oak/rosewood/maple pendulum clock in use

non-fire

Primeval Rock Creek

So I've noticed a recurring sight in the park - fallen trees with rocky mounds or piles around the base the trunk. Almost like the fallen tree caused the localized earthquake, propelling craggy rocks to the surface

Another weird recurring sight - along the path there was a large pile of shattered clay or porcelain maybe. Odd place to dump an porcelain sink or tub.

Bizarre little scene I stumbled upon. The shovel blade was resting against the tree as it is, no manipulation. I couldn't help but think that this could be some shallow grave or some such nefarious meaning.

Further contributing to the series of odd vignettes I saw today - about a carton's worth of Marlboro reds, mostly smoked but some unsmoked, stroon across about a total of 10 square feet of a footpath. This can only suggest to me that somebody spent a long, long time in this little clearing along a the footpath.

More jacks....

You could say this is bifurcated or more accurately, trifurcated with a conjoined pair.

Trifurcated

mariposa

tetrafurcated

teardrop shaped spiders web.

trifurcated

These photos were taken on a short hike in the middle branch of Rock Creek Park. The walk away from the horse trail brought me to many bizarre, unseemly and stunning scenes. In fact, one could hypothesize generally on the activities that produced a couple hundred jacks and a creepy, rusted shovel head. Maybe its just me, but it sure looks like some disturbing moments in one or more peoples lives took place off the horse shit laden main path.

the great herring highway

the heart of the 'herring highway' - a series of rocks form graduated pools to help spawning herring and alewife.

these pink flowers belong to the Mimosa Tree, or Persian Silk Tree, or Pink Siris, or Lenkoran acacia or bastard tamarind. Apparently its kind of an invasive species, though a considered ornamental in some cultures. The Mimosa Tree also suffers, especially in the Eastern U.S., from a common vascular disease limiting its proliferation. The thing thats cool about this plant is that the finger like leaf's open and close, during the day and night respectively...its alive.

concrete person with pet - this was a collaborative effort.

Drake Mallard duck. It should be noted, the Mallard is a rare example of both Allen's Rule and Bergmann's Rule in birds. Bergmann's Rule, which states that polar forms tend to be larger than related ones from warmer climates, has numerous examples in birds. Allen's Rule says that appendages like ears tend to be smaller in polar forms to minimize heat loss, and larger in tropical and desert equivalents to facilitate heat diffusion, and that the polar taxa are stockier overall. Examples of this rule in birds are rare, as they lack external ears. However, the bill of ducks is very well supplied with blood vessels and is vulnerable to cold. The above is obviously a cut and paste mallard fun fact, I'm not ornithologist.

small waterfall and at the top of the picture you can see the newly installed concrete baffling system that helps herring and other bait fish navigate upstream for spawning. This concrete baffling system is just a series of ledges adjacent to the waterfall which allow smaller fish to traverse the waterfalls.