18 April 2025 - Friday Field Notes
Spring blooms. Of course, it's supposed to snow this weekend, so we'll see if the flowers on the trees make it. Amelanchier alnifolia - Serviceberry (top) and Pyrus sp. - Pear (bottom)
The low growing plants are more used to the flux in temperatures. Viola nuttallii - Nuttall's Violet (left) and, I think, Helianthus maximiliani - Maximilian's Sunflower. (Continuing the tradition of naming plants and animals after a bunch of white guys who "discovered" them. If anyone knows any OG names, I'm down to hear them.)
Fun fact: Honey Bees are an introduced species in North America. The majority of native Bees in North America are typically solitary, don't live in hives, and have a bunch of different nesting strategies. As to whether or not this is actually a Digger Bee nest, I can't say, it could be a number of other insect species too, but I feel pretty honored that this bug decided to raise the next generation in one of the native plant garden beds.
Antilocapra americana - Pronghorn. What're you all staring at?
I also did get to live out my dreams of being a Beaver! One of the Beaver dam analogs we installed. Still needs a lot of work and will probably need upkeep throughout the season. Those rodents are definitely better engineers than we are, let me tell you. It was a lot of work but hellaciously fun. Spent most the morning slinging mud around. Walking in the mud is no joke though, my feet kept getting stuck and I fell over at one point trying to rearrange sticks.