Gone to Seed

Where have all the flowers gone?

The seeds below are nature's promise for the spring. 

This bullrush (cat's tail) - Typha latifolia - was one of six or so in a new location by the Elbow River. There is a wetland about a kilometer away, which is the spring and summer home to dozens of Red-winged Blackbirds who nest at the base of these plants. The bullrush seeds were likely carried by wind, water, or an animal to the new location. The region the seeds took root seems ideal for a new bullrush wetland. Perhaps in a few years there will be Red-winged Blackbirds nesting in this location?

Bearberry or Kinnikinnick - Arctostaphlos uva-ursi
These berries are a so named because bears favor them as a food source.

Alberta Rose - Rosa acicularis

Common Fireweed - Epilobium angustifolium
The plumes have all but dispersed from this naked fireweed stalk.











Below are photos of other seeds common along the Elbow River.

The "cone" at the end of the willow shoot in the photo above is not a seed. This is a willow gall and home to a midge. The insect lives in the center of the gall. The gall has opened in the photo to the right.

References.
Scotter GW & Flygare Halle. Wildflowers of the Canadian Rockies. Hurtig Publishers. Edmonton. 1986.