There was a blog post coming up in just a few days and I had nothing; not even an idea, and I wondered if, for the first time in almost 4 years, I’d miss a post. I shouldn’t have wondered at all because I know that all I have to do is free my mind of expectations and walk into the forest. If I go into the woods expecting or hoping to find a certain thing then I usually don’t find it, but if I just walk in with an open mind and let nature lead, I often see things that I’ve never seen before.
If you have ever walked down a woodland path with a two year old child then you know that they’re open to anything and fascinated by everything. They also walk very slowly down a crooked path, toddling from this to that and back again with a sense of wide eyed wonder. That’s exactly how to see the things in nature that others miss-let yourself be a child again. I walk at the pace of a two year old and my path is never straight. I stop and look around often, never knowing what I’ll see, and if I have to get down on my knees to take a photo I’m sure to scan the forest floor around me for a full 360 degrees before I stand up again. I’ve seen some amazing things by doing that.
One of the first things I found on this day was this orange crust fungus, which I think is the crowded parchment fungus (Stereum complicatum.) The complicatum part of its scientific name means “folded back on itself.” This fungus often grows on fallen oak limbs and parasitizes some types of jelly fungi.
Before I stood up I followed my own advice, looked around and saw these pear shaped puffballs (Lycoperdon pyriforme,) which grew on a log and stood out against what I think is a bright white lichen background, possibly whitewash lichen (Phlyctis argena.)
I walked further down the trail and saw this excellent example of whitewash lichen. From a distance it looks like someone has painted the tree. These lichens can cover quite a large area and can be greenish white, silvery, or bright white. They usually grow on hardwoods but can occasionally be seen on conifers as well.
Naturalist John Burroughs once said “to find new things, take the path you took yesterday.” I’ve found that to be very true and am always surprised by what I’ve missed on my first, second and even third visits to a place, so though I’ve followed this small stream a hundred times I decided to follow it again.
Partridge berries (Mitchella repens) aren’t new to me but though I’ve seen them a thousand times they are always a welcome sight, especially when there is snow on the ground. I don’t know about partridges, but I do know that wild turkeys eat the berries. Though the plant creeps along the forest floor like a vine, botanically speaking it is considered a “sub-shrub,” which simply means that it is a dwarf shrub, usually woody at its base.
Here is something new. So new in fact that I’m not even sure what to call it, because I don’t know if it is a lichen or fungus. I’ve never seen a lichen with fuzzy edges like these and I’ve never seen a fungus, even a crust fungus, that was so very thin and flat. I’ve searched all of my books and online and haven’t seen anything close to it, so this one has me stumped. It was a little bigger than a quarter and was growing on the bark of a standing hardwood. If you know what it is I’d like to hear from you.
Note: Biologist and botanical consultant Arold Lavoie has identified this lichen as Lecanora thysanophora, which is also called maple dust lichen. It is supposed to be common in the northeast but I’ve never seen it. Arold is from Quebec and has a website that looks extremely interesting but unfortunately I don’t read French. If you do you can visit the site at http://aroldlavoie.com/ Thanks very much for the identification Arold!
This bluish-lavender lichen appeared in several spots on a boulder. I’ve never seen it before and I’m not even sure if it’s a lichen but if not I don’t know what else it could be. I’ve spent quite a lot of time looking for something similar in books and online and haven’t found anything. Again, if you know what it is I’d be happy to hear from you.
On the same boulder as the lichen in the previous photo, growing out of a crack was a tiny evergreen fern that I think is an intermediate wood fern (Dryopteris intermedia.) Evergreen plants send sugar into their leaves in the winter to act as antifreeze, so evergreen ferns get a jump on photosynthesizing in the spring, basking in the sunshine for a month or two and growing new leaves before being shaded by tree leaves. By the time other ferns are just poking their fiddleheads from the soil the evergreens are well on their way. The boulder probably soaks up heat from the sun all day and releases it slowly at night, making this little fern’s life much easier.
