Get Outside in April

Blooms, Butterflies, and Birds

Viewing Violets

Did you know Missouri has 17 species of violets? And April is their month! It’s a great time to get outside and see how many you can find. Here’s a hint for identifying the different species: Look at their leaves and not just their flowers. To make your violet viewing easier, MDC’s online Field Guide has a page dedicated just to violets (short.mdc.mo.gov/owW). So, grab a phone or a camera, snap a picture of what you see on your walk, and then come home and use the guide for a positive ID.

A Bevy of Butterflies

A sure sign of spring is the return of delicate-winged butterflies as they flitter about from flower to flower. Missouri is home to a wide variety of butterflies. Here are a few to look for:

• Falcate orangetips fly low to the ground for only a few weeks in April and May. They are one of our earliest butterflies to emerge.
• Henry’s elfin and spring azure butterflies are especially fond of wild plum blossoms, and their emergence is timed to coincide with the springtime blooming period of wild plum.
• Pine elfin butterflies are especially fond of visiting pussytoes’ flowers for nectar, so their emergence is timed to coincide with the springtime flowering of this native wildflower. Since their larval food plant is our native shortleaf pine, you will find adult pine elfins fluttering around in areas that have both pine trees and blooming pussytoes.

Busy Birds

Many birds are busy singing, mating, and building nests this time of year. It’s a great time to get out and observe this activity. Here’s a few to get you started:

• Eastern phoebes build mud and plant nests under eaves of homes. Listen for their hoarse, insistent calls — FEE-bee! FEE-bee!
• Cliff swallows’ clusters of juglike mud nests are attached to overpasses, bridges, culverts, barns, and cliffs. In spring, people sometimes see these birds gathered around rural mud puddles, where they roll little bits of mud into a ball and fly off, carrying it in their mouth to the nearby nest they are constructing. Their sounds include harsh chattering and softer churr and heew calls.
• Northern cardinals build nests with stems, twigs, bark, grass, and paper, lined with fine grass and hair. Both males and females sing in clear, up- or down-slurred whistles. The different songs have been described as what cheer, what cheer, what cheer, wheet, wheet, wheet, and purdy-purdy-purdy-purdy. Their call is a sharp chip.

Wildin’ Out for Wildflowers

If your interest in flowers goes well beyond our native violets, Missouri’s outdoors has you covered. April is also an excellent month for viewing and learning about all kinds of native wildflowers. These flowers not only beautify the landscape, but they are an important food source for pollinators, birds, and insects. And the best part is they can be found just about anywhere, from roadsides and stream banks to prairies and in forested areas. MDC’s online Field Guide has a page dedicated to native wildflowers to help you identify your blooms (short.mdc.mo.gov/4fb) guide for a positive ID.

Simple Outdoor Moments

Go Fishing

Spending time in nature is never wasted.

FIND A PLACE TO GO.

mdc.mo.gov/places-go

Natural Events to See This Month

Here’s what’s going on in the natural world.

• Eastern leatherwood blooms.
• Female crayfish carry eggs under their abdomen.
• White and black crappie spawn.
• Northern spiny softshells breed.
• Black bears are active again.