During the summer, the forest is full of life. Birds take care of their young, mosquitoes buzz around in search of homeothermic animals to feed on, and various invertebrates scutter on the forest floor. You can see green plants and movement everywhere you look.

For plants, summer is the period of growth. As the sunlight is at its most plentiful during the summer, the plants concentreate their efforts into producing energy through photosynthesis. Perennial plants prepare for winter by storing sugars into their roots and rhizomes, whereas annual plants concentrate on reproducing as effectively as they can before they die.

As the summer begins to turn into autumn, plants and animals begin to prepare for the winter. For mammals, it often means eating more food in order to build up a fat layer for the winter, whereas migrating birds begin storing energy for their long journey south.

A birch forest during the summer.