Journal for May 21, 2019

We keep expecting a transition to summer, but so far it’s still spring – cool and wet, with lots of rainy days and not many moth nights.

Spring leaves in Center Valley

 

Here are a few of our spring flowers – they’re growing slowly and lasting a long time this year because of the cool temperatures.

Wood Betony – one of the first plants to poke its head above the ground.  The first leaves are always red.

 

A little later the leaves turn green, and the yellow flowers appear.

 

Hoary Puccoon

 

Bird’s Foot Violet

 

Hill’s Oak (also called Northern Pin Oak) – male flowers and new leaves

 

Prairie Smoke

 

I visited a nearby sand prairie last week and found a huge field of Prairie Smoke – more flowers than I’d ever seen before in one place.

 

Blue-eyed Grass

 

Pin Cherry

 

Wild Plum

 

Marsh Marigolds

 

This Marsh Marigold plant has double-petaled flowers

 

This clump of Violet Wood-sorrel was growing on the hill behind the house.  We’ve been clearing brush and trees there for the last few years – encouraging it to turn back into savanna.  Every year I see more savanna plants coming back.

 

Yellow Star-grass – also growing on the newly cleared hillside

 

This is a good spring for Red Admiral butterflies.  They spend the winter farther south, and come north when the weather warms.  Some years we don’t see many, but this year their population must have done well, because we’re seeing them everywhere.  This one looks a little battered from its journey.

 

Red Admirals lay their eggs on Stinging Nettle – the eggs are about the size of the tip of a pencil point.

 

Evening sun through new spring leaves

 

Woodchuck watching my window from a tree

 

A chipmunk in its hole at the bottom of a tree

 

Here are a few more animals from our trail cameras.

We don’t see badgers often, so it’s always exciting to catch one on camera.

 

Bobcat – another of my favorites

 

We’ve been seeing one Wild Turkey – maybe the same one – stretching its wings in front of the camera once a day.

 

Hidden Oaks Point is greening up – another cleared point that’s gradually turning back into savanna.

 

Cabin Creek is a good place to watch birds in the spring.  They like to hide in the bushes and bathe in the stream.