Welcome to my nature blog! I love sharing my photos of North Texas! I will keep looking out and hope you do too.
Comments welcome. Thank you, Mary
It was cold this morning. We got down to 37 degrees…brrr. But maybe even colder the next couple of days. I wonder if it will be the last frost. My Mom used to say, it was needed for the blackberries to set. Our Tharp’s Spiderwort is blooming nicely. The Buprestid beetles (Acmaeodera ornatoides) are enjoying it too….
It is a tad chilly today, but tis nice to see the sun again. Our low this morning was 41 and the high was 61 degrees. Our four day total was 1.32 inches. I think the plants are happy! Here are the last of the grasslands photos from the April 13th. This was a cool…
Here are some more of the grasslands finds! Interesting to see how the beavers gnawed on the tree and how the tree is healing. New Cedar Elm leaves are colorful! Back of a new Post Oak leaf. If you have a chance, take a close up look at the hairs on the back of the…
While sittin’, sippin’ tea, and watchin’ out my shop window this morning, I saw Lark Sparrows (FOS), White-crowned and Chipping sparrows, cardinals, mockingbirds, a Lincoln Sparrow, crows, a Turkey Vulture, and two flocks of hundred plus each of Franklin’s gulls. The Black-chinned hummers were at the dining room window. This is what I…
More photos from the grasslands… Eastern Red Cedar with fungus where a limb had been cut off. Closer view. Gnarly oak! Can you find the dragonfly? Closer…sometimes even when you know where it is, they can be hard to spot. It is a female Common Whitetail. Greenbriar is starting to flower. This is a…
Oh boy I finally got the Cedar Apple Rust (Gymnosporangium juniperi-virginianae). It has been on my list to see and photograph and today was its day at the grasslands. “On juniper, galls appear about seven months after infection, and they form gelatinous masses of spores after 18 months. Golf ball-like depressions form on the gall…
What a delightful time was had by all the prairie friends! First up the Becker Prairie. Becker Prairie Shooting Star! A nice cluster of Blue-eyed Grass! Alan took this great shot of the Celestials! Locoweed (Oxytrois lambertii) seen along the roadside on the way to the Garnett Preserve! Such a pretty plant! Next stop was…
Oh my gosh, the Dangelmayr Prairie is so beautiful! Thank you so much to Denise and her daughters for showing us your special prairie! The Shooting Stars were amazing! The land has been in the family since 1893! These were really dark! And then there were a couple of white Shooting Stars. You don’t see…
Today I went on a NPAT (Native Prairies Association of Texas) field trip to the historic Barnett Ranch. The Barnett family has operated the cattle ranch since around 1887. The Barnett Ranch is recognized as a Family Land Heritage Ranch. Before we headed out to see the ranch, we saw his barn. Skip told us…
White Compass Plant or White Rosinweed (Silphium albiflorum) was nibbled to a stub. The cows or maybe the deer must like it. We found multiple of the plants eaten. I don’t know what caterpillar this is on the Chittamwood, but it will completely defoliate the new leaves. Don’t worry, the tree will quickly get new…