these bubbles under the ice:

And how these holes form as the ice sheet melts unevenly

... and the scallops of the fragile edges as it recedes.