Wildflowers 2020

August 27-28, Home and Blandford Nature Center, Kent Co.

Home: Pale beauty moths on chimney: Campaea perlata

BNC: Giant ragweed (awful invasive), Goldenrod, Jewelweed, all kinds of berries

July 14, Blandford Nature Center, Kent Co.
Bee Balm
Wild Leeks blooming (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Allium_tricoccum#/media/File:Allium_tricoccum_-_Ramps.jpg )
Wild Grapes fruiting
Black Swallowtail butterflies
Dragonflies: Ebony Jewelwing; Widow Skimmer

June 30, home and Blandford Nature Center, Kent Co.
Tickseed
Common Milkweed 
Blanket Flower
St. John's Wort (non-native)
Jewelweed
Chicory (non-native)

June 28, Blandford Nature Center, Kent Co.

Swamp Milkweed

Butterfly Weed

Black-eyed Susans

June 17, Blandford Nature Center, Kent Co.

Evening Primrose

June 16, Blandford Nature Center, Kent Co.

Alfalfa (non-native)

Daisies

Daisy Fleabane

Dame's Rocket / Money Plant (invasive)

Goat's Beard (Tragopogon, non-native)

Rugosa Rose (invasive, but gorgeous aroma)

Yarrow / Milfoil

White Campion (non-native)

June 15, Blandford Nature Center, Kent Co.

Penstemon: Beard-Tongue (not sure which kind), at west edge of fenced farm field

May 16, Blandford Nature Center, Kent Co.
Wild Geraniums

May 6, Blandford Nature Center, Kent Co.
Marsh Marigolds

May 3, Aman Park, Ottawa Co.
Trilliums
Yellow violets
Large-flowered Bellwort
Buttercups
Jacks-in-the-Pulpit
Blue Cohosh
 
May 1, Blandford Nature Center, Kent Co.

Winter Cress (non-native, Burbarea vulgaris, aka Yellow rocket, mustard family Brassicaceae) https://virginiawildflowers.org/2015/05/09/yellow-rocket/ 

April 25, Aman Park, Ottawa Co.
white:

• Bloodroot
• Dutchman's Breeches
• Cut-leaved Toothworts
• False Rue Anemone
• Trillium

pink/purple:

• Hepatica
• Spring Beauties
• Pink Spring Cress (Cardamine douglassii)

greenish:

• Blue Cohosh

blue:

• Virginia Bluebells budded

yellow:

• Trout Lilies
• Buttercup (1 only)

reddish:

• Wild Ginger budded

April 19, Blandford Nature Center, Kent Co.

• Spring Beauties
• Cut-leaved Toothworts
• False Rue Anemone
• Marsh Marigolds

A ton of turtles on logs in and around the pond at the corner of Hillburn Ave NW and Trail St. NW

April 13, Blandford Nature Center, Kent Co.

• Bloodroots!
• Spring Beauties
• Skunk cabbage and Mayapples leafed out
• Blue Cohosh, Dutchman's Breeches, Trillium, Trout Lilies, and Winter Cress (non-native) budded

April 12, Millennium Park, Kent Co.

• Spring Beauty
• Pussy willows
• Myrtle (non-native, invasive)

April 8, Walker, Kent Co. (home)

• Cut-leaved Toothwort blooming (volunteers)
• Violets - Common purple, Canada white, lavender

April 5, Blandford Nature Center, Kent Co.

• Wild leeks everywhere!
• Cut-leaved Toothwort budded

March 29, Aman Park, Ottawa Co.
Hepatica!

Birding 2020

October 20-21, Home

Carolina Wren singing on the 20th; looked in the window at me on the 21st!

 

October 17-18, Home

Ovenbird in the early evening, backyard, looking for a drink

October 15, Blandford Nature Center, Kent Co., Walker

1st returned Junco

 

October 6, home, Kent Co.

