A Tallgrass Prairie Morning

It was a beautiful morning on the tallgrass prairie this morning. The sun was just coming up as I was leaving for work. I left super early and took the long way around. Here are some of the sights that I enjoyed along the way...

Morning Sunrise Over Our Little Town

Sunshine Breaking Forth Over Tallgrass Prairie

Morning Sun and Tall Grasses

(Big Bluestem)

Roadside Wildflowers and Tall Grasses

Bur Marigold and Big Bluestem
(Bidens aristosa and Andropogon gerardii)

Bur Marigold

(a.k.a Tickseed Sunflower or Beggar's Tick)

White-tailed Doe

A Nursing Doe

It was a beautiful morning to be sure! What are late summer mornings like where you're at?

Until next time...

~Rebecca

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Most bison calves arrive at Prairie State Park by late spring, but, occasionally, one comes along much later. 

This little one arrived just a few days ago in late August.

I don't know if it's a boy or girl, yet, but it sure is a cutie!

Bison calves weigh between 30 to 70 pounds at birth and are a pumpkin-orange in color for the first few months. 

Calves are protected, not only by the mother, but by the whole herd.

My co-workers and I call baby bison "pumpkins", but I recently heard another friend describe them as "pennies on the prairie." I kind of like that, too! 

I hope your September is off to a great start!

Until next time...

~Rebecca

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Early Morning on the Tallgrass Prairie

As summer fades into fall, there's nothing quite like an early morning excursion out on the tallgrass prairie. In fact, it's a completely different world.

As warm days give way to cool nights a misty veil of morning fog hangs over the whole of the prairie landscape.

As morning sunlight spills over the tall grasses they sparkle and shine as though some overly-industrious fairy had come in the night, sprinkling the whole of the prairie with glittering diamond dust... 

...and every cobweb looks as though it has been strung, laced, and outlined with beautiful, glittering diamonds.

When visiting the tallgrass prairie early in the morning...especially at this time of year...it's easy to see just how many spiders there really are living in North America's tall grasses (an estimated 2 1/2 million individuals per acre) and their glistening gossamer webs are spectacular! 🕸

As the sun rises a little higher in the morning sky, the fog quickly fades and the dewy cobwebs begin to dry.

Soon the late-summer sun is out in full force. The temperature rises and the morning magic is over. The wildflowers, who just moments ago were taking a backseat to the sparkle and shine of diamond dust, are left standing, straight and tall, to endure another happy day on a sun-soaked tallgrass prairie landscape.

Until next time...
~Rebecca

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