dandelion

dandelion, 3 months ago to random

The blooms of winter...

#Icetodon

Frosted inflorescences of a Blue Vervain, each old flower spike reminiscent of a candle or maybe thick incense stick. In the background, the straw color of dead vegetation, the bright white of snow and the light blue of the sky blur together.
Closeup of goldenrod seeds, the fluffy tufts crowned with ice crystals.
White frost outlining a bunch of Switchgrass - revealing its large panicles and making them look rather substantial. Despite being a tall grass with huge inflorescences, it is also very delicate and therefore easy to miss amongst other tall vegetation.

dandelion, 3 months ago to random

Extreme cold here is followed by unseasonably mild weather. The transition made for frosty mornings and ephemeral beauty... #Icetodon

Bare Boxelder branches with clusters of dangling seeds against a blue sky, the seeds outlined by frost glowing bright white in the sun. Fun fact - even though Boxelder leaves and fruit resemble those of Ash trees, they really are a kind of Maple.
Part of the crown of a bare tree against a deep blue sky. All smaller branches are lined in white from frost lit up by the morning sun.

dandelion, 4 months ago to random

Frazzlepans at dusk

This was earlier this week, before the cold spell hit central North America... #Icetodon

View at the Missouri River. In the foreground, frazzlepans are drifting down the river, in the background the water is mostly ice-free, reflecting the stands of bare trees at the far bank.
View across the river at dusk - frazzlepans are floating in the water. The sandy bank in the distance is covered in snow and limited with bare trees.

dandelion, 4 months ago to random German

Statt Feuerwerk zum Jahresende...

dandelion, 4 months ago to Cats

#SilentSunday #Cats

dandelion, 5 months ago to Birds

Northern Flicker encounter

#Birds #Woodpeckers

The same woodpecker is preening its wing. The spread out feathers reveal bright yellow keels which are usually hidden when they are folded.
Flying towards the camera, the woodpecker's plumage appears a mix of olive, yellow, and reddish hues

dandelion, 5 months ago to random

A beautiful cosmopolitan adds some color to the winter gray forest: Turkey Tail Fungus. It grows on deadwood, breaking down lignin (the substance that makes wood so hard). While not of culinary value, it contains polysaccharides of interest and is used in herbalist practices around the world.

#FungiFriday #Trametes #TurkeyTail

Layers of turkey tail fungi cover an old log as densely as scales. Shades of various bluish grays dominate, interspersed with sind brown and white edges.

dandelion, 5 months ago to Birds

LBBs* are underrated!

*Little Brown Birds
#Birds #Sparrows

A Song Sparrow clings to the thin reddish branches of a winter-bare dogwood bush.
A Harris's Sparrow in a thicket of dark twigs.

dandelion, 5 months ago to random

Just saprotrophic fungi doing their job... Somebody has to break down that dead wood!

#FungiFriday

Roes of papery mushrooms ears growing on the bark of a fallen tree.

dandelion, 5 months ago to random

A rare bout of November rain turned dusty earth colors into rich shades of brown ... #FungiFriday

dandelion, 5 months ago to random

Late fall is draining the world of color, leaving only texture behind.

Dead blades of windswept grass, their golden color fading into gray against a blurred gray background.
The remains of the Giant Yellow Hyssop vaguely resemble spindly, multi-tiered candelabras with dark brown candles. They stand out against dry grass and the sky
Queen Anne's Lace leaves delicate clusters of seed pods amongst the dead grass but very little color - they have already turned a silvery gray.

dandelion, 6 months ago to climate

Now that our lake has completely dried up, the beaver family living here had to move on... They leave a large den with multiple entrances behind and a network of channels worn into the lakebed. #Wetlands #Beavers #ClimateCrisis

View across the dried up lakebed - to get are still moister depressions and channels following the paths the beavers used to take.

dandelion, 6 months ago to random

A whole miniature canyon world emerges in the cracks of the dried-up lake mud... Fringed Heartwort (Ricciocarpos natans) grows in shallow water and damp silt. Despite its appearance, it's not a moss or lichen but a liverwort. #Wetlands #Liverworts #Mosstodon #LichenSubscribe

Frontal view at the inner side of a crack in the lake mud with the green Heartwort thalli clinging to it like plants to the rocky side of a canyon
View into the depth of a mud crack. It resembles a forking canyon with rocky tops and green vegetation inside

dandelion, 6 months ago to Birds

A very shifty looking fellow was casing our house yesterday... In the end, his gang just picked a few buds from our magnolia and then invaded our neighbor's gutter instead 😅
#Birds #BackyardBirds #Waxwings

The bird (a Cedar Waxwing) shown fully from the side. The gray, taupe, and cream shades of its plumage blend so perfectly that they look airbrushed. The smooth coloration is offset by a white-edged black eye mask and a narrow, bright yellow band across the very tip of its tail.
Two Waxwings are picking through the litter at the end of a roof gutter, another one watches them from a branch above.

dandelion, 6 months ago to Colorado

At first glance this plant of subalpine wetlands looks rather unassuming but a closer look reveals small but stunning flowers: Alpine Mitrewort (Pectiantia pentandra).

#FloweringFriday #Wetlands #NativePlants #Colorado

Closeup of a couple mitrewort flowers looking like sets of circular antennae against a dark green background.
A group of mitrewort plants- roughly heart shaped dark green leaves with clusters of small light green flowers emerging from it. They grow in a deeply shaded, moist setting.

dandelion, 6 months ago to Birds

Yelling or yawning?
#Birds #Birdwatching #BackyardBirds

dandelion, 6 months ago to random

#SilentSunday

dandelion, 6 months ago to Plants

Fall means Carolina Horsenettle berries poking out of the dead grass... They will endure throughout most of the winter and be picked by birds such as turkeys or quail, who also spread the seeds. Carolina Horsenettles are closely related to tomatoes, but the plants and berries are toxic to humans and most mammals.

#Biodiversity #Plants #ToxicPlants

A dried up horse nettle plant with spiny brown leaves and a cluster of yellowish tomato-like berries among dead grass.

dandelion, 6 months ago to Birds

When these two show up in our backyard, it must be fall!
#birds #birdwatching

A dark gray bird with a light colored beak and a cream colored belly sits on a branch among yellow-green fall foliage. Dark-eyed Juncos are true Winter guests around here.

dandelion, 7 months ago to Birds

Like a spirit at dusk - a Great Egret lands on a fallen tree.

#Birds #Wetlands #Herons

dandelion, 7 months ago to random

#SilentSunday

dandelion, 8 months ago to random

#SilentSunday