Know Your Neighbors

The Tall Thistles are blooming! Thistles get a bad rap because of non-native, invasive species, such as Musk Thistle and Bull Thistle, which have been declared legally Noxious Weeds and must be removed. But our native thistles, such as Wavy-Leaf Thistle (Cirsium undulatum) and Tall Thistle (Cirsium altissimum), are vibrant parts of our ecosystem.

There are a few days in spring when birds overlap--the winter residents are still here, summer residents arrive, migrants from the south pass through, and everybody joins the year-round birds!   That's what's shown here:  The Harris Sparrows and White-crowned Sparrows are still splashing in the creek, getting ready to head north, while the year-round Song Sparrow also has a bath  The year-round cardinal and goldfinch are sprucing up for the breeding ...

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Orange-throated Darters on McDowell Creek, engaged in a communal spawn: ...

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While we are asleep and dreaming, these guys are all about!! ...

Cast: In Order of Appearance ...

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