December is the time when the flora in the forests and fields falls into a winter sleep, freeze ponds, lakes, streams. But my grandfather living in the village, next to which a huge forest and a river, says that it is not so. At first glance, it seems that the forest sleep, we don't hear warbling trills of birds, see insects and many animals. But, it turns out that interesting things happen here at this time.
I love to wander with his grandfather in the winter woods when they come to visit for the holidays. It would seem that the plant world remained dormant, but winter in the forest you can see real miracles. As wonderful magical winter landscape, glittering in the sun the snow and the frosty air! Ideal conditions for walking. However, frost is a threat to forests, particularly for weakened trees. In the winter they are susceptible to fungal infections, insects aktiviziruyutsya. When it is wet, heavy and sticky snow under his thick caps the branches bend and break, top break, and even entire trees fall.
Some mammals sleep: bat, hedgehog or badger, and reptiles and insects. And predators (pine marten or Fox) growl fiercely. Hedgehogs preparing to sleep, when the ambient temperature falls below 10 degrees. They sleep in a nest made from a sheet of garbage, rolled up tight ball which is hard to uncover. Wake up in the spring, when the air is heated to about 15 degrees.
Sometimes we meet in the woods strange things. For example, ice flowers. It's icicles growing on the surface of the wood. They consist of "hairs" about 20 centimeters. To me it's a bit like cotton candy. Near the trees I feel Kai, who was kidnapped by the snow Queen. But grandfather says that this is due to a fungus, settled in the trees (disease).Condition for the formation of "ice hair" is high humidity, light frost. This phenomenon is best observed after a frosty night frosts, but no snow.
The seeds are visible here and there on coniferous trees: juniper cones, the cones of spruce and pine. Wrapped in the icy outfits, alder and birch in anticipation of the arrival of spring. Soil, bark of trees, rocks covered with mosses and lichens. It looks like a gray spot painted by the artist on the background of white snow. And the snow clean-clean, is not the same as in the city.
Badgers collect dry leaves, grass, moss and carry them to the hole to comfortably sleep in the sleeping chambers and to close the entrances. Some prefer the leaves of a fern, beech, other herbs. Winter sleep is sometimes interrupted, because on warm days they leave the burrow to quench your thirst or to catch something. In General, the badger in the winter uses the fat accumulated in the body fall. Hawks can be seen more frequently than in summer. It is a sedentary and nomadic bird, rarely making further migration. They prey mainly on birds but also small mammals. And here protein! Hop, hop from branch to branch, descends lower, right we are not afraid. Today we with the grandfather did not take nuts and seeds, but tomorrow will definitely return with refreshments.
