Today’s post features some gorgeous wildflowers I found last spring at Prairie State Park in southwest Missouri. At the time, I had not a clue as to what I had found growing along the top of one of the prairies. Fortunately, my friend Gerry Williamson (@USWildflowers on Twitter) posted a photo of these guys a couple of days ago. Thinking they looked familiar, I went back to last year’s images and quickly found my “unknown” wildflowers … the Bird’s-foot Violet (Viola pedata). Some more common names I have found for this wildflower include pansy violet, and hens and roosters. Here are a couple of images I captured last spring:
I think you will agree they are very beautiful works of Mother Nature! And why are they called Bird’s-foot Violet? The leaves of this plant (not clearly shown in these images) are deeply disected “like a bird’s foot”. And thanks, Gerry, for helping me identify these beauties! And
Photographic Equipment Used:
- Canon 7D body
- Canon EF180mm, f/3.5 macro lens
- Gitzo 1258-LVL carbon fiber tripod, with Kirk Ent. HD ballhead
- ISO 400
- Aperture f/8 and f/11
- Shutter 1/640 sec. and 1/320 sec.