I had a whole post almost ready to go about the massive 17″ rise in water level of Lake Michigan/Huron due to this round of storms & runoff, but after a week of weather induced brutality, I think we could all use this beautiful picture of an Eastern tiger swallowtail butterfly that Diane took last summer in the U.P.
See more in her Butterflies gallery on Flickr & have a safe weekend everyone!
Tomorrow morning our seasonal window moves from winter to spring regardless of what the weather decides to do.
I am a firm vote for “Spring stuff” aka flowers, baby animals, duckies, etc, but to prepare you for whatever lies ahead, here are some flowers just minding their own business from Bill. See more in his massive Flowers gallery on Flickr & follow Bill’s Pictures on Facebook for his latest!
A Rose for My Valentine by Joel Dinda
Longtime Michpics followers will recognize Joel’s name and may remember his enduring photo series of a Flower a Day for February. It’s now the 20th year of one of my favorite Michigan photographers dedicating an entire month to helping folks feel better about a hard time of year. Happy Valentine’s Day to all of you!
In honor of two decades of being awesome, here’s a selection of the photos Joel has shared over the years, You can see more Flower a Day for February/January posts on Michigan in Pictures & view lots more pics in Joel’s huge A Flower a Day for February (x19) gallery on Flickr!
Cathy Griffin of the Traverse Area Historical Society shared a little news from 120 years ago in 1905:
FRANK CARTER, local resident who had been in Chicago and Grand Rapids during the summer, returned Monday night being ill from the poisonous effects of a spider which walked over his arm, leaving a poisonous track at every step. Last week, while lying on the ground at Grand Rapids, an immense yellow spider jumped on his arm near his elbow and ran down to his wrist. Mr. Carter smashed his poisonous body on his arm and it immediately began to swell from the poison. The arm was inflamed and swollen with white spots. Under the advice of a physician, Mr. Carter went home to care for his arm.
It’s been a minute since I’ve featured a photo from Gowtham. He shares that while driving through the back roads of Huron Mountains from Houghton to Marquette, “I took a few wrong forks in succession and one of those forks had a plethora of Blue Vervains (the flower in the picture). Taking one wrong fork after another, driving slow and paying attention paid off – as one of those blue vervains had an uncommon yellow tinge. I stopped to look carefully and much to my surprise was this tiny little Golden Rod Spider.”
…These spiders may be yellow or white, depending on the flower in which they are hunting. Especially younger females, which may hunt on a variety of flowers such as daisies and sunflowers, may change color “at will”. Older females require large amounts of relatively large prey to produce the best possible clutch of eggs. They are therefore, in North America, most commonly found in goldenrod (Solidago sp.), a bright yellow flower which attracts large numbers of insects, especially in autumn. It is often very hard even for a searching human to recognize one of these spiders on a yellow flower.”
See more in his Michigan Wild Flowers gallery on Flickr & be sure to keep an eye out for the little things!
I want to be very clear that this spider is not venomous (and no spider has “venomous tracks”). Only the Northern Black Widow and the Brown Recluse have bites that endanger humans. The rest are out there happily dispatching harmful pests. My guess is that it was a Brown Recluse as their bites have sort of a bullseye pattern with a white center.
The Midwest Invasive Species Network shares that Shasta daisy (Leucanthemum xsuperbum) is a hybrid cross between Portuguese daisy (Leucanthemum lacustre) and Max chrysanthemum (Leucanthemum maximum) that was created in 1890 by the famed American horticulturist Luther Burbank. While not officially an invasive plant, it is considered invasive in Michigan due to its ability to aggressively spread & outcompete native species.
Joel Dinda is one of Michigan in Pictures’s most enduring supporters. I shared the first photo from him way back in June of 2006, and he’s an active member of the Michigan in Pictures group on Facebook with a penchant for flower photography. See more in his The Showcase gallery on Flickr!
Summer officially begins with the summer solstice at 10:42pm tonight, and to make sure we get the memo, Mother Nature is including a weeklong heatwave that starts today!
Sue took this way back in 2007. See more in her Superb Skies gallery on Flickr!
More summer fun on Michigan in Pictures!
The Chickadee and the Apple Tree by Michigan Nut Photography
Some gorgeous springtime pics from John along with a reminder to enjoy it while it’s here! See his latest on Facebook or Instagram and for sure view & purchase his work on his website.
Hello Beautiful by Lansing Area Guerilla Gardeners
Last week’s post about Lansing’s truck-eating bridge Big Penny was the most popular post of 2025 so far, but it may convey an overly aggressive image of our State Capital. Fortunately, I found the perfect antidote for Big Penny through Stupid Lansing, the folks who tipped me off to Big Penny: the Lansing Area Guerilla Gardeners!
WKAR explains that guerilla gardeners across the globe care for public or neglected land, often without formal permission:
(Shawn) Dyer and his friends adopted the Guerrilla Gardeners label in 2021, although they’ve been leading stealthy community cleanups and carrying out surprise acts of gardening for years. We sneak in, we garden, we make it look better and then we leave.” As Jana Nichol described it: “We sneak in, we garden, we make it look better and then we leave.”
Just love this – check out their work below & on their Facebook page!!
Tulip Time Photo Walk by Donna Henderson/Tulip Time Festival
Holland’s Tulip Time has been an annual celebration of Dutch culture & tulips since the founding of the festival in 1929. Tulip Time returns for the 96th year May 2-11, 2025. Here are some photos from recent years (and one throwback) via the Tulip Time Facebook.
Today is the 55th Earth Day, and this holiday that is celebrated across the planet was born right here in Michigan! I hope that you are able to take a little time today or this week to think about how you and your family, friends & neighbors can help create a future where humans live in harmony with the world around us because it really is the only one we’ve got. 🌏✌️💙
Paul took these at the Reid Lake Foot Travel Area near Harrison in the Huron-Manistee National Forest in the northeast Lower Peninsula. The US Forest Service says the 3000-acre area includes 13 miles of gently rolling trail around Reid and Little Trout Lakes, the shoreline of Big Marsh, and views of Fanny’s Marsh and Mossy Bog. There are also 9 designated first-come first-serve campsites available. Check out his photos from last Earth Day & many more in his Reid Lake gallery and for sure follow him on Flickr for more!
Many more Earth Day photos on Michigan in Pictures!
Michigan in Pictures 