Turkey Vulture - Cathartes aura This week, it’s time to give a big shout out to the often unloved and underappreciated Turkey Vulture. With its gnarly bald head and spectral 6-foot wingspan, the Turkey Vulture may seem rather unsavory at first glance. But look past their warty eyes and straight through their gaping nostrils [...]
Culinary Fennel - Foeniculum vulgare By Alvesgaspar - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=15855012 The species of the week is Foeniculum vulgare, also commonly called fennel. This herb that may show up in your salad has a long, varied history. It was used as medicine in Egypt and ancient China. During the [...]
Purple Passion Flower - Passiflora incarnata The species of the week is the Purple Passion Flower, Passiflora incarnata. Most Passion Flowers originate from South America with large flowers that bloom during springtime. When traveling through South America, Spanish missionaries labeled this unique-looking flower as the “Flor de las cinco lagas” or the flower of [...]
Lesser Prairie Chicken - Tympanuchus pallidicinctus The Lesser Prairie Chicken is an artist; the vanishing short grass prairie is his stage. He’s definitely in the underground music scene. You would never recognize his nondescript hang out unless you were a Lesser Prairie Chicken. A slightly raised area with minimal vegetation is his ancestral dancing [...]
Ghost Pipe - Monotropa uniflora In celebration of Halloween this weekend, the Species of the Week and Floral Friday post is the Ghost Pipe - Monotropa uniflora. I was pretty excited to spot a few plants a couple weeks ago in the Ouachita National Forest while hiking around Cedar Lake (my favorite lake!). [...]
Big Brown Bat - Eptesicus fuscus The end of October is finally here, which means Halloween is right around the corner. Bat Week is a great time to recognize a Halloween-themed favorite we have right here in Oklahoma. The Oklahoma Big Brown Bat is most easily seen about 20 minutes after sunset. However, [...]
Mexican Free-Tailed Bat - Tadarida brasiliensis In honor of Bat Week beginning on October 24th, this Species of the Week will be Oklahoma's most abundant bat species – the Mexican Free-tailed Bat (Tadarida brasiliensis). This bat was named the official "Oklahoma State Flying Mammal" in 2006! Mexican Free-tailed Bats are migratory, and by [...]
Pokeweed - Phytolacca americana Although proper preparation and cooking of Pokeweeds might be necessary for human consumption, many birds feast on the ripened raw Pokeweed fruits alone. Mockingbirds, like many other bird species, are attracted to ripe purple berries. Northern Mockingbirds can be found year-round in most southern states, including Oklahoma. Likewise, Pokeweed, also [...]
Ruby-throated Hummingbirds - Archilochus colubris As the fall months become nearer and nearer, people may begin to notice they are seeing fewer of the Ruby-throated Hummingbirds at their feeders. According to the Forest Preserve District, the hummingbirds have already begun migrating to the south for the winter. However, one need not worry that they [...]
Monarch Butterfly - Danaus plexippus This time of year, Oklahomans start to see Monarch butterflies a little more frequently visiting flowers our gardens, flitting across fields, and riding the wind overhead. The Monarch showing up in mid-August are a bit early for the fall migration. Many of them are still looking for milkweed [...]
