Northern Cardinal

Northern Cardinal

Cardinalis cardinalis

Male

Shining in all his glory.

March 17th, 2024

Jefferson County, Missouri, USA

Olivia R. Myers

@oliviarosaline

Some kind of bolete mushroom

Boletales

This bolete featured unusually large, bright yellow pores.

There are over 150 described bolete species in the Midwestern United States alone, so sometimes it's a challenge to narrow them down to an exact species ID. It's not an ash tree bolete. I found this one while doing field research in an old growth forest near the Meramec River near swamp white oak, pin oak, cottonwood, silver maple, green ash, persimmon, and hackberry trees. I'm not sure which tree it was associated with.

Aug. 18th, 2023

Arnold, Jefferson County, Missouri, USA

Olivia R. Myers

@oliviarosaline

Eastern Redbud Tree

Cercis canadensis

This small tree in the legume family showcases lovely pink blooms in spring and is native to much of eastern North America. They grow in a variety of habitats, but prefer well-drained slopes in woods without many other plants to compete with. Its flowers are pollinated by carpenter bees and other bees with long tongues, and the leaves provide food for several caterpillar and moth species. The flowers on this tree are also edible and contain beneficial anthocyanins, a group of antioxidants.

March 19th, 2024

St. Charles County, Missouri, USA

Olivia R. Myers

@oliviarosaline

Sharp-lobed Hepatica

Hepatica acutiloba

These gorgeous spring ephemerals are usually found in woods with rich, somewhat alkaline, well drained-soils across eastern North America. Their flowers can vary in color and petal count. The hepatica plants pictured were growing on wooded hillsides featuring dolomite rock outcrops.

March 30th, 2023

St. Francois County, Missouri, USA

Olivia R. Myers

@oliviarosaline

Amanita sect. Vaginatae

Aug. 15th, 2023

St. Louis County, Missouri, USA

Olivia R. Myers

@oliviarosaline

Prairie Trillium

Trillium recurvatum

These unique, dark trillium plants caught our eye while we were exploring woods in Jersey County, Illinois. This species usually has splotchy green leaves. dailybotany suggested these trillium plants may have upped their anthocyanin production in response to exposure to higher levels of solar radiation. There were a few of these trilliums with dark leaves in the general area, and it may have been a sunnier than usual spot in the understory of the forest there, so this theory makes sense. I still wonder if it's possible this small population carries a genetic mutation... I have explored many woods and never seen trilliums this dark. I love listening to different theories and learning new info.

Trillium recurvatum is native to much of the Mississippi River basin in the central / eastern United States. Eastern Ohio has a few populations, which are listed as potentially threatened by their DNR. There are also a couple isolated populations in North Carolina, but it's debated whether or not they were actually planted long ago. Its closest lookalike with overlapping range is trillium sessile; however, the sepals on s. recurvatum plants curve downward as the flower opens, and the stem is usually much shorter than on t. sessile. This species can grow in habitats ranging from floodplains, to mesic forests and mesic savannas. Often, they're found growing in calcareous soils or over calcium-rich rocks such as limestone.

March 20th, 2024

Jersey County, Illinois, USA

Olivia R. Myers

@oliviarosaline