Something else I’ve never seen is veins running through an amber jelly fungus (Exidia recisa.) Amber jellies are common at this time of year on oak and alder limbs and when I find them I like to hold them up to the light and look through them, because they often look like stained glass. They grow like little pillows or sacks of air and I wonder if, instead of veins those are wrinkles. These fungi are also called willow brain but I’ve never found one on a willow.
I’ve seen tree skirt moss (Anomodon attenuatus) growing on thousands of trees but never on trees this small. The biggest one in this photo was hardly bigger in diameter than an average garden hose. Tree skirt moss grows up to 3 feet high around the bases of hardwoods, especially oaks. Knowing where certain mosses prefer growing, whether on soil, stone or wood, can help with identifying them.
Beautiful smoky eye boulder lichens (Porpidia albocaerulescens) are one of my favorite lichens but, though I’ve walked these woods since I was a boy I’ve never seen them growing here. I noticed this one and then took a closer look at the other stones in the area and found that they all had this lichen on them! I have to admit that at that moment I didn’t feel very observant, that’s for sure. It really is amazing what we can miss in the forest, and that’s why I keep going back to the same places again and again. Just when you start thinking that you’ve seen it all nature will show you that you haven’t even scratched the surface.
The storm we had on Thanksgiving eve brought down a lot of branches, especially those of white pine (Pinus strobus.) There are a lot of tiny pine cones on these limbs which will never grow to release their seeds. Next fall the animals that eat them might have to hope for a good acorn, beech and hazelnut crop.
I found that someone, probably a young boy with a brand new jackknife, had whittled a pine branch into a tent peg. He had done a good job, too-there was no blood on it. The smell of the freshly carved pine and the thought of whittling took me back to my own boyhood and I’m sure I must have had a bounce in my step when I left the forest on this day. Not only did nature show me several things that I hadn’t seen before, but I felt twelve years old again for a time. How can you ask for a better day than that?
I can’t guarantee that everyone who goes into the woods will come out feeling twelve years old again but I can guarantee that if you walk slowly, stop often, and look closely, nature will show you things that you have never even imagined-mind blowing things, as we used to say back in the day.
Humans who spend time in the wilderness, alone, without man-made mechanical noise around them, often discover that their brain begins to recover its ability to discern things. ~Robert Anderson
Thanks for stopping in.
Your posts always make me want to go wandering in the woods, you find such interesting things.
I’m glad to hear that because that’s exactly what these posts are supposed to make people want to do. You find some pretty amazing things too!
You have an amazing knack for finding unusual and beautiful things! The child within you has a very acute eye!
Thank Montucky. I think it’s just that I’ve had practice and I really do believe that anyone can do the same.
This post is up to your usual high standard. I am often amazed at how much there is to see in winter-time. These tiny little plants (I love the shot of the evergreen fern!) and organisms are really tough. We were just driving home and the temperature was just above freezing and there were moths flying about! Both your quotes were good and I also loved walking out with my girls when they were small. They certainly make you look at the world in a different way.
Thank you Clare. I think in some ways there is nearly as much to see in winter as there is at other times. Without the leaves in the way it’s easier to see, too.
I saw some kind of insect flying by at a high rate of speed just the other day, which was a surprise. I agree-children really do make you see things differently. I love the way that they see the world!
“I can’t guarantee that everyone who goes into the woods will come out feeling twelve years old again but I can guarantee that if you walk slowly, stop often, and look closely, nature will show you things …” I couldn’t agree more Allan.
Thanks Jim. I know that you see a lot of those unseen things too.
This post as pleasant as a walk in the wood………
Thank you Grampy!
Amazing walk, or hike, on a snowy day…It really shows there are always wonderful discoveries for those who are looking…Love the photos of your adventure.
Thank you Charlie. Looking and moving a little slower is all any of us really have to do to see those things that we think are hidden.
As ever, well worth visiting; filled with beautiful and unexpected delights!
Thank you Ben, I’m glad you thought so.
The quality of your posts is usually very high, but I thought this one was exceptional. I really enjoyed your thoughts on experiencing the woods with the eyes of a child. Our constant state of busyness and overstimulation can make this so difficult. Great pic too, as usual, especially the jelly fungus and the fern growing out of the boulder.
