“Tucked under bark, larvae auger all spring and summer with jut-bladed mouths.” Sounds of beetle larvae chewing dead wood, recorded by holding microphone to tree trunk. Tapping of hairy woodpecker further along trunk is also audible, “the vibratory anxieties of beetle grubs, carpenter ants, and bark snails.”

“The tear in the canopy caused by the tree’s fall created an inverted geyser of light. After a year under the abundant flow of photons, what were small herbs have turned into bushes.” Hooded warbler and others singing from dense undergrowth along the fallen ash’s trunk:

To enlarge photographs and scroll through a slideshow, click on any of the tiled images below.