Stick insect on scarlet-red leaves of staghorn sumac signal autumn.
All photos by Jonathan Schechter
You do not need a weatherman to know which way the wind blows,
or -  signs of nature add emphasis to the calendar's proclamation.
  Photos confirm the facts of nature's way:

 Shaggy mane mushrooms spring up overnight in moist suburban lawns

Aspen leaves turn scarlet-yellow

Jerusalem artichoke reach skyward.

Cicadas hum their final songs

Sandhill cranes gather in their migration staging areas.

And when the tamarack trees turn smokey gold I'll be grabbing by backpack and heading for the northwoods, for I too must answer the call of the wilds as the days shorten.