My visit to a patch of moss was most certainly an adventure in a miniature world. As I peered into this small-scale landscape, I found many interesting life forms.
On the tip of a cluster of leaves, I found a small snail. Without magnification, it looked like a small piece of dirt.
Small mushrooms grew throughout the patch and appeared like tiny, illuminated lanterns.
Peeling back a bed of moss revealed a small spider eating a red mite.
The webbing of a tiny piece of fishnet lichen looked like it could ensnare a giant.
I held out my sketch pad next to the trunk of a tree and lightly brushed my hand over a patch of moss. Many creatures too small to identify landed on the paper and began crawling around.
Farther down on the tree, I saw a granddaddy long legs looking for food. It was cool to watch as it moved across the top of the moss and sank its body into the canopy to look inside.
This is only a small glimpse of the amount of life and diversity in a bed of moss. It is fascinating to think about all of the life unfolding in front of me that I am so unaware of.
