Anne Elliott's photos with the keyword: Carduus nutans

A very quick grab from the archives, as I was beginning to feel the need for some colour in my photostream! I had hoped to make a start on Day 11 of our trip to Ontario and Quebec in May 2018, but I had things to get done today. Tomorrow, I have to go and get a cortisone shot in my left hip, so will need to rest for a couple of days. I was thinking they would do both hips in the same appointment, but I was told they only do one at a tme - which does make sense. Second one will be in about 12 days' time. The shots I had in both knees a few weeks ago had no effect on the pain level, so I am really hoping that tomorrow's shot will have a better result. This is the seedhead of a Nodding Thistle, taken on 25 July 2017. These are my favourite thistles, but unfortunately, it is an invasive species. The Alberta Provincial Designation for Nodding/Musk Thistle is Prohibited Noxious. "A native of Europe, nodding thistle has a long history as a rangeland pest. The invasive nature of this aggressive plant can lead to severe degradation of native grasslands and meadows because grazing animals focus on native vegetation giving the thistles a competitive advantage." From invasiveplants.ab.ca. www.invasiveplants.ab.ca/factsheets/FS-NoddingThistle.pdf en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carduus_nutans

Definitely past its prime, but I love these Nodding Thistles at any stage, but especially when the pinky purple flower has died and the beautiful pattern of the spiny bracts can be seen more clearly. Flower head is 4-6 cm in diameter. The large Nodding or Musk Thistle is my favourite species of Thistle. Unfortunately, this quite spectacular and beautiful species is on the list of Restricted, Noxious, and Nuisance Weeds In Alberta. Its name, Nodding Thistle, comes from the fact that the flower heads commonly droop to a 90° to 120° angle from the stem when mature. It is a biennial that spreads rapidly by seed forming extremely dense stands, though when I have seen this species growing in several places within the city, there are usually only a few of them. It looks like i may have captured two insects as well - a teeny red mite on the left of the stem, and something else in the centre of the stem. I don't know if the latter is a moth or a beetle. www.botanicalgarden.ubc.ca/potd/2011/08/carduus-nutans.php en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carduus_nutans This photo was taken at the Erlton/Roxboro Natural Area, not far from downtown Calgary, yesterday afternoon, 24 July 2018. It is the richest botanical area, for its size, within the city. Over 385 species have been recorded in an area of about three hectares. (All of Fish Creek Provincial Park has only about 460 species). Eighty species, however, are aliens, now occupying 90+% of the Erlton/Roxboro Natural Area. It is such a shame to see how the area is being devastated by plants that include Baby's Breath, Creeping Thistle, Yellow Clematis and other invasive species. The weather forecast for yesterday afternoon called for a risk of a thunderstorm. The sky was dark and gloomy, but we were very lucky that the rain stayed away. Our temperature at 9:00 this morning, 25 July 2018, is only 12C, which feels really good. This afternoon, it is supposed to get up to 23C.

The large Nodding or Musk Thistle is my favourite species of Thistle. Unfortunately, this quite spectacular and beautiful species is on the list of Restricted, Noxious, and Nuisance Weeds In Alberta. It is a biennial that spreads rapidly by seed forming extremely dense stands, though when I have seen this species growing in several places within the city, there are usually only a few of them. Yesterday, though, I saw how, if left, these Thistles can spread. I finally got out on a botany walk yesterday afternoon, 25 July 2017. The smoke from the British Columbia and Alberta wildfires has cleared, it was a lovely sunny day, and at last the destination was a place to which I could drive. Also, I knew that this would not be a very long walk and it was all on the level. I was hoping that there would at least be a few of these thistles growing. Most of the flowers had died, but I still love those spine-tipped, inner and outer bracts. The flower itself is a beautiful pink/purple. I have added a previously posted photo showing a flower in its prime, in a comment box below. www.botanicalgarden.ubc.ca/potd/2011/08/carduus-nutans.php en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carduus_nutans This photo was taken at the Erlton/Roxboro Natural Area, not far from downtown Calgary. It is the richest botanical area, for its size, within the city. Over 385 species have been recorded in an area of about three hectares. (All of Fish Creek Provincial Park has only about 460 species). Eighty species, however, are aliens, now occupying 90+% of the area. It is such a shame to see how the area is being devastated by plants that include Baby's Breath, Creeping Thistle, Yellow Clematis and other invasive species.

