It is fun, isn't it? I think it is fun to learn to know the forests that have been thriving for as long as a person has been alive. They thrive without fuss or desire to be famous. They live and breathe in every weather and provide shelter to so very many species of animals. 

Forests have value. It isn't the kind of value one finds on the sale racks at Bergdorf Goodman, but, it is value just the same. Most of my friends and associates can feel that value. It is emotional and the forest makes an indelible mark on the memory.

When assessing the forest, except for mosquitoes possibly, there are all kinds of sounds and smells and the air is so easy to breathe. The forest breaths with a person and it is a harmony that can be experienced. 

I remember a forest in Eastern Lake Ontario that belonged to the state. I was with the Nature Conservancy and we were assessing for invasive species and their removal. There was an old logging road that wasn't used anymore but it provided for easy access to a wetland area. There were lots and lots of mosquitoes and I wore a net over my face and shoulders. But, the birds were fascinating. They literally would swoop through the air from one tree to the next catching mosquitoes the entire flight and then they would return to their nest. There was lots of bird song and the parents of the hatchlings carried out this task all day long. It was amazing to watch. 

We didn't run into large mammals that week, but, there were some tracks from deer. I and one other conservationist worked in the forest for about a week. The sun was hot by the pool at the apartment we had for the summer, but, in that forest it was cool and the air was perfect. 

I love the trees. I especially love trees when they are in a forest with a tight canopy like the one I assessed on Eastern Lake Ontario that summer. They provide such service to life. To me they are the most amazing species of plant ever on Earth. They receive the heat from the sun and radiation from Earth, they absorb it, manufacture oxygen and turn a dangerous greenhouse gas, namely carbon dioxide into it's life sustaining respiration. 

I think it is time to look at some of the wildlife in the Northern Hardwood Forest. Thank you for the interest in this blog and I wish you a safe and happy week.