Paved paradise; and five new observations at Heathfield

After years of planning and months of delays, it seems the end has finally come for Heathfield's eponymous "back field". On Monday, August 21, much of the property (front and back) will be fenced off; the first step in a years-long construction project.

With this in mind, I spent some time in the back field yesterday evening.

I dug out a few more wildflowers for the pollinator garden we're installing at the front of the property. I snapped a few more photographs. I swatted a few more mosquitoes. I listened to the hum of crickets; a persistent chorus dulled only by the arrival of a passing rain shower.

Once home: a rainbow.

Ironically, I found five new observations at Heathfield this week! In shade by a ditch: Glyceria; a type of grass. In the back field (teeming with mosquitoes), a few stems of Bidens. And three new fungal species; including one awaiting identification (Conifer mazegill?), Red Raspberry Slime Mould (cool!) and this cutie, Yellow fieldcap: https://inaturalist.ca/observations/179138096

I wish I'd worked to coordinate a bioblitz on the property, or brought a botanist from Queen's to poke around the back field with me. Certainly, the pandemic affected outsiders' access to this site, as has the ambiguity around the construction's timing. But I am proud of the work I've done to document Heathfield's biodiversity, and I hope it will stand as a lasting record of this once-thriving landscape.

With any luck (and with some guidance given to the relevant decision-makers), Heathfield will retain some of its wild wilderness in future years. Heathfield Bioblitz 2027, anyone?

Publicado el 19 de agosto de 2023 a las 01:14 PM por botanising