White-crowned sparrow

 

September 29, Kent Co.

flock of (Great?) Egrets on pond, Maynard Ave SW

Double-crested Cormorant (flying east of Lake Eastbrook Blvd)

Merlin chasing a crow

Veery (Blandford Nature Center, Walker)

September 25, Geddes Ave, Kent Co., Grand Rapids

Great Egret flying  

 

September 22, Blandford Nature Center, Kent Co., Walker

8 wild turkeys (hens)

 

August 18, Blandford Nature Center, Kent Co., Grand Rapids

Hooded warbler, Barred Owl

 

July 21, Blandford Nature Center, Kent Co., Walker
Indigo Bunting singing

July 14, Blandford Nature Center, Kent Co., Walker
female Yellow Warbler

May 23, Upper Macatawa Natural Area, Ottawa Co.
Song Sparrows, Swamp Sparrow, Willow Flycatchers, Yellow-throated Warblers, Yellow Warblers, Great Blue Herons, 2 Soras, Baltimore Orioles (males and a female in her nest), Red-breasted Grosbeaks, Cedar Waxwings, Killdeer, female Ruby-throated Hummingbird, Indigo Bunting, Cowbirds, Bluebirds, female Wood Duck and 8 ducklings swimming.

Muskrat lodges, Pickerel Frogs, large Garter or Ribbon snake
Mayapple blooming, lots of Wild Geraniums.

May 16, Blandford Nature Center, Kent Co., Grand Rapids
American Redstart (a different one than yesterday), male and female Rose-breasted Grosbeaks, multiple Baltimore Orioles, 2 deer chewing their cud while lying down

May 15, Blandford Nature Center, Kent Co., Walker
American Redstart ! 4 deer, 3 Red-bellied Woodpeckers

May 13, Blandford Nature Center, Kent Co., Walker
Baltimore Orioles, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Indigo Bunting, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Blue-headed Vireo, Black and White Warbler, many Black-throated Green Warblers, Magnolia Warbler, and Nashville Warbler
Downy and Hairy Woodpeckers, Robins, White-throated Sparrow, Catbird, Chickadees, Nuthatch, Red-winged Blackbird, Mourning Dove

May 12, Blandford Nature Center, Kent Co., Walker
woods: Ovenbirds, Great Crested Flycatcher, Eastern Phoebe, Red-breasted Nuthatch?
meadow: Least Flycatcher, Song Sparrow, White-crowned Sparrow

May 11, Blandford Nature Center, Kent Co., Walker
Black-throated Green Warbler

May 5, Blandford Nature Center, Kent Co., Grand Rapids
Baltimore Oriole
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Palm Warbler
Yellow Warbler
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle)
Barn swallows
Tree swallows

May 3, Aman Park, Ottawa Co.
Nashville Warbler
Black-throated Green Warbler
Pileated woodpecker
Thrushes singing

April 25, Aman Park, Ottawa Co.
flock of Yellow-rumped Warblers
several pairs of Wood Thrushes
a Pileated Woodpecker very close, on the ground
On the way home, Leonard between 14th and 8th Avenues: Great Egret

April 24, Blandford Nature Center, Kent Co.

White-throated Sparrow
April 17, Blandford Nature Center, Kent Co.
Hermit Thrush

April 16, Blandford Nature Center, Kent Co.
Carolina Wren

April 12, Millennium Park, Kent Co.
female Red-winged Blackbirds

April 3, Aman Park, Ottawa Co.
Pileated hammering

March 29, Aman Park, Ottawa Co.

• Phoebe
• Also, the black squirrels here are a color variant of Fox Squirrels (same size)

M-45 between 14th and 8th

• 3 Sandhill Cranes
• Red-tailed Hawk

March 27, Blandford Nature Center, Kent Co.
Song sparrows, Red-bellied woodpeckers, Downy woodpecker, Robins, Blue jays, Cardinals, Nuthatch, Titmouse, Junco, Crow, Brown creeper.

Also: Northern Spring Peepers in addition to the Wood Frogs (see https://youtu.be/jWQZXnOZuJY)

March 23, Blandford Nature Center, Kent Co.

• Song Sparrow singing
• Wood Frogs chortling

March 18, Blandford Nature Center, Kent Co.

• Field Sparrows singing

March 15: Home

• House Finch
• Hairy Woodpeckers

March 14: Aman Park, Ottawa Co.

• Chickadees
• White-breasted Nuthatches
• Titmice
• Juncos
• Blue Jays
• Crows
• Robins
• Downy Woodpeckers
• Red-bellied Woodpeckers
• Pileated Woodpecker
• Turkey Vultures  *1st time this year
• Brown Creeper  *1st time this year

March 7: home

• Robins singing at dusk

March 4, 2020: Leonard St between 8th and 14th, Ottawa Co; M-45 between 8th and 14th, Ottawa Co

• male Red-winged Blackbird - a sure sign of spring! 
• small flock of Sandhill Cranes