"Now I will do nothing but listen. . . . I hear all sounds running together, combined, fused or following, sounds of the city and sounds out of the city, sounds of the day and night. . ."

Walt Whitman

St. Mary's Basilica bells, YouTube media by Markitectonic

If you say hello to me tomorrow morning between 8 and 8:30 am, I won't reply. But I'll most certainly hear you because I'll be engaged in a soundwalk. What is a soundwalk? Jim Cummings, founder of the Acoustic Ecology Institute, defines it as follows:

At its simplest, a soundwalk is just what its name implies: a walk during which you simply pay attention to each sound you encounter. More complex variations can include seeking out the most distant sound audible, or the faintest. Soundwalks are just as interesting in cities as in nature, and indeed, urban acoustic ecology offers many points for reflection and even aesthetic appreciation.

Flowering virginia creeper

Yet another observation from my weekend wanderings. There's probably flowering Virginia creeper to be found around the Walker, perhaps in Loring Park.

Virginia Creeper flower & buds

Photo by Derek Lilly

Virginia Creeper foliage

Photo by J. C. Lucier

What: Flowering Virginia Creeper. The image to the left zooms in on this inconspicuous flower.
Where: Shakopee, MN
Observer: Abbie
Date/Time: July 16, 12 noon
Conditions: Sunny, humid, hot

A study in green

The color green can look remarkably vibrant in rainy conditons. Today's report comes from that chromacentric point of view.

Photo by Len Blumin

What: A Green Heron. With the rain and poor lighting, I couldn't get a good shot, so I borrowed this stunning image from a fellow Flickr photographer. I observed it for few minutes, during which it ceaselessly preened itself. This sighting isn't ephemeral or critical to phenology, but it was fun to see in an urban park.
Where: Perched about 15' high in a pine tree, on the eastern edge of the Garden, a lot of traffic noise coming from Hennepin Avenue.
Observer: Abbie
Date/Time: July 15, 10:35 am
Conditions: On-and-off rain, humid, low-hanging clouds obscuring the city skyline.

What: A Japanese beetle, about 3/8" in length. Kinda' pretty but totally pesky! This observation is a good phenological marker, as you can see from this diagram of the Japanese beetle's life cycle.

Where: Water's edge at Spoonbridge and Cherry.

Observer: Abbie

Date/Time: July 15, 10:20 am

Conditions: Wet but not raining

What: Green grass and a troop of mushrooms. Or are these gregarious? Mushrooms in a close group (but not so close as to be a cluster) are said to be a troop. If the group is more scattered and irregular, they are said to be gregarious. Eager for more vocabulary for fungi growth habits? Check it out: http://www.mushroomthejournal.com/greatlakesdata/Terms/troop269.html

Where: Open Field, north edge along Vineland Place

Observer: Abbie

Date/Time: July 15, 10: 45 am

Conditions: Good for growing

General observation for today: Birds were abundant. Those on the ground busied themselves by foraging (gorging?), and those perched were entirely preoccupied with preening. My complete bird list for the day: Northern Cardinal, White-breasted Nuthatch, Rock Pigeon, American Robin, Green Heron, House Finch, Red-winged Blackbird, Mourning Dove, Common Grackle

Hey, listen up!

World Listening Day is next Monday, July 18. To participate, I'm planning a 30-minute soundwalk at 8 am, starting at FlatPak House. This is a pilot experience to inform the "Soundwalk Listening Experiment" planned for July 29. I've posted some resources about outdoor listening and acoustic ecology on this site's Soundwalk Page.

Cicada, droning unseen

Redirects page to MP3 file

What: Cicada song, probably a 'dog day cicada.' (No, this isn't my field recording. This audio is a different species, Tibicen auriferus, courtesy the outstanding library of cicada recordings at InsectSingers.com.) Where: W 22nd St between Garfield and Harriet Avenues Observer: Abbie Date/Time: July 12, 5:50 pm Conditions: Sunny, warm, pleasant

Before this Open Phenology experiment, my inner monologue might have been:

Cicada? Ah, summer! [. . .on to the next thought. . .]

But with the Open Phenology mindset, my awareness behaves differently:

Cicada? And it's... July 12! Hey, isn't that the first I've heard this year? [inventorying recent memory...] No, no, none yet—I would have noticed. Will it sing again? Only that once? Eventually, (when, do you think?) the cicada chorus will be a regular feature of the summer afternoon sounds. Late summer, that is. Sigh...

Dock Swatch

Inspired by an observation the Open Phenology group made last Friday, I collected specimens to create this "dock swatch." As the plants' flower spires turn rusty in color, you'll spy this 'weed' proliferating on banked sides of highways.

You gonna' eat that?

Open Phenology collaborator Sarina was our guide to the veritable supermarket of the urban Loring Park.

Pepper/Spice?

Cereal?

Tangy greens?

Duck Potato?

Photos, left to right: Pepperweed by Dan Mullen; Dock weed by Abbie; Wood sorrel by Judi Cox; Arrowhead by Dave

Thinking of plants in these terms (edible/non-edible) must play a role in learning, because Sarina was identifying plants left and right, up and down, and sharing this knowledge with other eager participants.

Care to join us for dessert? Perhaps later this season we'll harvest some goldenrod galls. Here's a fact that's hard to believe (but easy to remember): Inside each gall is a larval fly absorbing sugar from the plant, and if you get it at the right time of year, it's a sweet treat! That's right—to eat!

What else did the ten of us see today? Click here to review some of our observations.