Redbud Tree

The Redbuds (Cercis Canadensis) were flowering this past week. My camera doesn't do justice to the vivid pinks of these flowers so I tried adjusting the colours in the above picture. I'm afraid it is still a poor imitation of real life. The Redbuds don't flower on the north side of the berm but there are a couple on the south side that do have a few flowers. It is nothing like the show these trees put on further south. This is north of the proper native limit of these trees, which, in Ontario, were only found growing wild along the shores of Lake Erie.

In Bloom:
Redbud
Crabapple
Trillium
Dandelion
Common Speedwell
Garlic Mustard
Creeping Charlie
Ajuga
Sandcherry
Forget-me-not
Solomon's Seal
Yellow Rocket
Lilac
Honeysuckle

Critters in the litter

I was uncovering a few baby plants the other day and decided to see how my camera did taking close-ups of insects. Here is a closeup of a small millipede and an ant just hanging out under the old leaves. The camera doesn't do quite a good enough job to identify the little guys but here is my best attempt. (You can see the image in greater detail by clicking on it)

The ant looks like a European fire ant (Myrmica rubra). This is a surprising result as I haven't heard much about european fire ants in Ottawa and as their name implies they are an invasive species, who have a reputation for being aggressive and having a powerful sting. There are native Myrmica species that it could be although they are not considered common in disturbed environments such as this naturalization area. I haven't been stung and haven't encountered any aggressive ants so if another candidate fit the image I would choose that based on lack of identifying behaviour.

The structural details that makes me think it is a fire ant are the following: the two lobed petiole (waiste) which is common to the myrmicinae, the two prominent spikes on the propodeum, the grooved rugged aspect of the head and alitrunk (thorax), the smooth and hairy gaster (abdomen), the dark red color, the large clypeus. An alternative ID is that this is a particularly red pavement ant (Tetramorium species-e). This is another introduced species that is you common black ant on your sidewalk. It also has the same basic body format although the large clypeus is missing as well as the prominent spikes. Another possibility is that it is one of the Spine-waisted Ants (Aphaenogaster)

The millipede is probably also another invasive Cylindroiulus caeruleocinctus It is one of the most common millipedes in Ontario There is a similar looking native species in the parajulidae family but the photograph is not good enough to conclusively tell them apart. The non-native is supposed to have longitudinal striations but the resolution can't quite make them out.

It's incredible the number of invasive plants and animals in this roadside environment. It feels like most of the common things you see are all invasives.

In Bloom:
Dandelion (first of season April 7)
Scilla (escapee)

Thin legged wolf spiders

Here is a closeup of one of the common small brown spiders scurrying over the grass. I believe it is a type of wolf spider of the genus pardosa, pardosa moesta being the most likely in the bugguide.net. These little guys, are about 6mm long and according to the info are spiders who do not spin nets. Instead they hunt for food through the long grass. Female wolf spiders carry their egg sack as they hunt and when the eggs hatch they let their offspring ride the back of their abdomen until they are old enough to fend for themselves(See Spiders of Ontario).

One mystery is where all these small spiders spend the winter that they are so ready at the first warm day in spring to go out hunting.

A snowy evening

I went for a walk to the trees this evening to enjoy the fresh powdery snow that has fallen over the past few days. There is now about a foot of snow on the ground, enough to make breaking trail a bit of an effort.

The above picture of the eastern side of the berm was taken 40 minutes after sunset. Notice that the reflected city lights make the northern sky relatively quite bright. I really appreciate the advanced low light mode of my new camera in these conditions. It can capture the peaceful feeling of a snowy winter's evening which under normal camera settings looks quite gloomy.