Reading Pictures

Black and Light

If you were a buck, wouldn’t you just love this sleek doe, her wet black nose, those ears so delicate the morning sun shines through them?

If you were a botanist, you’d probably focus on the ancient prairie in the foreground. Rattlesnake master, lead plant, and the wide leaves of prairie dock. Weedier and ranker, big bluestem grass and tall coreopsis show up nearer the edge, where the brush and trees have been cut back.

But look at this scene through the eyes of a conservationist. It’s amazing that such complexity as is here can also show so much black and white.

The bottom of the photo is predominantly white from the sparkle of the dew. The top is mostly black, because neither the camera nor your eye can see much there — in the dense shade of the plague of shrubs and trees that have invaded this original prairie.

A natural forest wouldn’t look like that. In this case we have a few species of invasive trees but none of the native shrubs, wildflowers, grasses, birds, or butterflies of an open, light-filled, natural forest. The black that the camera sees is truly representative of what the ecologist finds.

Some people would call the black background here a “forest” and complain if it were cut down. I appreciate their feelings. But increasing numbers of people see the pushing back of these invasive species as a small loss for a great gain. People who care for nature are becoming more and more informed, by taking field classes, helping with habitat restoration, and reading about how ecology works. They want to be part of the work to expand the edges of our pathetically few ancient prairies, savannas, and oak woodlands. They want to see beyond black and white — to a world of colors, and wondrous complexity.

Photo by Carol Freeman. Words by Stephen Packard. Somme Prairie Grove is protected and managed by the Forest Preserve District of Cook County. Much of the brush clearing is done by the intrepid volunteers of the North Branch Restoration Project.