So I found this new tree...

 


Well, it isn't new, technically.  I believe it's been growing there for decades.  But I'd never noticed it before.  It appears to be a quite old thorn tree.  This is what the trunk looks like.

At first I thought the thorns were coming from the vines running up and down the trunk, but no, they are coming straight from the trunk itself.  

Here are what the ends of the limbs look like:


You can see the hairy, thorny-looking trunk on the left, but the limb in the foreground originates from the trunk.  Fascinating.  I'll bet not many squirrels shinny up and down THAT tree.  And no buck has ever used it as a buck rub.  Haha...

That is the fun thing about nature; even when you think you have seen everything, there is always more to discover.

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