The final set of images consisted of fourteen photographs photographed between June 8th and June 20th (the last full day of spring)
Day 81 (08 June 2019) - White Campion
This image shows a white campion (Silene latifolia). This species is native to Europe but has naturalized across much of North America. Unlike many European imports, this species probably does not have a negative impact on the environment. In fact it may have a slight positive impact as its white flowers attract a variety of moths that seek it out for nectar. This photograph was taken at Forest Hill Nature Area. Forest Hill is located northwest of Alma in Gratiot County and is operated by the Gratiot-Isabella RESD. Forest Hill is located less than fifteen minutes from my house so it is a convenient site for me to visit and photograph. Many of the photos from my 2018 summer photography project were taken at Forest Hill.
Day 82 (09 June 2019) - How Blue Can You Get?
My second image was taken at one of the Chippewa Watershed Conservancy's farthest flung preserves. Peterson Natural Area is located in Mecosta County nearly 40 miles west of Mt. Pleasant. The preserve is significantly closer to Big Rapids (less than 10 road miles away). Before become a nature preserve, the Peterson Natural Area was farmed for many years. Much of the property remains clear of trees and shrubs today. This attracts birds that like open habitats such as this pair of eastern bluebirds (Sialis sialis) who claimed this nesting box along the old farm lane. A pair of tree swallows was using a nesting box a few posts away.
Day 83 (10 June 2019) - Backroad, Tree and Clouds
Sometimes I take the gravel roads home just in case I find something worth photographing. I love photographing clouds and on this day the cumulous clouds were perfect. As I passed this tree I realized I had found something worth taking time to photograph. This picture was taken from a low angle so the grass along the roadside would block a couple trees in the background.
Day 84 (11 June 2019) - Cirrocumulus Clouds
Another day, another cloud photograph. This image of cirrocumulus clouds was taken from my driveway in Alma, MI. Cirrocumulus clouds are often referred to as "mackerel scales" because the pattern of the clouds resemble the scales on a fish.
Day 85 (12 June 2019) - A Snake Called Fluffy
Until 2013 I had never seen a northern water snake (Nerodia sipedon) in Mt. Pleasant, despite working in the city parks from 2002 through 2010. Now I see them every single year, sometimes several at a time. I now know that if I want to see this species I can reliably find them at Chipp-A-Waters Park. There is a small pond located near the southernmost parking area in the park. This pond was originally dug as part of a wetland mitigation project. It now is home to fish, tadpoles, and frogs. In other words it's the perfect hunting ground for the northern water snake. This particular snake did not appear to be actively hunting; instead it was basking in the sun in the middle of the pond. The white fluff covering the surface of the water is composed of hundred (more like thousands) of fluffy cottonwood seeds.
Day 86 (13 June 2019) - Hairy Beardtongue
The native pollinator garden at the Saginaw Chippewa Academy was planted way back in 2011. Other than the occasional weeding and trimming down old stalks each spring, the garden has been largely on its own since it was planted. One of my favorite flowers in the garden is hairy beardtongue (Penstemon hirsutus). This species doesn't flower profusely every year, but this was one of those years where it did. I especially like how it contrasts with the surrounding lance-leaf coreopsis (Coreopsis lanceolata).
Day 87 (14 June 2019) - Sic semper Tyrannus tyrannus!
This photograph of an eastern kingbird (Tyrannus tyrannus) was taken at the Ziibiwing Center. Eastern kingbirds are a species of flycatcher. As that association implies, they feed on flying insects. This was one a pair of kingbirds I observed feeding in the open field behind the Ziibiwing Center.
Day 88 (15 June 2019) - Bombus ternarius
June 15th was a busy day for me. I had to be in Tustin, MI at the Kettunen Center for a meeting of the Michigan Alliance for Environmental and Outdoor Education (MAEOE) board of directors at 1:00PM. At 3:00PM I needed to be in Cadillac at William Mitchell State Park to give a presentation on Michigan's logging history. When the presentation was over I had to return to the Kettunen Center for more MAEOE meetings. Arriving back at the Kettunen Center I decided to take a few minutes to walk along the edge of the woods before going back into the meeting. I photographed a few flowers and some fern. Then I noticed a bumblebee buzzing around a bunch blackberry or raspberry plants. Right away I could see that this was not the common eastern bumblebee (Bombus impatiens), instead its the orange-belted or tricolored bumblebee (Bombus ternarius). I rarely see this species as it is not common in the southern half of the lower peninsula.
Day 89 (16 June 2019) - Emerald Spreadwing
This photograph was taken near Laingsburg, MI at my parent's home. My parents own approximately 15 acres of land of which nearly half is part of the floodplain of the nearby Looking Glass River. The floodplain has been consistently flooded for much of this year. That much water should result in a mosquito problem, but the damselflies seem to be keeping populations under control. I can honestly say that I have never seen so many damselflies in one place - at one point I was standing in a small clearing (maybe 20ft by 20ft) in a planted woodland and was surrounded by several hundred individual. Most of them appeared to be emerald spreadwings (Lestes dryas) such as this one, but there were several other species mixed in.
Day 90 (17 June 2019) - You Talkin' to Me?
Another day, another damselfly. This ebony jewelwing (Calopteryx maculata) was photographed at the Chippewa Watershed Conservancy's Audubon Woods Preserve. When I first started approached this damselfly I began photographing it from the side, but it quickly turned to face me. It didn't fly away. It just seemed curious and allowed me to photograph it for several minutes. This photo was cropped from a horizontal to a vertical format.
Day 91 (18 June 2019) - Hungry Hungry Caterpillar
As summer gets closer and closer more insects appear. This monarch caterpillar (Danaus plexippus) was feeding on a common milkweed (Asclepia syriaca) at the Mt. Pleasant Discovery Museum's native pollinator garden. This photograph was originally in a horizontal format, but has been cropped to a vertical format.
Day 92 (19 June 2019) - Hive Mentality
There are currently a pair of honeybee hives at the Forest Hill Nature Area. When I visited on June 19th one of the hives had almost no activity while the other was literally abuzz with activity. I took this photograph from about ten feet away. The bees were completely unconcerned by my presence, but I would not recommend approaching the hive from the front. I really like this picture because of the bees I captured in flight on the left of the image.
Day 93 (20 June 2019) - Last Day of Spring
With this photograph we've reached the end of spring. This image of a pair of flies on a buttercup (Ranunculus sp.) flower was taken at Picken's Field in Mt. Pleasant. For some reason, I find yellow flowers really difficult to photograph. They always seem to be over exposed and the highlights completely blow out the details. Because of this I did adjust the brightness of this image on the computer to tone down the highlights. I also cropped this to a vertical image from the original horizontal.
I may have reached the end of spring, but the photography hasn't stopped. As I type this on July 3rd, I'm thirteen days into an as-yet-unnamed summer photography project. I'll start posting those photographs soon. Hopefully I will be able to catch up on that project fairly quickly.
