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Spring Beauty
Claytonia virginica
33.7216, -96.779
Field Notes
Description:
A low plant with loose clusters of pink or whitish flowers, striped with dark pink. A pair of smooth, grass-like leaves occurs halfway up the slender, 4-12 in. stem. Several pink or white flowers with darker pink veins are borne in a loose cluster in the upper part of the stem. The very bottom of each petal is tinged with yellow so that it looks like there is a faint yellow circle in the middle of each flower. Plant disappears from above ground shortly after the seed capsules have ripened.
It grows from an underground tuber like a small potato; this has a sweet, chestnut-like flavor. Native Americans and colonists used them for food and they are still enjoyed by those interested in edible wild plants. A similar species, Carolina Springbeauty (C. caroliniana), has broader, oval to oblong leaves. It is found primarily in the moist woods of the eastern mountains and extends westward to Minnesota.
Habitat:
Hagerman National Wildlife Refuge, a haven for migratory birds and other wildlife, lies on the Big Mineral Arm of Lake Texoma, on the Red River between Oklahoma and Texas. The refuge is made up of water, marsh, and upland habitat.
The main focus at Hagerman NWR is providing a winter home for thousands of waterfowl. Foremost among the waterfowl are Canada geese. During fall, winter, and spring, numbers can reach 7,500 or more. Other geese include white-fronted and snow geese, with a scattering of the smaller Ross' geese.
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