Walker Nature Education Center
A LOOK INSIDE • Calendar of Events 4 • Kid’s Corner 6 • Bird Count Results 7
Nature Notes By Sharon Gurtz
March • Wood Frogs begin to mate. • Red Fox kits are born. • Salamanders breed. • Tufted Titmice and Eastern Bluebirds begin nesting.
April • Hawk and warbler migration begins. • Box Turtles emerge from their winter homes. • Bloodroot, Trillium and Virginia Bluebells bloom. • Ruby-throated Hummingbirds return to Virginia.
May • First baby birds leave the nest. • White-tailed Deer fawns are born. • Bullfrogs begin to breed. • Wild Columbine, Wood Poppy and Mayapple bloom.
BRANCHING OUT Race Against Time By Ken Rosenthal In early spring, a race begins on the forest floor. This race has nothing to do with special tires, teams of mechanics or winning sponsorships. It does not involve scientifically designed footwear, starting blocks, or even legs and feet. No, this race involves seeds, leaves and getting enough sunlight to survive another year. The winner earns the ability to reproduce and propel its genes into the next generation. Spring ephemerals are some of our more beautiful spring wildflowers. They include White Trillium, Spring Beauties, Bloodroot, Hepatica, and Trout Lily. These plants use interesting adaptations, including an early bloom time, inhibition of frost damage, and seed dispersal by ants, to survive in early spring and ensure that their seeds will be dispersed.
Ready, Set, Grow!
Spring ephemerals are plants that have a short life cycle in the spring. They sprout, bloom, become pollinated, and produce seeds, all in the space of 6-8 weeks. Timing is crucial. Because these plants are small and grow on the forest floor, they must complete their short growing cycle quickly before woody plants (trees and large bushes) produce leaves and shade them out. Space and sunlight are not the only resources ephemerals compete for with trees. Trees utilize the same moisture and nutrients in the soil that these small wildflowers need. By starting early in the spring, before trees begin to gobble up nutrients or remove moisture in large quantities, ephemerals face less competition for these limited resources. Early spring is also ideal because a fresh layer of nutrients is available from decomposition of the previous autumn’s leaves.
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Spring 12 Volume Fifteen