What Nature Can Teach us About Resilience
This is my first winter in Maine. Don’t get me wrong-- I’m no stranger to cold weather. I grew up skating on frozen lakes in Michigan and Cross-country skiing on winter days with my dad. But when I moved to Maine in June, I quickly began to understand that Mainers treat winter differently. Here, surviving, and even liking the winter is worn as a badge of toughness. Mainers are proud of their hardiness-- their ability to stay happy and warm during long stretches of dark, cold months. They like meticulously stacking wood into neat, artistic piles. They dust off their skates and glide across frozen ponds. Some even jump in the ocean in January. In essence, resilience is part of their nature.
As we enter the third week of classes in this year’s Nature Links Winter Session, we’ve begun to explore the idea of resilience from a range of different perspectives. We’ve chosen it as our theme for the winter session classes, not only because of the resilience needed to thrive in the Maine winter, but also because of how important resilience has become for all of us this year, regardless of where we are from. The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted us all, and has tested all of our abilities to adapt to misfortune and/or change. Many of our schools and jobs have moved online, we’ve been separated from our friends and loved ones for months and many, like me, have even lost family members to the disease. The past year has been tough for everyone. But exploring and celebrating the idea of resilience-- in environments, ecosystems, animals and humans alike--can not only help us learn what it takes to keep going in tough times, it can help us realize that we’re not alone in our struggle to survive.
We began our learning this winter with an exploration of tree communication. Inspired by a beautiful and intriguing recent article in the New York Times magazine called “The Social Life of Forests”, we learned about the scientific research of Dr. Suzanne Simard, a biologist and professor of forest ecology at the University of British Columbia. Simard has led important research that suggests trees are able to communicate with each other via underground partnerships with fungi known as “mychorrizas”. We learned that trees look out for each other in times of need. They can use this underground network to share water and nutrients, and they can even warn each other when danger is present in the form of drought or pests. Trees aren’t the solitary individuals we thought they were. Instead, they rely on each other to thrive. They are resilient because of their community.
A spruce forest in Brooksville, Maine. Older trees in diverse forests are able to “take care of” younger saplings by sending them water, carbon and other nutrients through underground networks.
We continued our exploration of resilience the following week as we learned about some amazing arctic animal adaptations. Able to survive in frigid waters, full days without sunlight, limited food and air temperatures as low as negative 50 degrees Fahrenheit, arctic animals can be truly inspiring creatures. In our classes, we explored the unique adaptations (both behavioral and physical) that allow animals like polar bear, arctic fox, walrus, wolverine and caribou to thrive in the arctic winter. Many know that the coat of the arctic fox changes color to allow it to camouflage in its surrounding environment (white in the snowy winter and gray in the summer), but did you know that wolverines have a specially angled row of teeth that allow them to crunch through frozen flesh and bone? Did you know that walrus have a layer of blubber up to 4 inches thick, which not only keeps them warm in arctic waters, but also improves buoyancy and stores nutrients during less fruitful fishing months? Did you know that caribou have a special gland in their ankle that releases a scent to warn others of danger? Arctic animals can help us remember that we all have important skills that help make us unique, strong and able to overcome anything.
An arctic fox in winter (from PBS Learning Media).
This winter, Nature Links will continue to explore how humans, animals and organisms practice the ability to adapt to difficult change. And this winter, we’ll likely all have our resilience tested further. Whether it’s the lingering inconveniences and sadness of the pandemic, or the cold Maine winter that try to diminish our resolve, we can all take lessons from trees and arctic animals. Work together, share what you have with others, and use your most unique characteristics to keep doing your best.
(for our lessons on arctic animal adaptations, I used National Geographic for most video and factual content)
