Soggy saga

Sept. 28 1PM 72F

It's a calm, peaceful afternoon at the mandala. The sun is out, the sky is blue. Temperatures must be near normal for this first week of autumn. The mandala has suffered substantial rains and flooding over the past 2-plus months. The trail to the mandala is super muddy with standing water. I'm not sure if the mandala was recently flooded as it was earlier in the summer, but the understory remains relatively sparse. The soil seems near saturation like it could barely hold another drop of rain. The stool that I sit on has sunk a couple of inches into the soft forest floor. My rubber muck boots have become standard equipment. Of course, I am in a flood plain but this has been an unusual summer.

For soggy context, 2018 is currently the 8th wettest year on record and already more than a foot over the average annual total. There's three more months to go. According to data compiled by the Western Regional Climate Center (accessed via the Maryland State Climatology Office), we've received 54.45 inches of precipitation this year. The annual average total is 42.03". If we receive the average rainfall for the remainder of the year, 2018 will be the wettest year on record by a couple of inches with over 5 feet of precipitation. July was the wettest July on record, over 6" more than the 2nd wettest July; and September was the 3rd wettest September. [78 years of data from BWI Airport].

The amount of rain beyond average for the past 3 months, 15+" more for our area. Maryland State Climatology Office.

What's all of this mean for the mandala? I'm not really sure. The forest floor seems unusually barren for this time of year but I haven't spent a lot of time in this area until this year, so it isn't fair for me to compare to other years. After the substantial flooding 2 months ago when this was under flowing water, the mandala and surrounding plain hasn't recovered to its previous lush self. I expected the vegetation to bounce back quickly but that just hasn't been the case. There's much more exposed soil and leaf litter than was present mid-summer, pre-flooding. Perhaps the flooding was significant enough to dislodge vegetation, bury seeds and plants, wash away seeds. I wish we could track the movement of sediment here. There's clearly sediment and debris from far upstream.

There doesn't appear to be much activity now. Certainly some things are about but there's little to quickly draw my attention. Several pileated woodpeckers are in the vicinity, one perched temporarily in a white oak 15m from my spot. Are the loud, piercing calls announcing their territories, perhaps their greetings, searching for mates? Other birds are chirping, including a smaller woodpecker, a downy maybe. Just a few feet from my spot, there's a small, intricate spider web bouncing in the breeze, sun glinting. The weaver is not in sight, nor are any victims of the web. There are other webs nearby too and my eye catches fibers gently floating over the mandala, perhaps remnants of former webs. I've also seen several deer today, including one that seemed oblivious to my presence as it skirted the mandala. I wonder about the relative quietness of the day. Is it actually quieter or maybe I'm just not aware of much of what's here. Maybe the mandala has taken note of the calendar and the onset of fall and the ensuing lull in activity.