For this month I decided to visit Blunn Creek Preserve. Throughout the month of September, Blunn Creek’s environment maintained a pretty constant environment. There was a slight decrease in the temperature as the month progressed by about ten degrees; going from the high nineties to high eighties. Due to rain on the weekends, when I would visit the site the ground and trees were damp with a lot of moss growing on them; specifically the Spanish moss. Walking through the area at times was difficult due to the slippery rocks and branches when walking downhill. The air would be very humid and still with the exception of a few gusts of wind. The rain also assisted in maintaining water in the creek. The water was constantly streaming, was of a murky color, and had ripples in it from the two different types of fish I saw; one large and one small. Fish were not the only water animals I saw though. During the second weekend of my observations, I spotted a turtle jumping off one of the rocks and swimming away with the stream.
At Blunn Creek, there was a variety of plants and trees which were of a luscious green color. Some of these plants contained litter and some parts of the creek did as well. The litter I saw consisted of mostly wrappers to food and cigarette buds from smokers passing through. The most interesting of my observations was there was a difference in the way some trees and bushes grew compared to others. As I approached closer to the stream, I realized that a larger amount of plants were growing bent, almost horizontal, instead of vertically.
The echoes and songs of different birds were a constant feature in the sounds I heard along with wind and movement from other humans and animals. During the month of September, it is “on some, but not all, of these misty autumn daybreaks that one may hear the chorus of the quail” (53). However, I did not see any other birds than the occasional black crow. At times, I would notice blue dragonflies flying near the creek resting on the rocks nearby. They were not in a large amount; usually only about two at a time. On the third weekend, it did rain that Friday afternoon while I was halfway through my observation. I began to hear at this point the thundering of clouds and the rain droplets hitting the leaves on the ground and the stream. However, this was the only time that it rained during my observations. Nearby human activity consisted of individuals going on nature walks, walking their dogs, and multiple people coming through photographing different aspects of the environment. There were a few groups who came along smoking occasionally. The human activity did not seem to affect the animals though. The birds stayed in the trees without flying away. Overall, in September, Blunn Creek maintained a damp, green environment. Despite human activity, the birds still sang and the fish still swam in the creek. The weather was humid and looked as though it was going to rain at any moment.
