Notebook #6

Today, the sky was a very bright blue, and there was no wind again. It was strange, though, I saw quite a few more animals than I did the last field study visit. Today is November 29th, and I went for my sixth notebook entry at 11:45. The temperature was about 40º, but it wasn't too bad seeing as there was no wind again. There was a lack of clouds, so the sky looked extremely blue, which looked very pretty through the now empty trees. The length of day today is supposed to be 9 hours and 18 minutes. When I was trying to look for more animals, I noticed that even though it was relatively cold and still, I couldn't smell anything distinct. It no longer smells like "fall", though. I suppose winter has to come eventually, it has already snowed. I happened upon a group of bluejays on the ground, though they weren't making any noise. I could hear and sometimes see a squirrel or two run across the leaves, as if it were still early autumn. I was surprised to see so many animals and yet so little plant life. The trees have lost almost all of their leaves completely and there is a thick layer of dead leaves on the ground. It's been hard trying to walk quietly, but I enjoy walking alone and thinking about all of the living things we so often miss everyday even though they are right in front of our eyes.

6 Pictures

Notebook #5

Today, on the 11th of November, I made my fifth field study at 5:30 PM. The temperature was around 55º and there wasn't a cloud in sight. Every once in a while, the wind would come by for a second or two, but it was very quiet. The sun started setting soon after I arrived, so I the pictures were mostly of the silhouetted trees. The trees barely had any leaves left on them, but there still seemed to be leaves falling all the time. However, this time, all the leaves were brown and shriveled, even the ones still on the trees. Because it was so quiet and any rustle of the leaves covering the ground caught my attention, I noticed about two or three black squirrels scampering along the ground or up a tree. I did hear a chirp or two from some birds, but nothing long or very loud. The air smelled clean and crisp, like a storm was brewing. The length of day was very close to 10 hours, and the sun was setting through the trees at around 6:10, though it didn't actually go down until 6:30. Even though it was 55º and dropping, I didn't feel cold wearing just a sweatshirt and jeans. I think it was probably because it wasn't windy so the heat stayed close to my body. All the small plants that would grow at the bottom of the trees on the ground were either all covered by leaves or had died, so it seemed like everything had thinned out and it was very easy to see straight through. I'm pretty sure that by my next couple of field studies there will be snow, but you can never be very sure with Michigan weather.