Spring Wildlife 2025

 

Deer Are So Beautiful. 

I'm so glad they let me get close enough for this.

A Pair Of Mallard Ducks

Hanging out with the frogs.

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© all rights reserved by Elise T. Marks. Please do not use this image on websites, blogs or any other media without my explicit written permission.

Jack In The Pulpit

Jack-in-the pulpit

 Jack In The Pulpit

  Jack In The Pulpit

  Jack In The Pulpit

  Jack In The Pulpit

Jack In The Pulpit

 Jack In The Pulpit

Arisaema triphyllum

(jack-in-the-pulpit, bog onion, brown dragon, Indian turnip, American wake robin, or wild turnip)

It is native to eastern North America, occurring in moist woodlands and thickets.

Also commonly called Indian turnip, it's a shade requiring species found in rich, moist, deciduous woods and floodplains and is a long lived perennial (25+ years).

Jack-in-the pulpit is pollinated by small flies and flowers from March through June depending on locale. The flower is an unusual green and maroon striped spathe surrounding a fleshy, maroon-colored spadix that bears the tiny, embedded flowers. In the fall, bright red berries appear, which have the consistency of a ripe tomato, and are an attractive food source for birds such as thrushes, rodents, etc. Each berry contains 1 to 5 seeds. 

While Jack-in-the-pulpit has both male and female plants, they can change gender from year to year, apparently in response to successful (or failed) reproduction the previous year. Males resprout from an underground corm that can last several seasons, the corm sending off shoots and producing new plants as well. Males tend to be smaller than females and have a small hole at the bottom of the spathe which allows pollinators to escape (with their pollen) more easily. Female plants lack the hole and pollinators are more likely to become trapped, better ensuring successful pollination.

Consumption of the raw plant material results in a powerful burning sensation. It can cause irritation of the mouth and digestive system, and on rare occasions the swelling of the mouth and throat may be severe enough to affect breathing. Leaves and fruits contain calcium oxalate that can irritate the skin so it is important to wear gloves when handling.

If the plant is properly dried or cooked it can be eaten as a root vegetable.

Preparations of the root were used by Native Americans as a treatment for sore eyes, to treat rheumatism, bronchitis, and snakebites, as well as to induce sterility.

Jack In The Pulpit Berries

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© ALL RIGHTS RESERVED BY ELISE T. MARKS. PLEASE DO NOT USE THIS IMAGE ON WEBSITES, BLOGS OR ANY OTHER MEDIA WITHOUT MY EXPLICIT WRITTEN PERMISSION.

Disclaimer

My blog is meant to inform and I strive to be totally accurate. It is solely up to the reader to ensure proper plant identification. Some wild plants are poisonous or can have serious adverse health effects.

Maple Sugar Houses Of Vermont

 Native Americans began the practice of Maple Sugaring long before Europeans arrived in North America. However, no one knows what tribe first discovered it. Maple sugaring is a deeply rooted farming tradition that has made Vermont the leading maple syrup producer in the United States. 

Sugaring the old fashioned way at the Russell Family Sugarhouse. 

Matt takes Jackson & Reba out to collect sap while sugaring. This Sugar House is over 150 years old. The tin on the roof of the older section on the right, was given to farmers and sugarers by the local newspaper when they were done using them for printing, many years ago.

Sugar House In Charlotte

Sugar House In Colchester

Sugar House In Grand Isle

Sugar House In Underhill

Sugar House In Fairfax

Sugar House In Huntington

Sugar House Mailbox

Sugar House In Milton

Sugar House In Stowe

Sugar House In Swanton

Sugar House In Westford

Sugar House In Westford

Sugar House In Westford

Sugar House In Westford

Sap Pails Hanging On A Maple Tree

My Favorite Sign

Seen in Palmer’s Sugarhouse

My photographs are available for purchase

You can see more of my creations at:

 

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Thanks for your visits, favs and comments. As always, appreciated very much!

© all rights reserved by Elise T. Marks. Please do not use this image on websites, blogs or any other media without my explicit written permission.

Happy International Women’s Day!

 On this International Women’s Day, I celebrate all my fellow women who refuse to be invisible. Keep shining, keep creating, and keep inspiring! Your voice matters, your work is valuable, and your dreams are worth living.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Bleeding Hearts

Alpaca Love

Bozet and Allie at Moon Acre Farm

You can see more of my creations at:

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Birds Dining

 

Chickadee In Flight

The sun came out today, so I fed the birds and did some birdwatching.

NutHatch and a Chickadee Dining Together

Robins Feasting on dried fruit.

Some Robins do migrate in winter and many remain in the same place year-round. During the winter months robins gather together into huge flocks, sometimes numbering hundreds or even thousands of birds, flying around in these flocks in search of fruit. When they find it, the whole flock will descend and strip every berry from the trees and shrubs that they find, often in a single afternoon.

Hens

Nuthatch & Finch

Titmice

Robin Eating Crab Apples

Gold Finches

Worms For Lunch

My photographs are available for purchase

You can see more of my creations at:

 

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Thanks for your visits, favs and comments. As always, appreciated very much!

© all rights reserved by Elise T. Marks. Please do not use this image on websites, blogs or any other media without my explicit written permission.

Bird Houses & Sculptures

 South Hero Bird House Forest

 South Hero Bird House Forest

Champ Hanging Out With The Birds

Champ & T Rex In The South Hero Bird House Forest. 

Located in the swamps just north of Whites Beach, near the roadside, are hundreds of brilliantly colored Bird Houses that hang from the many hardwood trees in the thick marshland. According to the owners of the birdhouses, "Well, as you can see, we’re surrounded by swamp” he said, gesturing to the swamps surrounding his house. “So there are a lot of mosquitoes here, Or at least there were before we put these up.” The bird houses are home to tree swallows, and tree swallows eat mosquitoes. “They make it so me and my wife can sit outside on the lawn in the evening and enjoy ourselves. We don’t get eaten alive.” He started this project 25 years ago, with only 20 bird houses. His wife was the one who convinced him to paint them the striking bold colors. After a year, he went to check on them and found that each one was occupied. So he built more. Now he has over 400 of them. Asked if he was planning on building more. “We’ll see” he said chuckling.

As of 2019 I hear there are now over 800 of them.

Bird House Fence

Clever Birdhouse idea. 

How to repurpose a damaged tree.

"Embrace and Belonging" 

was designed by sculptor Ai Qiu Hopen, and features two vertical steel sheets, intricately cut with images of birds, symbolizing the Sankofa bird. The Sankofa is a popular symbol in Ghana, representing a need to reflect on the past to build a successful future. This sculpture celebrating equity and inclusion stands in Dewey Park in the Old North End.

My photographs are available for purchase

You can see more of my creations at:

 

linktr.ee/elisecreations

or

https://elisecreate.wixsite.com/mysite

Thanks for your visits, favs and comments. As always, appreciated very much!
© all rights reserved by Elise T. Marks. Please do not use this image on websites, blogs or any other media without my explicit written permission.