early purple ivy blooms

These lovely purple flowers are loved by bees. The early blooms help feed insects before a lot of other flowers open. This 'ground ivy' has a long history of medicinal use. It is usually evergreen throughout winter if covered by snow. Part of the mint family of plants, it is also aromatic.  

Some lawn owners know it as a pest, and call it 
creeping charlie, gill-over-the-ground, alehoof, 
tunhoof, catsfoot, field balm, or run-away-robin.
I admire the shape and texture of the leaves, and 
used them in a botanical design project.

nest box peek

Peeking into the nest box . . . 

Tree Swallows lay eggs and 
disguise them by sticking feathers 
barb-down so the fluffy vanes curl over the contents of the nest.

In this photo, we can see a few white eggs among the soft grasses in the bottom of the nest box.
 

phoebe

Rainy cold day for flycatchers!  These two Eastern Phoebes Sayornis phoebe rested on the branch and spent several minutes to shake their feathers and preen feathers. Maybe they look bedraggled because they were hunting flying insects in wet weather. 

nectar and pollen

Before June, dandelion flowers are one of a few important food source for pollinators, providing both nectar and pollen for bumblebees and honey bees. Other various insects like beetles, hoverflies and butterflies use the nectar as food. Some birds eat the seeds. 

sora, master of disguise

My new favorite bird!  I just discovered the Sora Porzana carolina (a very secretive wetland bird) this Spring.  I watch a pair every day, hunting at the edge of the pond.  They think the mottled-pattern camouflage feathers makes them hard to spot.  But the bright yellow bill gives them away.   (see post on 4/24/2022)

strutting blackbird

 The blackbird was foraging among the short grasses near the pond.   A female, recently arrived after migrating, landed on a branch of swamp willow.  The male saw her and started displaying his handsome epaulets.  He walked toward her with his feathers fluffed out and tail partly spread.  As he proceeded, he lifted the leading edge of each wing so that the red shoulder patches were puffed up, appearing bigger.  She flew to another small tree; he followed among the willow sprouts, displaying his male beauty to impress her. 

(Red-winged Blackbird males have colorful upperwing coverts of red bordered with yellow on the bend of each wing.  He will use the colorful display to threaten other birds, defend his territory, or attract a mate.)

muskrat claws

 

Often we can see a muskrat swimming back and forth in the pond, harvesting plants and taking food home to the family.  Muskrats Ondatra zibethica eat the roots, stems, leaves, and fruits of many water plants such as cattail, rushes, smartweed, duck potato, horsetail, sedges, and willow sprouts.  They are strong swimmers due to their two long back feet and five webbed toes.  For grasping and harvesting food, they have developed smaller front feet with four fingers with claws and a small thumb.   By living near the pond, muskrats control plant growth, provide open spaces for new plants to grow, and make space for other animals to build their nests.

sandpiper

Spotted Sandpiper has again migrated north to Minnesota. This species spends winter as far south as South America.  Welcome back!

blue-winged teal

Blue-winged Teal ducks have been on the pond for a week or so. Last year, this species stayed only a few days to rest on migration. This season, they seem to find enough food here to stay longer. The hen makes a nest on the ground where she finds grassy cover to hide her eggs from predators. I admired the male's feathers, especially the white chevron on the back of his head.