Categories
Insects Photography Places Plants

Easter photos

I spent several hours this afternoon at the Botanical Gardens, which is becoming my typical Easter activity. It was a really terrific day, still cold, but pleasant when wearing a jacket over a flannel shirt. It was sunny, but with clouds, which can make the best pictures. I went later, when most people have gone home.

I managed to catch my second bee picture of the year. What was cause for concern is he was the only bee I saw my entire trip.

Bumble Bee

I also decided to get a couple of landscape photos, show some of the architecture of the place. The first is one of the administration buildings–a lovely brick with classic lines. The second is Tower House, where the Garden’s founder, Shaw, used to live.

The maze in the foreground of the second picture is tall enough for most people not to be able to see over the top.

Brick Building

Tower House

The Garden was at the end of its spring blooming season, with crabapple and Kanzan cherry trees at peak.

Kansan cherry trees

I was surprised to see bluebells. That was the oddest thing about this season–very early spring flowers are still in bloom, though the late flowers, like tulips, are almost gone.

Bluebells

Unfortunately, due to the record breaking highs, followed immediately by several days of hard freeze, most of the garden’s fruit trees were loosing their buds. The latest report on the impact of this weather is that Missouri and Illinois have lost anywhere from 50% to close to 100% of this year’s crops for some varieties of fruit trees, winter wheat, early corn, and much of the wine grapes.

It’s been a devastating spring for this area.

fruit tree loosing most of its buds

I chatted with another photographer at the park, a gentleman from Michigan. He mentioned how the colds we were suffering don’t impact on their fruit trees and plants, primarily because the weather doesn’t fluctuate so much. The Great Lakes help maintain a consistent temperature in the surrounding areas: cold in winter, mild much of the rest of the year.

I’ve decided to make the “Lake trip” later this summer, because I’m not sure I can handle a Missouri August this year.

Japanese maple

No matter what the circumstances, the Gardens are, and remain, beautiful–thanks in part to the critters, including this handsome grackle. Still no picture of my fox, though. Someday.

grackle among tulips

The dogwoods in the rhodie garden were disappointing, another tree impacted by the weather. However, this lovely Dicentra spectablis was still in excellent form. This is a flower that needs a closer look, as it’s much more complex than would seem from a distance.

Bright pink flower

I actually managed to capture a picture of a raptor overhead. It’s not perfect, but you can see the details of its head and feathers. Lovely bird, death to the poor finches, though.

hawk overhead

My favorite shot from today (other than the building photos) is of this lovely tulip, still in excellent shape.

Tulip

Categories
Critters Photography

The Wasp

Paper wasps are quite common here in Missouri. Unlike other types of wasps, they’re not very aggressive, except around their nests. If you threaten a wasp’s nest, or agitate them in some way, they can sting and like other wasps, they can string repeatedly. Their stings are very painful (3 on the Schmidt Sting Pain index, or “Like spilling a beaker of Hydrochloric acid on a paper cut”), and if you’re allergic to stings, as I am, can be quite serious.

When the paper wasp started buzzing around behind the screens up in the corner of the french doors out to the deck, we didn’t think much of it. It wasn’t until we saw her starting her nest that we knew we had to get rid of it and quick. You can’t have a paper wasp nest next to a door; not if you want to use the door.

However, you can’t knock the nest down when they’re building it. The old, “Busy as a bee. Angry as a wasp” thing. The day before yesterday, when she took off to get more material, I quickly went out with the broom and knocked the nest down and as quickly ran back inside, shutting the door behind me. She returned with the material, long gray streamer behind her, and buzzed all over looking for the nest. For over an hour she flew around in front of the door and around the corner. Eventually she landed, and sat for a couple of hours where her nest was. When she made motions of starting to re-build, I pounded on the door to disturb her and eventually she took off.

Yesterday, she returned to the same corner and again, and sat there for a couple of hours. With today’s storm, she hasn’t been back.

When she was building her nest, I did grab a couple of careful photos using my telephoto lens. It wasn’t until I processed the photo today that I noticed her nest had one tiny egg in it.

wasp and nest

Categories
Photography Places Plants

Shaw Nature Center: daffodils

For the first time, I managed to make it to Shaw’s Nature Center when the daffodils are at their peak. The Center’s daffodils have grown wild, and as such they blanket the grounds.

In the past, I’ve typically taken photos of daffodils up close, brightly lit by the sun and shining with vivid color–a harlot among the more delicately hued spring flowers, all tarted up in their brassy yellows and bright greens.

I noticed yesterday, though, that the daffodil is really a very shy flower whose color is much more muted and subtle when you view the flower as part of the landscape. By itself and very close, it is a lovely flower and can cheer even the most determined grump. However, when the daffodils form part of a scene, just barely there at the edge of one’s consciousness, they draw the eye across the fields to to a distant edge you can’t quite see. A reminder of Spring, yes; but also a reminder that the seeming infinity of Spring is merely an illusion.

Daffodils

Daffodils

Daffodils

Daffodils

Daffodils

Daffodils

Daffodils

Daffodils

Daffodils

>Daffodils

Categories
Critters

The cardinal

The weather has been so warm, I’ve left my windows open at night.

This morning, at 3 in the morning (I checked), a cardinal sat on my window sill and let forth with glorious song for the next 53 minutes (I checked that also).

It was very disconcerting. Oh, not the noise; or being woken up out of an exhausted sleep, well aware that I must be up no later than 6 in order to meet this day’s tasks.

No it was the strange feeling I experienced, made up of equal parts charmed delight and murderous rage.

Categories
Environment

Environmental wacko? Or urban intellectual

Black River News reports on the Ameren/FERC meeting yesterday that discussed rebuilding the Taum Sauk reservoir. I thought the following interesting:

The public comment part of the meeting consisted of about a dozen local citizens. For the most part is was an Ameren love fest, with everyone imploring FERC of approve the dam rebuild because the Ameren taxes were so important to the Lesteville area. One person did make a lot of comments about the problems in the East Fork and problems with past decisions that were made by Ameren. Another speaker asked FERC to ignore the “environmental wackos and urban intellectuals” and only listen to the real local people. The meeting only lasted half the allowed time.

(emph. mine)

I’m not sure if I qualify as an environmental wacko, or an urban intellectual. Frankly, I find both labels to be flattering, so I would be happy to claim both.

Thing is, anything to do with a river is not just a local event. River quality can have major impact on an entire region, state, or even multiple states and countries. Water is the great connector, and Missouri is connected by lots and lots of water.

I thought it interesting that Ameren’s FERC meeting came about at the exact same time as the more publicly compelling meetings about utilities rates. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch and most other media were full of the latter, and never a mention of the former. That’s short sighted, and not particularly thorough.

The only ones who seem to be discussing anything related to Taum Sauk and Ameren are Black River News and me, and I don’t think my comments are necessarily appreciated in Lesterville.

I think I’m going to hit the DNR up for a photo tour of the Shut-Ins. I wonder if the freedom of information act would cover such? Since nothing is coming out about the state of the clean-up from either Ameren or the DNR, and the media is too busy covering utility rates.