18 April 2010

Mesic Upland Forest Ephemerals

It was such a nice weekend that, regardless of how much I had to get done, we had to get out and see some of the ephemerals before they're gone. Lindsay, Bootypants, and I headed to a mesic upland forest property owned by friends of ours just northeast of Potato Creek State Park in St. Joseph County, Indiana. It's a great time to be in the woods... I think of spring as a celebration of colors. Birds are molting into colorful breeding plumage, wildflowers are blooming to take advantage of the closing window of warm enough soil temperatures and sparse enough canopy cover before leaves are fully formed... as the comedian Robin Williams once said, "Spring is nature's way of saying 'Let's party!'".

Mesic Upland Forest

Wood Anemone (Anemone quinquefolia)

Jack-in-the-Pulpit (Arisaema triphyllum)

Wild Ginger (Asarum canadense)

Spring Beauty (Claytonia virginica)

Squirrel Corn (Dicentra canadensis)

Dutchman's Breeches (Dicentra cucullaria)

Wild Geranium (Geranium maculatum)

False Rue Anemone (Enemion biternatum)

Lapham's Phlox (Phlox divaricata ssp. laphamii)

White Trillium (Trillium grandiflorum)

Prairie Trillium (Trillium recurvatum) - interesting pointed petals that are more open than normal

Prairie Trillium (Trillium recurvatum) - one of the strangest forms I've ever seen, with not quite yellow petals, but definitely lacking the pigment that you normally see

Downy Yellow Violet (Viola pubescens)

Longspur Violet (Viola rostrata)

Common Blue Violet (Viola sororia)

It's hard to find a happier dog than one amongst the spring wildflowers.

I've posted some additional photos from our day on Get Your Botany On!; you can access that post by clicking here.

6 comments:

Justin R. Thomas said...

Those are great photos, Scott. I don't know why you want a new camera.

Scott Namestnik said...

Because I feel like a cheater. I don't even try, with the exception of trying to be a little artistic once in a while. I want to feel like I have worked for a good photo.

Hilary Melton-Butcher said...

Hi Scott and Lindsay .. lovely site and love the pictures .. it'll be interesting to travel with you .. Thanks - Hilary

Scott Namestnik said...

Thanks Hilary. Glad you are enjoying our blog. Stop back often!

Anonymous said...

Your "Viola sororia" actually looks like a Viola cucullata. Notice how the lateral petal's trichomes are enlarged at their extremity.

Scott Namestnik said...

Thanks for reading our blog and for your comment, Anonymous. Without the rest of the plant in the photo, it would be difficult to tell. However, the hairs appear too long and not "club-shaped" enough for V. cucullata, and the habitat is right for V. sororia but not for V. cucullata. Also, in V. cucullata, the leaves lay close to the ground and the flowering stalk is much taller than the rest of the plant. Again, you can't see this in the photo, unfortunately.