What to See This Week

The terminal buds on magnolia twigs are very large and velvety. The fuzzy bud scales protect the flower sitting dormant inside from the cold winter temperatures. Some species of magnolia found in our Magnolia Collection have bloomed as early as late February in recent years! While the extended cold temperatures may have slowed their progress this year, expect to see blooms in the collection as soon as March.

Have you ever seen a cone on a broadleaf tree? Alders, like the Japanese alder pictured here, have small, woody, cone-like fruits. Also in this photo are the male catkins, the flowering structure that produces pollen.

Sycamore trees are common in our area. Their peeling bark in shades of gray is distinctive enough to identify even from a distance. Sycamores prefer wet areas such as riverbanks and floodplains. This tree is near Dawes Lake along with several other sycamores.

Female cardinals don’t always get much attention. When compared to their male counterparts they are often described as dull with their tan plumage, but amongst the snow they almost glow and have such beautiful pops of the bright red color.

Winter is a great time to spot birds of prey. With trees bare it is easy to spot them perched in branches scoping out the area for food. Pictured here is a red-tailed hawk. Red-tailed hawks can be identified by looking at their chest for their band of dark-colored feathers reaching across their belly. This identification feature is great because it works even on juvenile red-tailed hawks who haven’t grown in their red tail feathers yet.

Brown creepers are some of the coolest birds that migrate south to The Arboretum in the non-breeding season. They have a downturned beak and are often spotted making their way up a tree trunk. They search cracks in tree bark for hiding insects. Brown creepers display very impressive camouflage and can very easily blend into tree bark. This one was spotted in the Bald-Cypress Swamp.

The Bald-Cypress Swamp is quiet this time of year, but the stage is being set for the famous mole salamander migration. The Bald-Cypress Swamp is a vernal pool; it is a shallow, temporary pool that fills up at the end of winter with the help of snowmelt and early spring rains. The pool dries up later in the summer. Luckily, the pool remains long enough to become an important breeding habitat for several amphibians in the spring.

With several days above freezing coming up, who knows how long the snow may stick around. Along with all the hard work clearing snow from trails, roads, and parking lots around The Arboretum, the grounds team was also able to bring some fun to the main parking lot!