Nature Trail

Jay Yunas

5A

Nature Trail

For the past 4 months, the grade 5A (us) have been going to the Fleming Nature Trail. This trail has and is going to be a big part of their curriculum. This project is to observe the nature there and and learn more about the trail.

This trail has been around for 59 years. It was donated by the Century class of 1951. This trail is a oak and rhododendron grove with spots of Deodadar. It is a great trail with more than a billion things to look for. This trail has developed over the years making the trail more beautifully interesting. As it changes over the seasons, it makes itself more attractive. In this paper, I am going to tell you about it even more.

When we went to the trail for the first few times in August we notice that the climate was noticed that the climate was very wet – representing Monsoon. That month the plants and trees were green and many-many ferns were on the trees and all around. This whole month (almost) was full of clouds – rain clouds.

In September, the conditions were mostly big hints of Monsoon - but this time, the rain came down in torrents. The weather was mostly warm because this month is closer to the summer. It did get a bit cool at times, but not much... This month the trees and plants got exceptionally green.

The third month of observing was a totally new experience. The climate was a dry & sunny type. This month had one sudden burst of rain. Leaves had started to fall and decay. This trail is very attractive because of its flowers. These flowers were mostly growing on steep grassy and areas which have direct sunlight. These flowers were the tall big ones (I don't know much about them!).

This month (November) has changed its weather by a whole lot. It has turned the air temperature higher by a like a million times. From the start to now there have only been 2 times when it has precipitated. The first time it had been in the form of a storm with hail. The second time it was a light drizzle, right the next day after the storm. I wonder how things are up on the trail... The last time we went to take a walk to the trail, we (well, me...) saw many, many leaves on the floor starting to decompose because of the direct sunlight. This month the flowers were totally gone...

This place is a home. A home for wildlife... In each of the months, the wildlife has changed. In August, we saw three things. Those were: Spiders, Leeches, and lady bugs. People and books and thing say that there have been more than three things but we (sadly) only saw three things...

In September we saw four creatures. They were: Caterpillars, Spiders, Moths and Lady Bugs. Throughout the four months of observation the wildlife has either increased or decreased. Even though I haven't talked about the 3^rd and 4^th months this is right.

In October, we noticed five different insects. They were: Crickets, Grasshoppers, Butterflies, Worms, Salamander. There is a secret to finding birds and animals in any place in the world. That secret is: Keep your eyes and ears open, mouth shut!

Anyway, in November, the weather was dry with only two rains (as I told you) making me get feeling that there would be less insects. I was actually proved wrong, because we saw five different types of insects (some of them many times). They were: Lizards, Spiders, Butterflies, Ants and Flies. After the rain there will probably be less insects on the trail.

So I have mostly talked to you about the plant life but not all. Many leaves have now gotten bite marks and were starting to turn transparent. It was not exactly transparent but it was like a web. It had lost its main fibers. I had asked Mr V about it and he said that this could be because of the winds – sometimes cold sometimes hot very quickly. I think this is because of microbes. The Ferns... The ferns have been an interesting part of the Fleming Nature Trail and Mussoorie. In early Monsoon, the small ferns had started to bloom. By late Monsoon the ferns were looking very green and healthy. Starting of fall there were still many ferns everywhere but they were starting to go brown. In mid-November, most of the ferns were on the ground, decaying or decomposing. The good thing is that one type of fern called the Christmas fern has stayed alive and it is going to till Christmas. These ferns were mostly in the shady areas making themselves adapt to the cold weather. I've noticed that the Pine Trees have been only been seen in the direct sunlight. These trees had gotten company by the Sunflowers.

Unbelievably, throughout the four months, I've noticed three adaptions. First: was evidence of a habitat. That proves that the creatures that live there have adapted to the conditions of the area. Second are the Christmas ferns. Third are the vines creeping upon the trees – “adapting” to the climate. These vines were not there in the Monsoon.

Now I am going to tell you about the one connection that I noticed. I noticed that after the soil turned sandy and the weather turned dry, the ants finally started to come out and show themselves.

As we all know, everything has to have an end, and so does this paper. There are more things to happen, more things to tell. But as all endings end... This is:

The End