Almost called this "Oh what a tangled web we weave" (quote by Sir Walter Scott). Cat's cradle is a string game you may remember from childhood. It requires two people to pass the string back and forth to make various string shapes. Cat's Cradle instructions can be found at the following two links: youtu.be/CAZhx5PKgl4 www.wikihow.com/Play-The-Cat's-Cradle-Game After a volunteer shift on 23 July 2014, I wasn't too far away from the Erlton/Roxboro Natural Area, where I was finally going to go on a botany walk. Having been to this location several times before, I knew it was a short, easy, flat trail, and that I could go as far as I wanted and then turn back early, which is what I did. I had missed pretty well all the botany and birding walks the previous few months, which was quite depressing. The main thing I wanted to see were these Nodding / Musk Thistles, as they are my favourite species of Thistle. They are called a "weed", but I love to see them. The sun was unfortunately in the wrong direction, so I was only able to get a couple of OK shots, but better than nothing. This flower head, past its prime, had quite a fancy tangle of spider web over it. Its name, Nodding Thistle, comes from the fact that the flower heads commonly droop to a 90° to 120° angle from the stem when mature. Here in Alberta, this species is a noxious weed - but a beautiful one. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carduus_nutans With a couple of hours to "kill", I had spent them at the Reader Rock Garden, which was just a few minutes' drive away from the evening botany walk location.

The large Nodding or Musk Thistle is my favourite species of Thistle. When I saw this one, it was the only flower that was not well past its prime. Unfortunately, this quite spectacular and beautiful species is on the list of Restricted, Noxious, and Nuisance Weeds In Alberta. It is a biennial that spreads rapidly by seed forming extremely dense stands, though when I have seen this species growing in several places within the city, there are usually only a few of them. However, if they are left .... en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carduus_nutans This photo was taken on 8 October 2015. Friend Sandy had asked if I wanted to go with her to join friends down at the Irrigation Canal in the city, for a birding walk. This was a long walk - three and a half hours - along both sides of the canal. It was a beautiful fall day with a lovely blue sky. Also, enough trees were still dressed in gold to give some colourful reflections in parts f the canal. The water level was very low, creating just a narrow strip of water with a wide mud bank on either side, that had attracted a number of Greater Yellowlegs and a single American Golden-plover juvenile. The latter was a new bird for me and, though I could only get a very distant, poor shot, I did post it on Flickr. To me, a juvenile American Golden Plover looks so similar to a juvenile Black-bellied Plover (from photos I've seen), but the ID for the bird we saw was given as American Golden-plover. Much of the time, there were pale, dead grasses in the background and this bird was almost invisible. Great camouflage. We also saw several Hooded Mergansers there. I don't often see Hooded Mergansers and, when I do see one, it's always a long way away. They are quite spectacular ducks, especially the males, who have a crest at the back of their head and can raise this black and white "hood" or lower it. The list of the 31 bird species seen (not all by me) from our leaders, Dan and David: 1. Canada Goose - 60+ 2. Mallard - 150+ 3. Northern Shoveler - 1 4. Green-winged Teal - 2 5. Hooded Merganser - 3 males 6. Common Merganser - 20+ 7. Double-crested Cormorant - 4 8. Bald Eagle - 1, immature 9. Red-tailed Hawk - 1 (Harlan’s subspecies) 10. Rough-legged Hawk - 5 (4 dark phase, 1 light phase) 11. AMERICAN GOLDEN-PLOVER 12. Killdeer - 1 13. Greater Yellowlegs - 38+ 14. Long-billed Dowitcher - 11 15. Ring-billed Gull - 400+ 16. Herring Gull - 2 17. Rock Pigeon - 32+ 18. Downy Woodpecker - 1 19. Hairy Woodpecker - 2 20. Northern Flicker - 2 21. Merlin - 2 22. Black-billed Magpie - 15+ 23. American Crow - 6 24. Common Raven - 2 25. Black-capped Chickadee - 7 26. White-breasted Nuthatch - 1 27. American Robin - 8 28. European Starling - 18+ 29. Yellow-rumped Warbler - 2 30. American Tree Sparrow - 1 31. House Finch - 1

