Much to See on Fall Colors Walk

It was a nippy, overcast day with temperatures hovering in the low 50s, but the FODMers and friends who turned out for the annual fall colors walk were undaunted. The marsh sported many shades of yellow, orange, red and more and even the plant "skeletons" were interesting, observed FODM walk leader Pat Salamone. The large thorns of the honey locust tree make it a "well-defended" tree, Pat commented (photo).

Barry Sperling explained the day's weather and sky conditions and commented on the interconnections among the elements of nature. "These plants would not be here without our weather," he explained. "It's all related." He noted that in a few days the area would get some rain, "tropical moisture," from Hurricane Patricia that slammed Mexico's west coast on October 22-23.

In addition to plants, the group spotted cardinals, crows, mallards, cormorants, a kinglet, yellow-rumped warblers and great egrets. The walk climaxed with a beaver swimming by near the boardwalk.

Bright red Virginia creeper vines were climbing trees.	The leaves of the sweetgum tree were turning from green to yellow to red to maroon.	The swamp dogwood's leaves were several shades of red.
Ironweed seedpods remaining from summer's purple flowers looked like little "cushions."	The conical clusters of bright garnet smooth sumac berries punctuated the woodlands.	Narrow-leaf cattails were releasing "zillions" of seeds to the wind.
The sycamore trees showed off their distinctive, splotchy, exfoliating bark.	Milkweed pods, complete with milkweed bugs, were releasing seeds to be carried away by the wind.	The Eastern red cedars were loaded with blue berries.

Photos and captions courtesy of Glenda Booth.

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