The old oak trees unfold their new leaves, and within a matter of days the leaves begin to produce food by photosynthesis. Mushrooms pop up around rotting logs, and beetle larvae feast on the fungus and decayed wood. Soon the spring warmth triggers the hatching of linden looper caterpillar eggs, and these young caterpillars crawl onto the tender oak leaves and begin feeding. The doe rubs her leg against a rough tree because a flea has just bitten her. Earthworms tunnel through the moist earth, leaving behind little piles of soil in which wildflower seeds will sprout.
Aphids find the young oak leaves juicy and nourishing.
The aphids stick their needlelike mouth parts into the oak's stems and suck its juice. Elsewhere, spiders spin webs to catch unsuspecting insects like midges and young grasshoppers. Grackles and robins begin courtship and will soon feed caterpillars and earthworms to their young in the nests in the oaks. Linden looper caterpillars have other enemies besides the birds and beetles. As the season progresses, the young birds and mice must be wary of owls and hawks, the deer and fawn wary of the hunter . . . .