Notebook Jottings 3

June 4, 2005

I've seen a lot of odd things while walking the trails in the Big Thicket, but what are the chances of a stray pine needle piercing a leaf? Of course this is impossible, but how did it occur? Could it be some sort of trail marker? Or could somebody just be messin' with me........


November 5, 2009

At first sight it would appear that I've taken a photo of a cozy house of a hobbit, but actually it is a fungus called a spiny puffball. The small hole is where it releases its spores into the air.


November 15, 2009

While replacing my water shutoff valve to the camp house I unearthed a little surprise- an east Texas toad. It must've burrowed into the soft sandy ground that surrounded the valve. Luckily I didn't introduce it to the edge of my shovel.