Vernal: A Spring Photo Project (Day One through Day Ten)

Last summer I decided to do a photography project that took the entire season to complete.  Beginning on the Summer Equinox, I photographed something every day through the Fall Solstice.  In all I recorded over 10,000 photographs, but only ninety-four of them counted - one for each day of summer.  It's a new season and here is my next photography project.  Vernal means "of, relating to, or occurring in the spring". 


Day 1 (20 March 2019) - Skunk Cabbage

This image of Skunk Cabbage (Symplocarpus foetidus) was photographed in a cedar swamp at Mission Creek Woodland Park in Mt. Pleasant.  Skunk Cabbage is my favorite wildflower.  It's the first flower to bloom each spring, often flowering while there is still ice and snow on the ground.  This species generates enough metabolic heat that it will sometimes melt its way through the ice. 

Day 2 (21 March 2019) - Woodland Mallard

The combination of spring rains and melting snow and ice caused the Chippewa River to overflow its banks in Mid-March.  A week later parts of the floodplain remained under water, especially at Chipp-A-Waters Park in Mt. Pleasant.  This Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos) drake would not normally be found in the woods, but was taking advantage of the flood to forage in an old river channel.


Day 3 (22 March 2019) - Maple Buds

This image of swollen buds on a Silver Maple (Acer saccharinum) was taken from my front yard in Alma.  Silver and Red Maples are among the first local tree species to bud each spring.  I chose this image for the simplicity of the limbs and buds silhouetted against the blue sky.


Day 4 (23 March 2019) -  Awake

On March 23rd I led a hike at the Chippewa Watershed Conservancy's Sylvan Solace Preserve.  The goal of the hike was to search for early signs of spring.  Other than a group photograph I didn't ake any images during the hike, but I did take several pictures of an active mound ant (Formica sp.) nest before the hike began.  There are a number of these mounds at Sylvan Solace Preserve, but only those in direct sunlight had warmed enough for the ants to be active.

Day 5 (24 March 2019) - Willow Catkins

This image of willow catkins (flowers) was taken at Mill Pond Park in Mt. Pleasant.  I went to the park with the goal of photographing Red-winged Blackbirds in the large cattail marsh.  I never did get a blackbird image that I was happy with, but did photograph several Black-capped Chickadees as they foraged among the cattails.  But the image that said "SPRING!" was this one.  I like how everything in this image is fuzzy - the catkins, the budscales, the branch itself, and the cattail seeds that have affixed themselves to the willow.


Day 6 (25 March 2019) - Floodplain Geese

March 25th found me back at Chipp-A-Waters Park.  This pair of Canada Geese (Branta canadensis) was photographed along the edge of the oxbow pond located near the back of the park.  An oxbow is a section of river meander that has been cut off from the main flow of the river as it has changed course over time.  This oxbow holds water year round, but is only connected to the main river a few weeks each year as the river tops its current banks.  This image has been cropped to a widescreen (16:9) format to remove some of the clutter at the top and bottom.


Day 7 (26 March 2019) - Deep in Thought

This picture of  a Red-winged Blackbird was taken in the cattail marsh at Mill Pond Park.  I removed the left 1/3 of this picture to crop to a square - this helps emphasize space on the right of the picture, giving more "space" for the bird to gaze into.   The result is that bird appears to be thinking intently or waiting for something to appear.  The blurring in the picture is due to shooting through cattails. 

Day 8 (27 March 2019) - Woodland Robin

For many people the first sign of spring is the appearance of the first American Robin (Turdus migratorius).  While some robins remain in mid-Michigan throughout the year, the numbers do increase when spring nears.  This photo was taken at Forest Hill Nature Area.

