jeffbuyak's Journal

Jeff Buyak

For my first real iNaturalist nature walk I wandered around the Chestnut Hill Reservoir observing the great variety of life forms whose habitat bordered the body of water. It admittedly being the first time I “walked the res,” I was impressed by its vastness and could see the great benefits it provided for the residents of Chestnut Hill as a provisioning ecosystem service as it provides them with drinking water. It was in the low-60s during the time I went on my walk which I consider to be on the warm side for a fall day and was sunny without a cloud in the sky. Although the path around the reservoir was somewhat busy, I was still able to observe and snap some pictures of plants and trees along my route. One plant/flower which I found particularly beautiful was the phytolacca americana. This organism displayed vibrant colors of purple and pink in its branches and had plump blue-berries hanging from the ends. In all, I truly enjoyed my time exploring the reservoir and the organisms living around it and may have even found a new favorite activity to do around BC.

For my second nature walk, I gathered a group of my classmates and went behind the wooded area adjacent to the Connell Recreation Center. Despite having an enjoyable time, the weather made this particular walk considerably more difficult as it was raining and approximately 50 degrees out. However, the unfavorable weather didn’t stop me from finding various species of fungi along with other plants, grasses, vines, and tree saplings. I found the phyllotopsis nidulan (commonly known as the stinking orange oyster) which I observed to be particularly interesting. This eukaryotic organism, meaning it is multicellular and possesses a membrane-bound nucleus, grows on rotting wood and has a distinct scent to it. In relation to class, fungi like this are necessary for decomposition processes where bacteria and archaea are unable to, in a sense, rapidly decompose a dead organism (especially the larger ones). This exact need for these types of fungi is what I witnessed on my walk. In all, the wide variety of organisms I observed today, some even living symbiotically, was an eye-opening experience and proves to me that even walking in the woods on a cold rainy night can be worth the trip.

For my third nature walk, I explored the wooded area behind the Margot Connell Recreational Center & also walked about a quarter length of the Chestnut Hill Reservoir. On this particular walk, the weather was slightly chilly and felt like the first true day of fall we have experienced on the BC campus. With the weather being around 55 Fº, I was slightly cold yet the sun provided warmth and particular visibility of the species I was searching for and eventually observed. According to my recorded observation, I was able to identify and record the presence of all 4 of the types of plant which include: mosses, ferns, gymnosperms and angiosperms. Although I believe I was successful in my attempt, I found trouble finding angiosperms on my route as angiosperms are flowering plants. Since, in the northern hemisphere, angiosperms are known to bloom in the spring/summer months there was a small amount of angiosperms which I was able to identify due to their visible flowers. With this being said, I was glad to have been able to experience this beautiful fall day and use nature as a remedy for my stressful week of midterms.