Welcome

To all those interested in the natural world. Please add your sightings.

In the woods we return to reason and faith-Emerson

Best-Lynn

Thursday, May 31, 2018

5-31 Hoary Alyssum

5-31
Tiny flowers with 4 deeply cleft petals mark Hoary Alyssum.
Showy white 5 petaled flowers identify the invasive Multi-flora Rose.
And in a cornfield the broken wing decoy act of a Kildeer led me to a nest with 4 beautifully marked, and remarkably large, eggs.
John
Kildeer nest and eggs

Kildeer

Multi-flora Rose

Hoary Alyssum

Wednesday, May 30, 2018

5-30 Silvery Cinquefoil

5-30
Silvery Cinquefoil, Maiden Pink and Birdsfoot Trefoil were all flowering this afternoon in an old gravel parking lot. Silvery Cinquefoil can be identified by the silvery undersides of its leaves, Maiden Pink by the dark circle on its petals and Birdsfoot Trefoil by its bright yellow pea-like flowers.
John
Silvery Cinquefoil

Maiden Pink

Birdsfoot Trefoil

Tuesday, May 29, 2018

5-29 Ragwort

5-29
One of the Ragworts, probably Balsam Ragwort, glows golden on rocky banks and on wood edges. There are at least five Ragwort species in our area.
John
Ragwort

Monday, May 28, 2018

5-28 Common Hawkweed

5-28
Common Hawkweed is opening a few of its yellow flowers.
Yarrow is not far behind.
And in a few thickets Bristly Locust - a species introduced both as erosion control and as an ornamental - is flowering brightly. This locust spreads by root suckers and can be a bit of an invasive pest.
John
Common Hawkweed

Yarrow

Bristly Locust

Sunday, May 27, 2018

5-27 Oxeye Daisy

5-27
The pea-like flowers of Black Locust are frosting the trees.
Virginia Waterleaf's long stamened white  or lavender flowers arch weakly above its mottled leaves.
And Oxeye Daisies are brightening fields and roadsides.
John
Black Locust

Virginia Waterleaf

Oxeye Daisies

Saturday, May 26, 2018

5-26 One-flowered Cancerroot

5-26
The tree root parasite, One-flowered Cancerroot, is lifting its pallid head.
The delicate flowers of Stitichwort are flecking ditches.
Invasive, Wild Chervil, towers over other roadside species.
And the caterpillar of the Virgin Tiger Moth feeds on Madder, one of its favorite foods.
John
One-flowered Cancerroot

Stitchwort

Wild Chervil

Wild Chervil

caterpillar of the Virgin Tiger Moth

Friday, May 25, 2018

5-25 Starflower

5-25
Starflower is flecking woodlots.
Grove Sandwort is up along roadsides and sunny banks.
And, the white plumes of False Solomon's Seal are at their peak.
John
Starflower

Grove Sandwort

False Solomon's Seal

Thursday, May 24, 2018

5-24 Pineapple Weed

5-24
Pineapple Weed. so named for its odor graces barnyards, roadsides and waste places.
Yellow Wood Sorrel colors lawns, ditches and old fields.
Mayapple's flowers dangle beneath its broad leaves.
And Yellow Goatsbeard's flowers rise above grasses but close up by midday. Later in the season their large globular dandelion-like seedheads are as remarkable as their flowers.
John
Pineapple Weed

Yellow Wood Sorrel

Mayapple

Goatsbeard

Wednesday, May 23, 2018

5-23 Tower Mustard

5-23
Tower Mustard lifts its little yellowish flowers over fields and waste places.
Dame's Rocket - an alien member of the mustard family - is starting to flower. It may be white, pink or purple.
The geranium relative, Herb Robert, tints damp woods and roadsides.
And the rare Lance-leaved Violets are starting to lift above the grass.
John
Tower Mustard

Dame's Rocket

Herb Robert

Lance-leaved Violet

Tuesday, May 22, 2018

5-22 Bouncing Bet

5-22
Bouncing Bet, AKA Soapwort, is opening a few flowers.
The diminutive, but common, flowers of Sleepy Catchfly fleck roadsides.
Low-running Blackberries trail through weedy areas and thickets.
And Pink Moccasin Flowers, on of our more common orchid species, are coloring woodlots.
John
Bouncing Bet

Sleepy Catchfly

Low-running Blackberry

Pink Moccasin Flower

Monday, May 21, 2018

5-21 Bunchberry

5-21
Bunchberry - the smallest member of the Dogwood family - is starting to flower.
And, our local Indigo Bunting finally sat still long enough for me to get a picture.
John
Bunchberry

Indigo Bunting

Sunday, May 20, 2018

5-20 Red Baneberry

5-20
Red Baneberry and Swamp Buttercup are among the native species in flower.
Alien Tartarian Honeysuckle is coloring thickets.
John
Red Baneberry

Swamp Buttercup

Tartarian Honeysuckle

Saturday, May 19, 2018

5-19 Starry False Solomon's Seal

5-19
Starry False Solomon's Seal is starting to open a few flowers as is Wild Madder. Both are common roadside species.
In the thickets, Hawthorn is having its day. Field guides claim as many as 50 varieties of hawthorn and say that identification is best left to the experts!
John
Starry False Solomon's Seal

Wild Madder

Hawthorn

Friday, May 18, 2018

5-18 Azalea

5-18
Azaleas are opening along the banks of the West River, red Clovers are starting to flower and Autumn Olive is at its peak.
John
Azalea

Clover

Autumn Olive

Thursday, May 17, 2018

5-17 Hooked Crowfoot

5-17
Hooked Crowfoot, one of the many species in the Buttercup family, is open for business.
Galaxies of Common Cinquefoil blaze in the fields.
Blue-eyed Grass is putting in an occasional appearance.
American Copper butterflies are taking advantage of the bounty!
John
Hooked Crowfoot

Common Cinquefoil

Blue-eyed Grass

American Copper

Wednesday, May 16, 2018

5-16 Thyme-leaved Speedwell

5-16
The tiny flowers of Thyme-leaved Speedwell come in tow colors - white or pale blue. The leaves of this Speedwell are 1/4 - 1/2 inch long. Flowers are from 1/8 - 1/4 inch wide.
John