Day 345: Stumping along in the deep, dark forest, you never know what you may find. I had taken a detour in order to explore a small shelf of moss-rich ground which looked like it might be chanterelle country, but finding only lobsters (which I do not eat), I began climbing back up from the terrace via a different route. Why waste energy in retracing my steps? I already knew there weren't any mushrooms along the descent. Unless I came to a dead end in an impossible tangle of downed limbs and trees, exploring new territory might bring a bit more for the dinner table or subject matter for a natural-history post. I had just rounded a rather large tree to avoid a steeper slope when something caught my eye. "That's not a branch," I said aloud. "That's an elk antler." One tip was broken, but the critter who wore it must have been an impressive beast. I moved his shed crown into a sun-fleck for the photo, and then replaced it where I had found it, hoping that it may lichenize in time and give me more material for discussion. I seriously doubt anyone else will follow this route, although a similar and somewhat larger antler I found in the same area a few years ago has disappeared.
365Caws is now in its 14th year of publication, and was originally intended to end after 365 days. It has sometimes been difficult for me to find new material, particularly during the winter months, but now as I enter my own twilight years, I cannot guarantee that I will be able to provide daily posts. It is my hope that along the way I may have inspired someone to a greater curiosity about the natural world. If so, I can rest, content in the knowledge that my work here has been done.
Tuesday, September 22, 2020
Elk Shed
Labels:
elk antler,
mushrooming
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment