A quick morning walk around Jacobsburg State Park this morning to check out what was blooming and spot some butterflies. At the start of the trail which is just off the side of a busy road, I immediately saw a fluttering of tiny wings. This, I’m pretty sure was the Summer Azure butterfly. I could, of course, be totally wrong here, as there’s also a Spring Azure which looks almost identical. (At least to me as a novice citizen scientist and long-time butterfly enthusiast.) I crouched in the bushes along side of the road to get my photos as cars drove by either not noticing me at all or if they did, they probably thought I was just some crazy person. But I managed to get some pretty decent shots of the tiny little beauty at the very beginning of my walk. As I continued along the trail, I saw quite an abundance of wildflowers in bloom including: dames rocket, solomon’s plume, wild rose, buttercups, golden alexander, fleabane and forget-me-nots just to name a few (Thanks iNaturalist!). Along my route I spotted some interesting mushrooms which I later ID’d as Petticoat Mottlegill. Quite a dainty little name for a mushroom that is noted to mostly grow on poop. I guess this would make sense since I was on a horse trail. It was a lovely morning and I enjoyed the walk and fresh air to start my day.

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