森など / Forest and others
At first glance, it looks like an ordinary cedar forest with a difficult subject. Fortunately, the dimness of the daylight made for an atmospheric shot.
It is said that in an untended forest, light does not reach the ground surface and undergrowth does not grow, but I am not an expert so I do not know if this is the case here. It was just a small valley, so there were no cedars planted and some light would shine through.
A water strider rests on a leaf by the side of the canal. I have not seen many of them outside of the water.
Red leaves seen between the fences of the park while I was photographing the birds.
Leaves of ferns glowing in the twilight.
Thistle flowers.
When I looked into the details, I found out that a species called the American thistle is spreading from Hokkaido to Honshu, and is designated as an invasive species requiring attention by the Ministry of the Environment. That one has many spines up to the base of the flower, but this species seems to be different. However, there are quite a few different species of thistles, and I gave up on identifying any more.
Thistle leaves. The hairs on the surface are covered with fine morning dew. The spines are characteristic of thistles.
