The Spring Beauty may be a small wildflower but when several bloom in a cluster, they provide a dash of pink against the forest floor covered with brown oak leaves in the spring time.
Cluster of Spring Beauties
Picture of the Day for May 17, 2013
Between the finches, orioles, hummingbirds, grosbeak and all the other birds, I am having trouble keeping all the feeders filled. And the Rose-breasted Grosbeak sure chows down a lot of seeds if even if they are supposed to eat insects.
The male Rose-breasted Grosbeak takes a turn incubating the eggs for several hours during the day, while the female incubates the rest of the day and all night long. Both sexes sing quietly to each other when they exchange places. The male sometimes sings his normal song at full volume from inside the flimsy nest where the eggs are often visible from below through the nest bottom..
Rose-breasted Grosbeak
Picture of the Day for May 16, 2013
This Trout Lily is the one I am used to seeing, instead of the white variety I stumbled upon the other day. The Yellow Trout Lily gets its name from the leaf markings that look similar to a brown or brook trout. Although we normally call them Adder’s Tongues, but referring to a trout seems nicer than a snake!
Yellow Trout Lily
Picture of the Day for May 15, 2013
When I see a flash of blue in the yard, I just assume it is a bluebird but yesterday the blue was from an Indigo Bunting instead. It was the first I had seen them this year but since they migrate at night using the stars for guidance, they probably couldn’t arrive earlier with all the snowy nights.
Like all other blue birds, Indigo Buntings lack blue pigment. Their jewel-like color comes instead from microscopic structures in the feathers that refract and reflect blue light, much like the airborne particles that cause the sky to look blue.
Indigo Bunting
Picture of the Day for May 14, 2013
The wildflowers are finally starting to emerge from the long winter. And yesterday I saw the White Trout Lily which I had never spotted in the area before, although the Yellow Trout Lily with similar leaves and flower structure with a yellow blossom are quite common. So it was a bit of a surprise to see the white variety instead.
The White Trout Lily is also known as White Dog’s-tooth Violet, Serpent’s Tongue, Trout Lily, Deer Tongue, White Fawn Lily and Yellow Snowdrop. Christian mythology says the lily sprang from the tears of Eve when she found motherhood was near.
Immature plants produce a single leaf and fail to flower, while mature plants that bloom produce a pair of leaves. And I was surprised to see many blooming when my patches of the Yellow Trout Lily, or Adder’s Tongue, are mostly immature plants.
Certain groups of American Indians used it for its emetic and contraceptive properties. The Onondaga women used the leaves as a temporary birth control method in the spring, to avoid giving birth in the most frigid part of winter.
White Trout Lily
Picture of the Day for May 13, 2013
Apparently the robin hid its tail numerous times so its tail wouldn’t get snowed on three times and let spring come. Hopefully the unexpected snow on Saturday fooled the robins and their tails got snowed on so winter can leave. The hummingbirds, orioles, grosbeaks and bluebirds would appreciate no more snow and so would I.
Snow on the Robin’s Tail
Picture of the Day for May 12, 2013
On Mother’s Day, moms can get quite the range of presents, which could include some handpicked flowers by their children. This year there is not many flowers to pick since spring is so far behind but I did notice a new crop of dandelions has appeared overnight so I can bring my mom a pretty yellow bouquet of flowers.
Flowers for Mom
Picture of the Day for May 11, 2013
Yesterday I walked down my path in the woods to check if the Trilliums had opened up as I saw the bubs earlier in the week but the deer were faster than I was and they ate all three plants off to the ground level. So instead of three Trilliums, I had to take pictures of three Spring Beauty blossoms that the deer didn’t eat.
The Spring Beauty open up on warm sunny days, and close during cloudy weather or at night. They are more or less erect while open, but nod downward while closed. And today they would be nodding downward since it is snowing again!
Spring Beauties
Picture of the Day for May 10, 2013
The Bloodroot is fragile spring flower that develops and rises from the center of its curled leaf, opening in full sun, and closing at night. Like most members of the Poppy Family, it lasts for a relatively short time. The red juice from the underground stem was used by Indians as a dye for baskets, clothing, and war paint, as well as for insect repellent. The generic name, from the Latin sanguinarius, means bleeding. It was nice to finally see some new wildflowers blooming.
The Bloodroot
Picture of the Day for May 9, 2013
The snow has finally melted and this old barn is probably happy it doesn’t have the heavy snow on its roof anymore. Instead the grass is greening up and the barn might eventually get a new crop of hay under its roof.
Barn Ready for Summer
