Diario de gepetrick

For this week's nature walk, I explored the Chestnut Hill Reservoir by myself. I walked around the res this past Sunday. It was a beautiful morning and abnormally warm for mid-October. I got to observe the vibrant, diverse colors of the leaves. I also noted how some of the trees were completely transformed, with all their leaves displaying a variation of red, orange, and yellow colors. While the leaves of other trees had not begun or had just begun to change color. As discussed in class, although many trees may look similar in terms of shape, size, and color they likely evolved from two different ancestors. These similarities may be due to convergent evolution meaning that the different species adapted similar traits due to the ecological benefits that they provide. It is also interesting to notice that some of these plants look very different - some are short with needles while others are tall with more traditional leaves, despite existing in the same environment - the reservoir.

For my second nature walk, I explored the pine tree preserve on campus. This area was filled with various wildlife, including pine trees, ferns, and chipmunks. However, it was a bit more difficult to find different fungi in this area. I explored the area for about thirty minutes on Wednesday so the weather was dreary and rainy making the experience less pleasant. Something that surprised me as I explored was the variety of fungi. As we learned in class, fungi emerged around 440 Ma and since then they have evolved to adopt various forms. An example of this is how the Marasmus capillaries I observed are not visually similar to the Rock green shield lichen. Just like in my last nature walk, I continue to be surprised by what vast diversity exists in such small spaces.

I went for a run for about forty minutes for my nature walk. I ran out past the Chestnut Hill reservoir toward the Brookline reservoir. However, I turned onto Heath street and went past Pine Manor. After this, I turned onto Hammond street and made my way back to campus. Along the way, I documented different plants and animals. The weather on my walk was sunny and surprisingly warm. I went with a few friends and we enjoyed the sun and different sights along the way. On my way down Beacon Street, I was surprised by a blue jay perching on the fence along campus. Unfortunately, I scared him off before I could snap a picture. However, that was definitely my favorite observation of the excursion. One crazy thing I noticed was how different the biodiversity was within such a small area. While I noticed mostly small, low bushes surrounding the reservoir, the landscape immediately changed as I ran back by Pine Manor college which was full of larger trees that appeared to have been around for quite some time.