Thanks! You really have to train yourself to slow down if you’re going to do this, as well as train your eyes and your mind to focus on small things. We’re all capable of doing it but just not used to it.
Hi! Your lichen with fuzzy edges is Lecanora thysanophora
Thanks very much for the identification Arold. I really appreciate it and I’ve updated the post so we’ll all know what this lichen is in the future.
I too loved the amber jelly fungus, wish it was edible, it looks so delicious! Never fear you will have nothing to post, your eye for the new and ancient always come through!
Thanks Martha. Amber jelly fungi always remind me of canned cranberry sauce, but that could be because they start appearing right around Thanksgiving. Or maybe I’m just hungry when I’m in the woods.
Beautiful post of your wander through the woods. I remember the walks with my two year old,…. thirty years ago. He was fascinated with a feather, leaf, stone etc. It was also a wonderful time to go on beachcombing walks.
Thank you. I like to think like the little ones do and be fascinated by everything. It’s amazing what we can learn from them if we just watch and listen. I keep hoping for a grandchild to explore with, but I haven’t seen one yet.
What a great post! MCS
Thank you Mary.
You have so many “friends” in the forest, on rocks and along the streams. The lime green lichen/fungus really caught my attention, I wish we had it here.
I do have a lot of friends out there and I visit them often. You might have that lichen / fungus there. I guess it would help to know what it is before you go looking for it though.
I don’t remember seeing one that color. But… around the next corner …..
I know what you mean-it is very green. A Canadian biologist just identified it as the maple dust lichen (Lecanora thysanophora) but the ones I see online are a very different green. Maybe it was because this one was soaking wet that day. Lichens do change color when they dry out.
I made note of all this and will keep an eye out. Think I’ll check its range too. I’m so much farther south.
My heart sang while reading your words and looking at the photos. I feel the same way in the woods, zigzagging on the trails with wonder and delight. I’m sure people wonder why I’m kneeling on the ground, until they get closer and see the camera. Nothing like the feeling of being born again at the end of a hike! 🙂
Thanks Paula. It sounds like you and I have a lot in common! Interesting how the woods can make you feel young again, isn’t it?
I think you will resonate with this short video! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nj2ofrX7jAk
Thank you Paula, that was a great video that reminded me once again how grateful I should be for simply being alive. The little girl in the opening reminded me of my daughter when she was that age.
Loved the heart-shaped snow blob, although it probably didn’t look like that to you when you photographed it. The idea of walking like a two-year old is something I’ll remember.
Thank you Judy. The snow blob looked like it was floating on water but it was really on a paper thin sheet of ice. Take a two year old for a walk in the woods and you’ll never forget it. I’ve done it many times with two of my own.
Wonderful advise! I often find myself retracing my steps, always surprised by what I missed the first time. Isn’t it great to feel young again, even if just for a short while?
Thanks Laura. I guess we can’t see it all no matter how often we try. Yes, I’ll take feeling young again even for a minute or two!
A great post with a good quote to go with it! I find that even though I walk the same park almost every day, if I look around and open my eyes and mind, I still find new to me things in nature.
I wonder how many species of fungi, lichens, and other species remain to be discovered in North America, because scientists think that they have identified them all, and would rather work in some place like the rain forest, where their chances of discovering something new is greater? I know how thorough you are in trying to ID what you find, and if you’re not able to, I wonder if any one else has?
But, that’s what draws many of us to nature, finding the hidden gems that most people never see.
Thanks Jerry! I know what you mean, I too wonder how many things are out there undiscovered. There is just so much to see, I can’t believe it has all been classified by science. And if you or I find something we can’t identify, who do we ask? I wish there was something like Bug Guide.Net for plants!
I loved your quote. With your eye you shouldn’t have wondered for an instant as to whether you could make an interesting post or not, this one was right up to your usual standard.
Thank you Susan. Sometimes I do wonder if I’ll see anything new but I don’t know why, because I always seem to.
Wonderful walk…. especially like the amber jelly fungus and the boulder lichen.. this last one looks like crusty embroidery….. 🙂
Thank you Sue. I like “crusty embroidery.” Something I hadn’t thought of!