FRP E-News – October 20, 2011

RUNNYMEDE RAMBLES PROGRAM BEGINS!: Beginning Sunday, November 13th at 2:00pm, the Friends of Runnymede Park will launch a new natural discovery series called “Rambles in Runnymede.” Each program will be free to all, open to ages 8 and up, and designed to help area residents and families become more familiar with the park. Each meeting will begin with a 20-minute introduction to a topic about the wonder and beauty of the park by a trained naturalist. The participants will then do a self-guided ramble with suggestions for things to look and listen for, along with various activities related to the topic of the day. A brief sharing of everyone’s discoveries and experiences will conclude the outing. Each program should last about 1½ hours. No registration is needed; just meet us at the picnic shelter closest to the parking lot at the park entrance off the Herndon Parkway by 2:00pm.

Our First Ramble will be led by Peter Monroe, a well-known local naturalist with over thirty years experience in sharing his love of the natural world. The topic, “How Life in the Park Adapts to Survive in the Cold,” will begin at 2:00pm on Sunday, November 13, 2011. Did you know pine needles have built-in antifreeze? Did you know Chickadees can lower their metabolism in extreme cold? Do you know where the turtles go in the winter? Peter will explore these and other interesting adaptations and then send you off on a ramble through the park. Dress for the weather and bring a camera if you've got one.

We have several more Rambles planned for the year ahead with some equally exciting naturalists ready to share their fascination of the natural world. We will present these before each season so that you can get the most appreciation out of your walks through Runnymede Park.



PARK NEWS: Just as we were packing up NatureFest last month, a mature bald eagle stopped by to investigate the goings on at the Wildlife of the Park station along the Sugarland Run. Perhaps he was looking for an easy meal among the caged reptiles! He’s been seen several times since. With any luck, he'll find a suitable nesting site and Runnymede Park will gain another outstanding natural resident for all to enjoy.

The recent rains have helped many of the larger hardwoods keep their leaves to give us a good display of color in the coming weeks as oaks, hickories, and ashes provide a great backdrop to the golden browns of the Indian grass maturing in the meadow. Look for persimmon fruit, which is showing now, to disappear once the first frost hits and the animals flock to these sweet delicacies. The oaks and walnuts have dropped their fruit and the squirrels are rushing to collect their harvest to be stored for the winter months ahead (and beat out the deer to these nutritious nuggets.) Though most of the wildflowers and native grasses have produced and dispersed their seeds into the park’s soils, you can still see some later flowering plants including the Goldenrods, Soapwort, and Gaura.

DID YOU KNOW?: The Sugarland Run got its name from the many sugar maple trees located along its shores, particularly near the area around Lowe’s Island at the site that the Sugarland Run flows into the Potomac River. George Washington tried to buy this site, then called “the Sugarlands,” in November 1797. He was interested in its fertile soils and rich stand of hardwoods. Unfortunately, for our first president, the owner, Daniel McCarty, sold this property to another bidder before George Washington could firm up his offer.

THOUGHTS FOR THE DAY:
• For in the end, we will conserve only what we love. We will love only what we understand. We will understand only what we are taught. Baba Dioum
• Service to others is the rent we pay for our time on this planet. Tony Curtis
• Adopt the pace of nature: her secret is patience. Ralph Waldo Emerson
• Light travels faster than sound. This is why some people appear bright until you hear them speak. Unknown
Have something that you'd like to learn more about in a future Runnymede Ramble? – Just send us an e-mail at friendsofrp@yahoo.com. If you have an interest in helping us to improve the park in the future, please consider joining our group by visiting http://www.frpweb.org. For as little as $5 a year, you can help us make a difference in this fragile 58-acre park.