Today it was in the 70s (!), so after voting (!) we headed over to our Fen HQ.  Many species of frogs were out in force, all croaking, peeping, burping, and chainsawing, all at once!  It was  frog mayhem!  I got a couple of photos, not sure of the varieties.

We stopped and talked nature shop with a nice naturalist type who had his trusty Newcomb’s Wildflower Guide (one of the best, which just happens to be on my wishlist) and a bird guide in tow.  He mentioned seeing kingfishers!  We told him about “our” beavers, and he described how they impact the habitat for better and for worse.  Some of the huge old trees died and eventually fall, because of the rising wetland water level caused by beaver dams.  But that also provides more habitats for other species.

A few early spring natives were up, including the ubiquitous skunk cabbage, some herbaceous wetland wildflower plants that are getting ready to bloom, and pussy willows.  It’s that time of year I love, when everything is on the verge of exploding into life and color.