F LORA & FAUNA
BUTTERFLY WEED
Asclepias tuberosa A perennial milkweed with narrow leaves , showy orange flower heads , and a long bloom time , butterfly weed is drought tolerant and easy to grow in full sun . This is a larval host plant for monarch butterflies and critical to their survival . The nectar it produces is also a valuable food source for bees , hummingbirds , and butterflies in general .
WILD WHITE INDIGO
Baptisia alba The easy-to-spot white flowers of wild white indigo provide an early spring show and a source of nutrition for bees before other blooms are available . This plant is attractive to butterflies and hummingbirds , and many species of caterpillars eat the leaves . It ’ s a tough and durable native plant that grows and flowers well in dappled shade . The color and texture of leaves are a beautiful year-round addition to any garden .
PHOTOGRAPH BY ADAM WOLF
OSPREY
Pandion haliaetus These long-legged birds with spiny talons and dense , oily plumage are uniquely adapted for fishing ; their diet consists almost entirely of fish , which they can spot from an altitude of one hundred feet . Generally monogamous , pairs of osprey return each March to raise their young in nests that are readily visible in our area . By November they have headed south for the winter ; data suggests they may travel 160,000 miles over a twenty-year lifetime .
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