Dutchman's Breeches(top), Trout Lily(bottom middle), and Spring Beauty(lower right) Forestville State Park.

Dutchman's Breeches on a steep hillside.

Bluebells on the old floodplain in Forestville State Park.

Skunk Cabbage leaves and Marsh Marigolds(yellow) blooming in a Forestville Seep.

Marsh Marigolds.

MORE WOODLAND WILDFLOWERS

The small white False Rue Anemone will soon carpet the old flood plains of our woodlands. By the end of next week much of Forestville and Whitewater State Parks will have a dazzling carpet of little white flowers through much of the lowlands. (This little flower deserves a better name.)
Also see Gary Erickson on facebook for a video of the great sound of the Spring Peeper singing its song.

The Bloodroot have reached their peak this week.

Spring Beauty is a small and easily overlooked wildflower that is now blooming in many of our woodlands.

Closeup of the small Spring Beauty flower and narrow leaf structure.

Pasque flower high on a ridge in Whitewater State Park.  Pasque Flowers prefer a habitat of high, dry, and often windy ridges and Goat Prairies. We had to go up a stairway with about 300 steps to get this photo.

Hepatica (purple/blue) with a small white Spring Beauty blooming in the middle.

Closeup of 1 inch purple Hepatica flower.  TO SEE MORE OF OUR NATURE PHOTOS, GO UP AND TO THE RIGHT AND CLICK ON APRIL 2015 OR ANY MONTH DESIRED.

Many Skunk Cabbages are now emerging from the spring/mud/seeps of Forestville State Park.

The Skunk Cabbage leaves are now unfolding and will soon reach knee-high.

The Eastern Meadowlarks have been up for almost a month now.  Unlike 30 years ago, we now see very few of these.  The loss of grasslands and pastures over the last two decades has taken a huge toll on these birds.  Over the last three years 400 square miles of Minnesota grassland, pasture, and woods edge has been turned into corn and soybean land.  Minnesota leads the nation in loss of wildlife habitat to cropland.

The Killdeer are up in good numbers and will nest here.

Our first Chipping Sparrow just arrive.  Almost anyone with a lawn will have these birds stay with them all summer.

The White-throated Sparrows arrived a few days ago and will stay with us for about two-three weeks before moving northward. They love brushy habitat and the seeds of the giant ragweed.

The Song Sparrows arrived a few weeks ago, got snowed on as usual, and will nest here.  We have many pairs of nesting Song Sparrows.

The Fox Sparrows have been here for a few weeks and are now moving onward to the north country.

The Hepatica started blooming one week ago and now they are out in full force.  They are the first of the common woodland wildflowers to bloom each spring.  Be sure to check out facebook page (Gary Erickson, Spring Valley MN) for daily postings of natures wonders

The Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers have been drilling holes in our Maple tree to get the sweet sap to flow.

Saw our first Bloodroot blooming on Sunday April 12.  Note the unopened leaf still on the stem.