Anne Elliott's photos with the keyword: explore2014May04

Photographed this Julia Heliconian / Dryas iulia butterfly in the ENMAX Conservatory at the Calgary Zoo on 25 September 2012. This brush-footed species is popular in butterfly houses as it is active throughout the day and is long-lived. Photo of the underside view is posted in comment box below. I wanted a bright, colourful image this morning, as we are back to winter once again. Just five minutes ago, I wrote that the snow seemed to have stopped, at least for the moment, and now it has started again.

As you can tell by the colour of the sky, the weather wasn't very good when I called in at a local park on 1 May 2014. Quite a cute photo, though not good quality. I had been there two days earlier and discovered that both owlets had fledged. That time, one owlet was perched on a high branch next to Mom and the other was almost at the very top of the same very tall tree. On the day I took this photo, both little ones were huddled together next to Mom. Thank goodness for lots of zoom : ) After something like 10" of snow yesterday, it was still snowing early this morning, but seems to have stopped, at least for the moment. (Yep, sure enough, it's snowing again now!). I'm really hoping that the forecast showers tonight will clear the snow off my vehicle, as I can't lift my very painful arms and shoulder high enough to do it. I don't have the choice to stay home tomorrow, as I have to go and get my Taxes done, lol. More snow tomorrow and the next day : (

If I hadn't gone looking for Prairie Crocuses on 30 April 2014 and taken this photo, I might not have believed this had really happened. You could say we are back to winter yet again. There must be around 8" of snow on my fence this morning - and it's still snowing! I decided not to go on a birding day out, east of the city, today, as I wasn't sure what any of the roads would be like. I had half expected the trip to be cancelled. Not sure I can even go out very locally, as I don't think I'll be able to lift my arms high enough to clear all the snow off my car, with my painful arms and shoulder. It's quite the winter wonderland, though. We are now into the eighth month of snow!!!! Just noticed that we have a Snowfall Warning in effect: "Snowfall late morning to early morning Sunday (tomorrow). A long period of snowfall, with total amounts of 20 to 30 cm is expected. 10 to 20 centimetres of snow has fallen since last night. An additional 10 centimetres of snow will fall today." From the Weather Network. "The prairie crocus (Anemone patens), is the first plant to bloom on the prairie each year. The true harbinger of spring, its mauve, petal-like sepals dot the still drab prairie landscape, often before the last snow of winter has melted. By blooming so early, the crocus assures itself of the complete attention of available pollinators - small bees and other insects. Its seeds can then ripen by early June and if moisture is available they will germinate right away. If the prairie is too dry the seeds will go dormant, then germinate the following spring. Tufts of much-divided leaves emerge once flowering is finished and the risk of severe frost is over, but still well before most other prairie plants. The saucer-shaped construction of many spring flowers like the crocus, is no accident. Neither is the fuzzy centre of the crocus (composed of numerous yellow stamens and a tuft of greyish pistils - that become plumed fruit), nor its highly reflective petals. It all adds up to solar heating . . . Crocus Style! The sunlight that reaches the crocus' shiny petals is reflected into the flower centre. This energy is bounced around between the stamens and pistils warming these vital reproductive parts of the flower. On a sunny day the temperature inside a crocus flower can be as much as 10 C (18 F) warmer than the temperature of the surrounding air. Not only does the dish shaped flower concentrate the sun's warmth, it tracks the sun across the sky, maximizing the length of time each day that it can stay warmer than the surrounding air." From naturenorth.com. www.naturenorth.com/spring/flora/crocus/Prairie_Crocus2.html