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
More good stuff 🙂 Pussy toes (Antennaria parlinnii)! Did you think it was going to be a kitty cat? 😉 This was a favorite plant that Shirley liked to show me in Cooke County. It was certainly easier to see there since it was on the roadside. Pussy Toes (Antennaria parlinnii) are in the Asteraceae…
I hear this banging coming from the dining room. What is Jim up to I wondered? It was not Jim but our feathered friend looks to be back. Grrrr. I hope he does not do it too much or we will be putting up the screens and outside shade. A cardinal attacked the windows for…
Do you remember I found these cocoons on the grasslands last week? I left half of them in the prairie. They were tiny and bright yellow! Well, they hatched! They opened each cocoon with this perfect round lid. Here’s what they looked like. There were about 2-3mm long not including legs or antenna. Amazing how…
Perfect day to finish a book Claire loaned me. The book is Remarkable Creatures: Epic Adventures in the Search for the Origins of Species by Sean B. Carroll. It was a great read on evolution and the scientists who help bring the amazing story to life. We managed to not walk in the rain today,…
Paula saw the first of season Scissortail Flycatcher! This was up in Norman, OK. They got spring before us LOL. But I believe I heard one on this afternoon walk, but could not see it. Yeah Paula! Yesterday, Kathy (down in Fredericksburg) had multiple flocks of Sandhill Cranes go over. I also saw my FOS…
When the wind arrived, boy oh boy is it blowin! Our high gust was 35 mph at about 4pm. I think two rocks was appropriate to hold me to the ground 😉 This was just 10 minutes before a 32 mph gust. I think this guy or gal may be in the family of the Large…
This is a continuation of the hike to unit 31 from yesterday. This snag really stood out where the bark had fallen off. It was such a pretty brown and orange color. The shaggy brown is a part of the tree. Lots of neat rocks with moss. I found this moss interesting on how it…
Ah, the temperature was so nice this afternoon. No breeze and 62 degrees, I could not have asked for better. Today’s mission on the grasslands was to check if the Trout Lilies (Erythronium mesochoreum) were blooming. The first critter was this Dainty Sulphur. A delightful find! I have not seen the usual numbers this winter….
We had some patchy frost this morning. Our recorded low was 31.6 degrees. First frost of the season! When it warmed up, the bugs came out. This is a Little Yellow (Pyrisitia lisa). White Checkered-skipper (Pyrqus genus) Zabulon Skipper (Poanes zabulon) on the Fall Aster (Symphyotrichum ericoides). I believe this little red spider might be in …