Visitors 55
Modified 21-Dec-23
Created 2-Oct-18
31 photos
Jasper Ridge settles in for the long dry summer. I call this autumn: many leaves turn brown and red and fall to the ground: no benefit to trying to photosynthesize. Lots of sunlight, but a severe shortage of water. Best to turn down, go into stasis, wait it out.
The deciduous oaks, valley and blue, retain their leaves and keep on working. I suppose their deep roots provide enough sustenance. The buckeyes have given up for the summer; flowers pollinated, the buckeye seeds are forming to decorate the bare hemispherical trees for the rest of autumn. On some toyons, leaves have turned red and begun to drop; other toyons keep on producing.
Birds, lizards, and insects continue to be active. But I saw very few harvester ants, Veromessor andrei. Perhaps the lizards have had their way??
