Walker Nature Center
BRANCHING OUT
A LOOK INSIDE • Calendar 4 • Kids’ Corner 6 • Eco-friendly Pets 7 • Spring Festival 8
Nature Notes By Pam Findley
MARCH • • • • •
Ospreys, Purple Martins and Song Sparrows arrive. Red Maple, Bloodroot and Wood Violets bloom. First Red Fox kits and Eastern Cottontail Rabbits are born. Skunk Cabbage and Virginia Bluebell leaves are up. MARCH 19 – First day of spring.
APRIL • • • •
Spring hawk and warbler migrations begin. Raccoons give birth to young. Jack-in-the-Pulpit, Cutleaf Toothwort and Mayapples are in bloom. Redbud and Flowering Dogwood trees bloom.
Where Did All the Leaves Go? Oak Decline By Susan Sims
Did you know that oaks are valuable trees in terms of supporting biodiversity? Hundreds of animals eat acorns, while the trees provide important shelter and nesting sites for multiple bird species and hundreds of insects, creating a natural food web all in one tree. They are long-lived and impressive specimens, but something is happening to our oaks. Their leaves are dropping early. They’re yellowing too soon. Spring brings minimal leaf out. These symptoms are all indicative of “oak decline.” Given the trees’ importance to habitat, as well as their natural beauty, it’s no wonder the question of “Where did all the leaves go?” keeps coming up.
What is Oak Decline?
Oak decline is the gradual health failure of an oak tree due to the interaction of multiple factors that weaken the tree over time, making it more susceptible to secondary issues like boring insects or fungi, ultimately leading to tree mortality. It is a slow-acting and complex disease that affects red and white oaks. Decline has been noted in Reston. Though it may seem sudden, there is evidence that oak decline has been a trend for some time in the eastern United States. Oak decline combines three causal factors: predisposing, inciting and contributing.
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MAY • • • •
Rose-breasted Grosbeaks and Eastern Wood-Pewees arrive. Eastern Box Turtles and Snapping Turtles lay eggs. Wild Columbine and buttercups bloom. Oak and pine pollens are in the air.
Spring | 20 | Volume Twenty Two