Tuesday, May 24, 2011

compare and contrast; also, bug sex

Oh, I have such a feast for you! Remember how I just discovered we have lilies-of-the-valley in the yard? I zipped out in between rain showers and got a peek at them.
P1080309
P1080310
Lily-of-the-valley (Convallaria majalis)
The other day, I was visiting with a friend who wanted to show me what he thought was a whole boatload of these in their lawn. Turns out what his lawn is blessed with is Canada mayflower – the cuties, seen first around here on April 29 and periodically since then. They usually live in the woods, not on people’s lawns, but as The Dude pointed out, until recently their lawn was woods, so there you have it.
P1080271
P1080359
This one’s little flower buds are finally opening up!
And now for compare and contrast #2: dandelion, and coltsfoot. From a distance, they both look like puffballs, but when you go in closer, you see that they’re structured differently
dandelion (Taraxacum officinale)
P1080350

P1080348
P1080353
coltsfoot (Tussilago farfara)
P1080345
P1080346P1080343P1080347
In other news, I caught some bugs having sex on the white baneberry flowers. See how nature is full of delights?
P1080332
I also witnessed an unusual pollinator:
P1080352
I guess he’s probably eating the dandelion, huh. Isn’t it beautiful, close-up?
Last but not least, the daffodils are pregnant.
P1080389

No comments:

Post a Comment