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Continuing the theme of random observations I started in my last post, I have been noticing lots of tips of oak branches lying on the ground under oak trees seemingly cut, or rather chewed off. The cut branches are anywhere from one to three feet long with all the acorns stripped, leaving just the empty acorn caps. I’m guessing that squirrels are chewing off acorn-laden branch tips they are too heavy to access. With the branches on the ground, they can easily gather and stash their harvest. I asked Professor Nat Wheelwright about this observation, and he thought it made sense given that squirrels are known to cut white pine twigs to access the cones on the ground.
Something I have always noticed with curiosity while walking forest trails, but never actually took a moment to ponder further is depicted in the second photo. A fairly common sight, small tree roots running over large tree roots that are up out of the ground, as if they were strapping and anchoring it more securely to the forest floor. Knowing that trees wouldn’t voluntarily send their roots up out of the ground and over an obstacle, I can imagine that when the tree is younger, the main roots are smaller and completely underground. While still underground, smaller roots from nearby trees grow and crisscross over those main roots. However, as the tree grows, these main roots rise up out to the ground as they become larger, bringing whatever roots overlay them to the surface. I checked this theory with Professor Nat Wheelwright and he concurred adding that particularly on a trail, the topsoil gets compacted and eroded by footsteps and rain water accelerating the process of exposing tree roots.
(Submitted by Lynn Knight. October 5, 2022)
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