Overslept by an hour and a half, so gotta post and run and see if there is any way to find the group of people I'm supposed to meet up with this morning! Later: the large Nodding or Musk Thistle is my favourite species of Thistle. When I saw this one, it was obviously well past its prime. Unfortunately, this quite spectacular and beautiful species is on the list of Restricted, Noxious, and Nuisance Weeds In Alberta. It is a biennial that spreads rapidly by seed forming extremely dense stands, though when I have seen this species growing in several places within the city, there are usually only a few of them. However, if they are left .... This photo was taken on 8 October 2015. Friend Sandy had asked if I wanted to go with her to join friends down at the Irrigation Canal in the city, for a birding walk. This was a long walk - three and a half hours - along both sides of the canal. It was a beautiful fall day with a lovely blue sky. Also, enough trees were still dressed in gold to give some colourful reflections in parts f the canal. The water level was very low, creating just a narrow strip of water with a wide mud bank on either side, that had attracted a number of Greater Yellowlegs and a single American Golden-plover juvenile. The latter was a new bird for me and, though I could only get a very distant, poor shot, I did post it on Flickr. To me, a juvenile American Golden Plover looks so similar to a juvenile Black-bellied Plover (from photos I've seen), but the ID for the bird we saw was given as American Golden-plover. Much of the time, there were pale, dead grasses in the background and this bird was almost invisible. Great camouflage. We also saw several Hooded Mergansers there. I don't often see Hooded Mergansers and, when I do see one, it's always a long way away. They are quite spectacular ducks, especially the males, who have a crest at the back of their head and can raise this black and white "hood" or lower it. The list of the 31 bird species seen (not all by me) from our leaders, Dan and David: 1. Canada Goose - 60+ 2. Mallard - 150+ 3. Northern Shoveler - 1 4. Green-winged Teal - 2 5. Hooded Merganser - 3 males 6. Common Merganser - 20+ 7. Double-crested Cormorant - 4 8. Bald Eagle - 1, immature 9. Red-tailed Hawk - 1 (Harlan’s subspecies) 10. Rough-legged Hawk - 5 (4 dark phase, 1 light phase) 11. AMERICAN GOLDEN-PLOVER 12. Killdeer - 1 13. Greater Yellowlegs - 38+ 14. Long-billed Dowitcher - 11 15. Ring-billed Gull - 400+ 16. Herring Gull - 2 17. Rock Pigeon - 32+ 18. Downy Woodpecker - 1 19. Hairy Woodpecker - 2 20. Northern Flicker - 2 21. Merlin - 2 22. Black-billed Magpie - 15+ 23. American Crow - 6 24. Common Raven - 2 25. Black-capped Chickadee - 7 26. White-breasted Nuthatch - 1 27. American Robin - 8 28. European Starling - 18+ 29. Yellow-rumped Warbler - 2 30. American Tree Sparrow - 1 31. House Finch - 1