Day 9 (28 March 2019) - Western Chorus Frog

This picture was taken in a shrub swamp/season wetland near the Ziibiwing Center of Anishinabe Culture and Lifeways.  I stopped at the Ziibiwing Center in hopes that that there may be bluebirds checking out the nest boxes.  Instead I rolled down my windows to the sound of Western Chorus Frogs (Pseudacris triseriata).   Fortunately I had my neoprene boots in the back of my truck.  I could hear dozens of frogs calling as I approached the wetland.  In typical frog fashion, they all went silent as soon as they say me.  After about ten minutes of standing silently, several nearby frogs started calling again.  They are difficult to spot - the one in the picture is about as big as my thumb from the tip to the first knuckle.  I hope that as the weather warms back up this week I will be able to return and get a few more pictures.  I need to remember to take my binoculars this time - maybe they will make it easier to spot the frogs!

Day 10 (29 March 2019) - Sunburst

The final image was taken in the Canopy Walk at the Whiting Forest in Midland, MI.   We went to Midland to visit the Butterflies in Bloom exhibit at Dow Gardens.  Unbeknownst to us, you have to reserve a time slot to enter the exhibit - this is a new policy this year!  We didn't want to wait two hours to get in so we decided to check out the Canopy Walk instead.  This is a new feature of Whiting Forest (which is part of Dow Gardens), completed in 2018.  During peak times, you also need to reserve a time to go on the canopy walk but we were able to walk right up. 

Native Species Profile - American Robin

American Robin - note brown head and wings, orange chest, and white lower belly

One of the quintessential birds of North America is the American Robin (Turdus migratorius).  This species can be found from the Arctic Ocean to the Gulf of Mexico, from the Atlantic to the Pacific and everywhere in between.  This bird is home in a wide range of habitats from tundra to forest, from urban and suburban areas to farm fields, from coastal plains to mountains.  It is reasonable to think that you could find an American Robin in every US state except Hawaii, in every Canadian province and territory, and in the winter throughout much of Mexico.  The American Robin is the official state bird of Connecticut, Michigan, and Wisconsin.  

The American Robin is named after an unrelated European species.

The American Robin is so common that many field guides use it as a reference size - other birds are often listed as "robin sized".  A large songbird in the Thrush Family, American Robins measure approximately 10 inches long and have a wingspan of 14 -17 inches.  Robins are easily identified by their distinctive coloration.  Robins have grey-brown heads, backs, wings, and tails.  Males often have a darker head than females.  Both sexes have a white ring around their eyes, a streaked throat, and yellow beak.  Their chest and belly are orange or reddish-orange.  Their lower belly and the base of the tail are white.  Young birds often have a streaked or spotted chest and belly.

Overwintering American Robins feed on fruit and berries.

American Robins are migratory.  The arrival of American Robins is often interpreted as a sign of spring.  However, this is only part of the story.  Robins from Alaska, Canada, and the northern United States do tend to migrate south for the winter, but a certain percentage of Robins will choose to remain in northern states throughout the winter months.  Robins are able to do this because of their omnivorous diet.  During the warmer months of the year, their diet consists of large numbers of insects, worms, snails, and other invertebrates supplemented by berries and other fruit.  They are opportunistic feeders; I have personally watched Robins consume large numbers of newly metamorphosed American Toads.  Robins that overwinter in northern states switch to a diet composed almost entirely of fruit - especially important are berries that are high in protein such as those of Red-Osier, Silky, and Grey Dogwood.

Three to five eggs is a typical brood size

American Robins typically reproduce in the spring.  Nesta are made in trees and shrubs or on buildings;  Robins will use nesting shelves placed under the eaves of houses.  Robin nests are tightly formed cups made of small twigs, grass, roots, and occasionally man-made materials such as paper.  The nests are plastered together with mud and lined with fine grasses and moss.  Females normally lay three to five sky-blue or blue-green eggs.  The eggs take approximately two weeks to hatch and the young remain in the nest for another two weeks.  American Robins will sometimes raise as many as three broods in a single year.

A young Robin peaks over the edge of a nest

Basic Information

American Robin

Turdus migratorius

Size: 10" long

         14-17" wingspan

Habitat: fields, lawns, parks, open areas, woodlands,

Eats: insects, worms, snails, other invertebrates, berries, other fruit

Nest: in trees and shrubs, on building and other structures; a cup made of twigs, grass, moss, roots, and mud; 6-8" across and 3-6" high