A Spring Visit to Tower Hill Botanic Garden

It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year!!  As I walked at Tower Hill, the soundtrack to that Christmas carol played in my mind.   There was beauty on all sides:  flowers in the gardens, butterflies, birds in the trees, thousands of daffodils in bloom in the daffodil field, and bright, beautiful tulips.  If you can visit Tower Hill Botanic Garden soon, go!  It's the most wonderful time of the year!

 Bluets

Gray Catbird

Eastern Pine Elfin

Thunberg Spirea

 Blue-Gray Gnatcatcher

Spring Azure

 Northern Cardinal and Chipping Sparrow

serenading the people enjoying the daffodil field

Mourning Cloak

Magnolia cv. Elizabeth

Mr. and Mrs. Eastern Bluebird

 Eastern Pine Elfin

 Cherry

 Baltimore Oriole

 Eastern Pine Elfin

Pink Trumpet Daffodil

 Mrs. Baltimore Oriole

 Mourning Cloak

 Baltimore Oriole

 Mourning Cloak

Saucer Magnolia

Swainson's Thrush

 Garter Snake

I spent about 10 minutes with this snake, which for some reason did not slither off to safety.  I tried to photograph its red tongue, but I kept missing it.  A couple even stopped and tried to help me but I just couldn't make it happen!  I could have with my other camera, but I just haven't mastered the settings on this one yet.  Excuses, excuses!

Cherry

 Kwanzan Cherry

Cherry Plum

Oriental Spruce

Forget-me-not

Evening Walk at BHCL

I tried to go to Hopkinton State Park this morning, but the gates were locked.  I went to the car top boat ramp instead.  I found some patches of wildflowers there, including this Wood Anemone mixed with Dwarf Ginseng.

I couldn't walk at lunchtime today, and boy, did I miss it.   Since I had the chance, I took a walk during the last hour of daylight.  It was a little buggy, but it definitely helped melt away the stress of the day.

 Eastern Bluebird

 Great Blue Heron flyover

 Chipping Sparrow

Common Strawberry

 Red-Winged Blackbird

By the way, there are baby Bluebirds in the nest box at my house!  I peeked the other day.  Don't ask me how many, but I assume all five eggs hatched.  They were ugly and naked and tiny and most of them were sleeping.  One had its beak gaping open.  They were not making any noise at all.  I only looked a few seconds because I didn't want to draw any attention to them or make the parents too anxious.  According to All About Birds, the nestling period can last up to 3 weeks, so I'll have another chance to peek at them.

Lunch Break at BHCL

I have been watching for Wild Oats.  Today was the first day I found them in bloom.  They seem smaller than last year.  I didn't notice the bee in the photo until I saw it on my computer.

Wild Oats

I don't know my trees, but these freshly opened leaves really caught my eye.  Aren't they beautiful?

Savannah Sparrow

The grass in the back meadows is finally getting some height.  This was the first visit where I saw lots of Savannah Sparrows flushing from the meadow directly across from the pond.  There were at least thirty.  They would flush a few at a time, gathering and splitting up, some landing, and some flying again, so it was hard to keep an accurate count of them.  Really beautiful to see so many in their native habitat!  There were also Chipping Sparrows at this same intersection, but they were keeping to the pathways, especially the paved hill, where they were foraging.

Chipping Sparrow

I didn't mention that it was sunny and nearly 80 degrees!  I am not used to the warm temperatures.  It's been a long time since I broke a sweat on one of my walks (not counting this past weekend)!

Song Sparrow

Eastern Bluebird

I did see three Mourning Cloaks in the woods and one Cabbage White in the meadow, but not one of them cooperated for a photo!

Spring Birds and Butterflies

We had another beautiful, warm and mostly sunny day today, which was great for getting outdoors.  I had some nice spring migrants and good luck with a new butterfly too!

I started the day at Westborough Wildlife Management Area, where I hiked for two hours and fought off "warbler neck" as I watched birds in the highest trees for most of that walk.  My neck does not like spring warblers, even though my brain and heart do.

Yellow Warbler

adorable!

 mystery Blue-Winged Warbler
(thanks to Josh F. for sending me the ID!)

Blue-Gray Gnatcatcher

 Palm Warbler

 need more time on this one, too
Warbling Vireo
(again, thanks to Josh F. for sending me the ID!)

 Yellow-Rumped Warbler

 Spring Azure on some dog poo

not quite as pretty as on a flower...

During the second hour of my hike, the termperature really warmed up, and I ended up seeing 18 of these Spring Azures and one Mourning Cloak.

 Snapping Turtle

 closeup (but not too close)

 Eastern Kingbird

 American Redstart

 Yellow-Rumped Warbler

showing the spot for which it is named

Palm Warbler (looking for a bug up there)

Late morning I checked out the Sherborn Power Line Trail and found it to be totally quiet.  I did have a fly by Clouded Sulphur, my first sulphur of the year.  Besides that, I only photographed one bird and saw no other butterflies in the woods or on the trail.

Field Sparrow

Wood Anemone

Disappointed with the lack of butterflies, I decided to try Arlington's Great Meadows and see if I could find my first elfin there.  I had gone to an MBC field trip there several years ago, and we struck out.  Then, I returned on my own one or two times and struck out on my own too.  This time I did find one and I think it's a Henry's Elfin.  I saw more Spring Azures here, too, but not in the numbers I had in Westboro.  There were also Palm and Yellow-Rumped Warblers here.

Henry's Elfin