The large Nodding or Musk Thistle is my favourite species of Thistle. When I saw this one, it was obviously well past its prime. Unfortunately, this quite spectacular and beautiful species is on the list of Restricted, Noxious, and Nuisance Weeds In Alberta. It is a biennial that spreads rapidly by seed forming extremely dense stands, though when I have seen this species growing in several places within the city, there are usually only a few of them. However, if they are left .... en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carduus_nutans This photo was taken on 8 October 2015. Friend Sandy had asked if I wanted to go with her to join friends down at the Irrigation Canal in the city, for a birding walk. This was a long walk - three and a half hours - along both sides of the canal. It was a beautiful fall day with a lovely blue sky. Also, enough trees were still dressed in gold to give some colourful reflections in parts f the canal. The water level was very low, creating just a narrow strip of water with a wide mud bank on either side, that had attracted a number of Greater Yellowlegs and a single American Golden-plover juvenile. The latter was a new bird for me and, though I could only get a very distant, poor shot, I did post it on Flickr. To me, a juvenile American Golden Plover looks so similar to a juvenile Black-bellied Plover (from photos I've seen), but the ID for the bird we saw was given as American Golden-plover. Much of the time, there were pale, dead grasses in the background and this bird was almost invisible. Great camouflage. We also saw several Hooded Mergansers there. I don't often see Hooded Mergansers and, when I do see one, it's always a long way away. They are quite spectacular ducks, especially the males, who have a crest at the back of their head and can raise this black and white "hood" or lower it. The list of the 31 bird species seen (not all by me) from our leaders, Dan and David: 1. Canada Goose - 60+ 2. Mallard - 150+ 3. Northern Shoveler - 1 4. Green-winged Teal - 2 5. Hooded Merganser - 3 males 6. Common Merganser - 20+ 7. Double-crested Cormorant - 4 8. Bald Eagle - 1, immature 9. Red-tailed Hawk - 1 (Harlan’s subspecies) 10. Rough-legged Hawk - 5 (4 dark phase, 1 light phase) 11. AMERICAN GOLDEN-PLOVER 12. Killdeer - 1 13. Greater Yellowlegs - 38+ 14. Long-billed Dowitcher - 11 15. Ring-billed Gull - 400+ 16. Herring Gull - 2 17. Rock Pigeon - 32+ 18. Downy Woodpecker - 1 19. Hairy Woodpecker - 2 20. Northern Flicker - 2 21. Merlin - 2 22. Black-billed Magpie - 15+ 23. American Crow - 6 24. Common Raven - 2 25. Black-capped Chickadee - 7 26. White-breasted Nuthatch - 1 27. American Robin - 8 28. European Starling - 18+ 29. Yellow-rumped Warbler - 2 30. American Tree Sparrow - 1 31. House Finch - 1

Perhaps I should whisper that this is my favourite Thistle, seeing as it is a weed : ) It is called Nodding Thistle, also Musk Thistle, and was introduced from Europe and North Africa. A member of the Aster family, it grows to 60-250 cm tall, with flower heads that are 1.5-8 cm across. This particular plant was growing on 23rd July 2014 at the Erlton/Roxboro Natural Area. It was past its prime, as the purple disc florets have died, but I am always fascinated with the spine-tipped, inner and outer bracts. This time that I went, the sun was in the wrong position to try and photograph the plants from the other side. After a volunteer shift on that day, 23 July 2014, I wasn't too far away from the Erlton/Roxboro Natural Area, where I was finally going to go on a botany walk. Having been to this location several times before, I knew it was a short, easy, flat trail, and that I could go as far as I wanted and then turn back early, which is what I did. I've missed pretty well all the botany and birding walks the last few months, which is quite depressing. The main thing I wanted to see were these Nodding / Musk Thistles. With a couple of hours to "kill" after my volunteer shift, I spent them at the Reader Rock Garden, which was just a few minutes' drive away from the evening botany walk at the Erlton/Roxboro Natural Area.

After a volunteer shift on 23 July 2014, I wasn't too far away from the Erlton/Roxboro Natural Area, where I was finally going to go on a botany walk. Having been to this location several times before, I knew it was a short, easy, flat trail, and that I could go as far as I wanted and then turn back early, which is what I did. I've missed pretty well all the botany and birding walks the last few months, which is quite depressing. The main thing I wanted to see were these Nodding / Musk Thistles, as they are my favourite species of Thistle. They are called a "weed", but I love to see them. The sun was unfortunately in the wrong direction, so I was only able to get a couple of OK shots, but better than nothing. Its name, Nodding Thistle, comes from the fact that the flower heads commonly droop to a 90° to 120° angle from the stem when mature. Here in Alberta, this species is a noxious weed - but a beautiful one. With a couple of hours to "kill", I had spent them at the Reader Rock Garden, which was just a few minutes' drive away from the evening botany walk location. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carduus_nutans

