Field journal

Gold meadows and green oaks in late July

San Domingo

  • Aerial view over dense green oak and pine forest toward a hillside of golden dry-grass meadows dotted with dark green oaks, under a clear blue sky.

    Meadows cured to gold on the far slope, with the oaks scattered through them and the mixed forest below still dark green.

We flew a drone over San Domingo Arbory on July 26, 2025, in the middle of the dry season. The grass in the meadows on the far slope had cured to gold, while the oaks scattered through it and the mixed oak and pine forest in the foreground stayed dark green.

That contrast marks the long, dry foothill summer that follows each wet winter. Flights like this one add to the drone record of the site we’ve kept since February 2025, so we can compare the same meadows and woodland across the seasons and the years.

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