I have often noticed many tips of evergreen tree branches lying on the ground:

Who is doing this? My first thought was that squirrels do this to sharpen and clean their teeth:


Today I watched as a squirrel did this. After clipping many branch tips, the squirrel raced to the ground and harvested the buds at the tip of each branch. This is much simpler than doing it high in the tree.



The Sunnybrook playing field area is very large and is surrounded by forest:








Some birds:







Some botany:
























NATURE POETRY
Black are my steps on silver sod;
Thick blows my frosty breath abroad;
And tree and house, and hill and lake,
Are frosted like a wedding cake. – Robert Louis Stevenson (1850–94)
Miles Hearn
MISS DAISY AND I WALK THE FOREST AND THE FIELD REGULARLY DURING THE YEAR. I DON’T SEE THE INTERESTING VARIETY OF FLORA AND FAUNA THAT YOU PHOTOGRAPH SO BEAUTIFULLY BUT THE LOCATION HAS BEEN A WELL KEPT SECRET. AND ONE CAN GO DOWN THE HILL TO VISIT THE RIVER AND END UP AT EDWARDS GARDENS. IN THE SUMMER, THOUGH BEAUTIFUL, IT BECOMES CROWDED WITH PEOPLE WHO LEAVE LITTER…..SO SAD.
Another place I love and miss so much. It’s wonderful for me to be able to visit these places again this way. And a compelling mystery solved! Thanks, Miles!