The large Nodding or Musk Thistle is my favourite species of Thistle - though it is a weed, but a very beautiful one. I went with my youngest daughter to the Erlton/Roxboro Natural Area in Calgary on 26 July 2013, to photograph anything we could find that interested us, and I was so happy to see that there were some of these Thistles to show her. The Alberta Provincial Designation for Nodding/Musk Thistle is Prohibited Noxious. "A native of Europe, nodding thistle has a long history as a rangeland pest. The invasive nature of this aggressive plant can lead to severe degradation of native grasslands and meadows because grazing animals focus on native vegetation giving the thistles a competitive advantage." From invasiveplants.ab.ca. www.invasiveplants.ab.ca/factsheets/FS-NoddingThistle.pdf en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carduus_nutans

The Nodding or Musk Thistle is my favourite species of Thistle - though it is a weed, but a very beautiful one. I went with my youngest daughter to the Erlton/Roxboro Natural Area on 26 July 2013, to photograph anything we could find that interested us, and I was so happy to see that there were some of these Thistles to show her. One even had a tiny Seven-Spotted Ladybug hiding within the spiky bracts. Two introduced species. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carduus_nutans

Perhaps I should whisper that this is my favourite Thistle, seeing as it is a weed : ) It is called Musk Thistle, also Nodding Thistle, and was introduced from Europe and North Africa. A member of the Aster family, it grows to 60-250 cm tall, with flower heads that are 1.5-8 cm across. This particular plant was growing on 23rd July 2008 at the Erlton/Roxborough Natural Area. It was past its prime, as the purple disc florets have died, but I am always fascinated with the spine-tipped, inner and outer bracts. I am always given the chance to photograph them before they are pulled, LOL. Finally bought two new external drives this afternoon - wish I could wave a magic wand and discover the last 15 months' worth of images magically transferred to them, LOL! I've taken a ton of photos on most of the days during that time ... sigh! I transfer them one folder at a time. Did a three and a half hour walk by the Glenmore Reservoir, south side, this morning. I've only done one day of walking in about the last 10 days, and my poor old body is painfully paying the price : (. Highlights were a Long-tailed Duck and a Pacific Loon on the Reservoir, plus various kinds of Grebe and White-winged Scoters. Several Trumpeter Swans flew overhead in formation, too - lovely to see them at this time of the year. Temperature was around 4C, and it was overcast most of the time, but it was a gorgeous morning for a walk.

I was so happy to find half a dozen of these beautiful Musk Thistle/Nodding Thistle flowers at the Erlton/Roxborough Natural Area yesterday morning. I love to photograph them - they are so fascinating. However, unfortunately, they ARE invasive weeds and so have to be pulled. Wish I could have uploaded a couple of photos taken today, when several of us went hiking and botanizing all day at Bow Valley Provincial Park, west of Calgary, right at the very start of the mountains. I am totally dead beat, though, especially as, on the way home, I had to take my car in to be looked at after the Malfunction light came on yesterday afternoon! The car keeps jerking, too, every time I pull up and stop at traffic lights. Presumably, the two are connected? Hoping it will be ready tomorrow, as I have another day hike on Saturday, this time a far more strenuous hike. I'm just hoping I can manage it, especially as the forecast is for 31C (much TOO hot for me!) - would rather not have to stop and wait till the others are on the return journey, especially as one of my friends who is going had a huge Grizzly Bear pass nearby the last time he went to that area. And HE had bear spray (didn't need to use it, though).

