Floral News

Thanks to the mild temperatures this winter, the Mahonia (Mahonia sp.), Grape-holly, or whatever it is that you prefer to call it, on the Dinosaur Trail has been in bloom continuously since the fall. It now has berries where once, bright yellow flowers lured honey bees, various flies, and ants to perform the pollination duties. These plants should provide a good crop of berries for the birds this year. Common Elderberry (Sambucus canadensis) is showing its first sprouts of theRead more
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Get a load of them eyes!

As I mentioned in a previous post, I was photographing elderberrry earlier in the month (which has since gone by) and came across some interesting insects. The Mocha Emerald in that post was one of them. The tiny fly above was another. I didn’t know what the fly was at the time and thought perhaps that the pattern on its eyes was caused by the flash on the camera, I thought that maybe the pattern was caused by some internalRead more

Elderberry and Royal Lace

There are two locations around the Explore the Wild/Catch the Wind loop where Elderberry grows, one is next to the platform midway down the boardwalk which leads into the Wetlands and the other in the swampy area between Catch the Wind and Explore the Wild on the back side of the loop. They are now in bloom. Another flowering plant with umbels of tiny white florets is also in bloom at this time, Queen Anne’s Lace, or Wild Carrot. There’sRead more