I had been told when the initial damaged ear-fungus at the Ragdale Foundation had fallen a few months before; by the time I arrived for my 2013 residency, it had completely disappeared. I thoroughly searched the underbrush several times, and did not find a trace, though I was rewarded with a lovely racoon skull.
Temporarily installed in the studio...
I like to think of some critter (perhaps the fox who lives nearby) spiriting the initial ear away, but I suspect it disappeared by human means. The small bits still clinging to the tree gave me a lot of information about what had happened; it showed me that the installation method itself was secure.
Though the November temperatures were a little too cool, I took advantage of a slightly warmer day to re-install a new piece in the original location.
(Though I have not made the 40-mile trip up to Ragdale to see how the second piece fared through the official coldest winter ever recorded in this area, I definitely have more plans for this site, to be carried out during my residency in October 2014).