The large Nodding or Musk Thistle is my favourite Thistle species, so I was kind of happy to notice this one when I was down in the Grand Tetons, Wyoming, US, on 15 September 2012. Though a little past its prime, I still love the arrangement of those spiky bracts. Here in Alberta, this Thistle is an invasive "weed", but I don't know how it's classified in the US. Alberta Provincial Designation: Prohibited Noxious. www.invasiveplants.ab.ca/Downloads/FS-NoddingThistle.pdf en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carduus_nutans

This is one of my favourite wildflowers and certainly my favourite Thistle - Nodding Thistle, also known as Musk Thistle. Taken on 17 September 2010. I was surprised to see this one growing mid-September near one of the newly built stormwater ponds at Burnsmead, Fish Creek Park. Unfortunately, this quite spectacular and beautiful flower is on the list of Restricted, Noxious, and Nuisance Weeds In Alberta. It is a biennial that spreads rapidly by seed forming extremely dense stands, though when I have seen this species growing in several places within the city, there are usually only a few of them. However, if they are left ....

The Nodding/Musk Thistle (Carduus nutans) is my favourite kind of thistle, especially at the stage before the stage shown in my photo, when the pinky purple flower has died and the beautiful pattern of the spiny bracts can be seen more clearly. Flower head is 4-6 cm in diameter. Photographed at the Erlton/Roxboro Natural Area on July 27th, when I called in for a short walk after my afternoon volunteer shift. There were a lot more of these plants this year, so I guess this invasive weed really does spread! The Government is offering very good rebates to people who replace their central heating furnace for an energy efficient one, but the offer is only for a limited time. My furnace is extremely old and I think it was maybe five years ago that the furnaces in several neighbours' units developed cracks and had to be replaced. We all had to have our furnaces checked for obvious safety reasons. I was told that mine might last another couple of years - and it has been five, so I feel I'm pushing my luck. The question is - do I really want to add more stress and mess to the upcoming stress and mess of having to have my front and patio doors, all my windows, and the roof replaced??? It would be so much more expensive to replace it next year. Also, it will be a nightmare getting to the furnace and working around it, as my basement is now worse than ever, now that I have the contents of the 12 boxes from England (containing so many wonderful sentimental belongings of my parents and my brother) strewn all over the basement floor. I think I might just have to swallow my pride and ask a furnace guy to please close his eyes and not notice the mess, ha. Impossible! Couldn't fall sleep last night, thinking about this, and ended up in my basement in the early hours of the morning, moving a handful of things. Anyone got one of those magic wands I could borrow, lol??? Or maybe even Mary Poppins might be available? Sigh ....

The Nodding/Musk Thistle (Carduus nutans) is my favourite kind of thistle, especially at this stage, when the pinky purple flower has died and the beautiful pattern of the spiny bracts can be seen more clearly. Flower head is 4-6 cm in diameter. Photographed at the Erlton/Roxboro Natural Area on July 27th, when I called in for a short walk after my afternoon volunteer shift. There were a lot more of these plants this year, so I guess this invasive weed really does spread, lol. In Alberta, this plant is listed as Prohibited Noxious. www.botanicalgarden.ubc.ca/potd/2011/08/carduus-nutans.php en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carduus_nutans Came across this beautiful video of Bald Eagles flying, on YouTube. Superb footage from BBC and KPBS of American and European Eagles. Music by Abba. I did post it a couple of days ago, but after everyone had commented, so thought I'd post it again today. youtu.be/qdoSy4ROZpg Have been watching and waiting for the youngest of the two Hornby Island Eagles to fledge, but it looks like young "David" (as he has been named) is going to be waiting just a little longer - today, tomorrow? What a character this young branchling is, lol. It has been eight days since his older sibling fledged.

The large Nodding, or Musk, Thistle (Carduus nutans) is my favourite thistle. I was surprised to see this one growing mid-September near one of the newly built stormwater ponds at Burnsmead, Fish Creek Park. Unfortunately, this quite spectacular and beautiful flower is on the list of Restricted, Noxious, and Nuisance Weeds In Alberta. It is a biennial that spreads rapidly by seed forming extremely dense stands, though when I have seen this species growing in several places within the city, there are usually only a few of them. However, if they are left ....