The female Belted Kingfisher has once again made herself scarce, presumably sitting on eggs. I briefly saw the male on Friday, 23 April.

Black Locust.

Black Locust is in bloom as is Old Man’s Beard (not the guy on the left, but the tree, Fringetree). The former can be seen on the opposite side of the water from the Wetlands Overlook and from Flying Birds (bird feeders).

A stand of Black Locust can be seen beyond the bird feeders and young pines in Catch the Wind.

Fringetree grows along the path as you leave Catch the Wind heading towards the Lemur House and across from the Red Wolf Exhibit.

Fringetree is an understory shrub or small tree in our area.

Also called Old Man's Beard, this small tree is currently showing its fringe-like flowers.

Red Clover and Buttercup are in bloom and while some of the flowers are open, most of the daisies in Catch the Wind are still waiting for that to happen. In just a few days Catch the Wind will be white with daisies (I know it’s tempting to pick the flowers, but please leave them for all to appreciate).

Red Clover is a favorite of many butterflies.

Buttercup with it's shiny petals.

Daisies are about to burst open throughout Catch the Wind.

Lotus peaks in June. It’ll be well into May before this watery plant sets forth its first flowers.

The Lotus is obvious but not yet in flower in the Wetlands.

Mahonia is showing the fruits of its winter blooms.

Mahonia is showing berries where, over the fall and winter, there were spikes of yellow flowers.

This is just the beginning, so come on out to see for yourself what birds are singing and what’s blooming in Catch the Wind and Explore the Wild. I’ll be there, for sure.

Great-crested Flycatchers have been very vocal lately. I most often hear them between the Lemur House and Catch the Wind. I saw a family of House Wrens out for a forage in the low shrubs along the path in that same area. I hadn’t seen or heard a House Wren in over a month. Juvenal plumaged Eastern Bluebirds and Catbirds have also been seen. This is a good time to sit by the Bird Feeders to see what fledglings show up; many parents bring their young to this “free” food source at this time of year.

Ruby-throated Hummingbird activity has picked up. Young hummers that were previously still in the nest have now fledged and are taking advantage of the several hummingbird feeders at the Bird Feeder Exhibit. The vast majority of hummers at the feeders will be young male and female hummers, all without the ruby throat of the adult males. Adult females will probably look a bit ragged this time of year due to molt, and of course, the adult males will have iridescent, red feathers on their chins and throats.