What's Hot? Butterflies, Dragonflies, and Boreal Birds

Butterflies and Wildflowers Summer Solstice Quest
Wed. June 20 10am-1pm

Boreal Mountain Birding Adventure
Sat. June 23 8am-2:30 pm
No, this is not a weather post, though the weather has been unseasonably warm since early May. Gardening is so tough in the heat, but the bugs and the plants seem to love it.
Butterflies are everywhere now and the milkweed should be in full bloom by the weekend, perhaps earlier on southern-facing slopes. I've got all of my butterfly nets out of storage, have dug up my butterfly field guide, and am ready to go to my favorite butterfly haunts, one of which includes the meadows on our property.

And I've been amazed at the vast numbers and varieties of dragonflies and damselflies buzzing around. Thank goodness for them--they're chowing down on our bumper crop of mosquitoes. I've seen so many more varieties of dragonflies this year than last. Last year June was pretty much a washout--with many rainstorms, including one when eight inches fell.

Of course, birding is still in full swing. When we climbed Pillsbury Mountain and walked on the trail across the summit through the boreal forest very early Saturday morning, we heard more than a dozen Swainson's thrushes and two Bicknell's thrushes. We also heard a number of blackpoll warblers, though no boreal chickadees.

I've got to hike up Crane Mountain before dawn in the next day or so for Mountain Birdwatch--searching for Bicknell's Thrush, primarily, but also for Swainson's, blackpolls, and several other boreal birds.

Don't let the bugs keep you from enjoying late spring and early summer. From a nature point of view, this is the most exciting time of the year!