British Soldiers and other lichens “come alive” as the snow disappears and the sun shines on Glennie’s fence posts along Old Legion Lane.  That is a good place to photograph such spring gardens as I can get the car close to them and their height is manageable.  Here are some examples of what was seen “through the lens”:

This “forest” of British Soldiers, Cladonia cristatella grows on the top surface of the most productive post, the one closest to the road.

The Claytonia Genus of lichens has a very large number of species, many of which are in Ontario.

Some folks collect and manage lichens to form miniature gardens.   Others study them for their potential as therapeutic agents in the treatment of  cancer.

I suspect that some lichen scientists can spend their whole life studying such a complex organism.  I can only hope to study and photograph a few local species of lichens.

A warm spell melted some ice which encouraged some birds to pass through on their way north.  This Hooded Merganser was with a half dozen others in the pond next to Big Lake.

Centre Island Goose??

Do you know these geese?

Note the huge differences with the solo swimming Canada goose above.

The above are part of a flock of 8 geese photographed (a long ways away) at about 9:00 am in Dave and Irene’s hayfield.  They are Greater White-fronted Geese a long ways East of their normal flyway.

I recall the Palamars talking about hunting Specklebellies in Northern Saskatchewan.

Audubon has a good photo album and a range map here:

http://www.audubon.org/field-guide/bird/greater-white-fronted-goose

The animated graphic on the bottom of the above page (click “learn more”)  indicates that we’ll be seeing more of the GWFG.

Meanwhile….

Deciduous buds continued to awaken from their winter dormancy…

Like this Tag Alder…  with the near male catkin (still closed) hanging below the female “cone” catkin (which is out of focus in the distance).

A more advanced Tag Alder, with the female cones starting to open along with the upper portion of a male catkin.  The male catkins contain the pollen which wind-pollinate the cones (or female catkins).

Last year’s cone from a willow…

Red Maples are starting to open …

… as are the pussy willows:

Below:  No, not a pussywillow but the emerging catkin of a poplar tree.  Populus is a Genus of the Willow family.   This poplar tree is growing along the road beside a former trailer park so it is probably a hybrid related to the Balsam Poplar, maybe the fragrant but messy Balm of Gilead.

I’ll follow a few of these buds this spring to bring you updates as they mature.  Unfortunately they will be in reverse chronological order!

There isn’t  much of a time relationship with the following “artistic photographs” so I’ll slip them in here:

Abstract Ditch Water:

Abandoned Homestead, Hartley Bay Road:

Snowflurry over Twin Rivers Bridge:

We had snow, sleet and freezing rain for a couple of days giving us some opportunity to see small things in a new light.

These pieces of art are the result of freezing, melting and refreezing of snow, leaving intricate holes of trapped air …  (Click on the photos for a close-up.  Use your browser’s back button to return to the blog.)

The following are photos of freezing rain drops, forming a more clear covering over buds:

I think that we might have had some freezing sleet to give those bubbles within this structure.

Some of the ice sheathing this Hawthorne branch has broken off, leaving some of the branches exposed …

Very interesting to see the effects of frozen precipitation up close.

We had some mild days after nights of freezing temperatures giving some interesting ice art for the curious photographer, often seen driving along the wrong side of a roadway to peer into the ditch.   Some examples:

Hoar frost on Magnetawan River shrubs as seen from the Magnetawan FN Community Road:

Various levels of stream along Hwy 529A into Bayfield Inlet:

Rorschach Tests(?) at Twin River boat launch:

Ditch along Hwy 645 into Byng Inlet:

Culvert at Old Still River Road:

More ditch art along Hwy 529A into Bayfield Inlet:

Always something out there, even in the roadside ditches.

Click (sometimes twice) on a photo of interest to get a more intimate view of the phenomenon.  Use your browser back button to return to the post.

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