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Woods Awash With Soft Yellow-green
The woods are full of small, soft yellow-green blooms now. Spicebush (Lindera benzoin) is showing off its flowers. Spicebush, the larval host plant of the Spicebush Swallowtail (Papilio troilus) is a perennial shrub that often reaches to 15 feet, sometimes 20 feet. It is dioecious, meaning there are only male or female flowers on a…
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Double Surprise Day
The delightful spring weather called to me today. Called me to come out. To walk around. Something that I love to do. And when I’m out I am always looking for something new, something that will reinforce my love of nature. Big or small, there is always something out there. Most of the time, that…
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Another Early Spring Surprise
This wasn’t found until I was back to my cabin, checking on the photographs. Buds on the Virginia Bluebells (Mertensia virginica). Virginia Bluebells, a herbaceous perennial plant, generally blooms at the beginning of April. A variety of bees, butterflies, skippers and hummingbird moths help to pollinate the flowers. A spring ephemeral. By mid-summer the above…
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A Native Yellow
Bravely coming up out of the ground. Poking its nose from beneath the soil with no inhibitions. No concerns about the potential crazy weather we might have. Wood Poppy (Stylophorum diphyllum). Fast forward from this early March to mid-April. Beautiful yellow. Native to the woods of eastern North America. Its sunshine yellow, glowing in blooms…
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The Woods Are Filled With Its Song
Its song brings happiness to my heart, fills me with joy. The Dark-eyed Junco (Junco hyemalis), sings its name as it goes about its day, collecting insects. ________________________________________________________ If you would like to receive my daily blog posts, sign up here!
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Western Springbeauty
Zion National Park. Western Springbeauty (Clintonia lanceolata), is native to alpine climates of western North America. ______________________________________________________ If you would like to receive my daily blog posts, sign up here!
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Flowers Sprouting From The Bark
Wandering the mountain today, and a surprise. Redbuds (Cercis canadensis) within days of being in bloom. And these blooms even show up on the trunk, and older stems of the tree. This is called cauliflory. There are estimated to be more than 100 species of plants, the world over, that are cauliflorous, scattered among a…
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Prickly Pear Cactus
Prickly Pear Cactus (Opuntia). Tucson, Arizona. Native only to the Americas, including a couple species that are native to the East Coast of the United States. __________________________________________________ If you would like to receive my daily blog posts, sign up here!
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Emerging Mayapples
A discovery yesterday. Mayapples (Podophyllum peltatum) are just beginning to emerge from the soil. As one might expect given the lack of winter, they’re a bit early. I’m totally pleased to see them, early or not. In the past I would expect to see this swath of umbrella-like leaves at the beginning of May. These…
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Rummaging Through Leaves
This morning, an Eastern Towhee (Pipilo erythrophthalmus) rummaging through the leaves looking for something to nibble on. Note to self: toss some sunflower seeds into that leaf litter. Goodness, those piercing red eyes. Not everywhere though. In Florida and the southeast coast up through most of North Carolina you might see Eastern Towhees with white…