April 25th. Several warbler species today, including this Palm Warbler (Dendroica palmarum)...

 

...and a Yellow-rumped "Myrtle" Warbler (Dendroica coronata).

 

I can't get enough of the Tree Swallows (Tachycineta bicolor).

 

 

 

 

 

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More Marsh Marigolds (Caltha palustris) are blooming now.

 

Lots of pollen for the early Bumblebee queens.

 

 

 

April 27th. A female Eastern Bluebird (Sialia sialis) in the marsh.

 

Invasive Garlic Mustard (Alliaria petiolata). Feel free to uproot it!

 

Purple Trillium (Trillium erectum), or "Stinking Benjamin" smells like carrion and attracts flies as pollinators.

 

 

 

A Chironomid midge rests on a petal.

 

Wood Anemone (Anemone quinquefolia). Note the broad five-parted leaves.

 

 

 

In some plants, the foliage can be dark.

 

 

 

Rue Anemone (Thalictrum thalictroides) looks very similar but note the long petioled, delicate three-lobed leaves.

 

 

 

Skunk Cabbage (Symplocarpus foetidus) is now fully leafed out.

 

Watch where you step! Poison Ivy (Toxicodendron radicans) leaves are still tiny, but heavily coated with the oil that gives us a rash.

 

Shadbush or Serviceberry (Amelanchier arborea).

 

April 30th. Dewdrops on Horsetail (Equisetum arvense).

 

Dew on spiderwebs too. This spider species seems to build a horizontal floor in its webs.

 

Spring foliage colors can rival fall but in pastel shades.