Similar in many ways to the American Goldfinch, this little bird has a heavily streaked breast and can often be found in sizeable groups.
The brilliant blue, white, or pink of these flowers are actually 5 to 25 colored sepals rather than petals. They appear to float upon a mist of thread-like bracts above feathery, pinnately divided leaves.
This humble plant is easily overlooked, both in its quiet early blooming and later leaf unfurling. You can find it in wetlands and riverine forests in the NE quarter of the US, up into Canada.
This tree has large, opposite, palmately compound leaves and pyramids of flowers around May. It is often planted in parks and along city streets.
This worldwide wetland grass can grow up to 20 feet (6 meters) tall and can cover a quarter of a square mile or more in one stand!
Birders in the eastern half of America welcome this bird as one of their most colorful and recognizable, with its classic blue plumage, contrasted with a little red and white
One of the few species to walk face-first down tree trunks, this little bird also has a distinct black stripe through its eye.
This hairy little plant with 5 pointy petals is native to the Mediterranean region and is both edible and medicinal