Beynon Ecological Preserve

On 3 August 2013, a group of us drove out east of Calgary to visit and record all flora and fauna found on the Beynon Ecological Preserve. This land belongs to the Nature Conservancy of Canada. One of the plants we found was a rare Narrowleaf Four-o'clock plant. Just a small flower and not easy to photograph in the wind. Tomorrow, I will try and add information about Beynon, as I have just picked out and edited a batch of 20 images from the day trip that I needed to e-mail as soon as possible, and I'm tired. "Beynon is primarily a private 500+ acre ecological preserve. Located within a deeply sculpted portion of the Rosebud River valley, the area is recognized as being regionally significant. Due to its unique topography, picturesque valley setting, and relative rarity in terms of biodiversity, Beynon protected its surrounding area by permanently protecting over 400 acres (1.6 km2) from development. This protection was achieved by way of an outright donation of land by Beynon's founding family, who still own most of the unincorporated area called Beynon. The Nature Conservancy of Canada were the recipients of the 400-acre (1.6 km2) land donation in 1999." From Wikipedia. By the way, the Beynon Canyon was featured in the cemetery scene from the 1978 film Superman: The Movie. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beynon,_Alberta

Mullein growing wild at the Beynon Ecological Preserve, SW of Drumheller, in Alberta Badland country. On 3 August 2013, a group of us drove out east of Calgary to visit and record all flora and fauna found on the Beynon Ecological Preserve. This land belongs to the Nature Conservancy of Canada. One of the plants we found was this tall Mullein, growing not far from the abandoned railway tracks at the beginning of our hike. Common/Great Mullein is a noxious weed, and uncommon here. "It is a hairy biennial plant that can grow to 2 metres tall or more. Its small yellow flowers are densely grouped on a tall stem, which bolts from a large rosette of leaves. It grows in a wide variety of habitats, but prefers well-lit disturbed soils, where it can appear soon after the ground receives light, from long-lived seeds that persist in the soil seed bank. It is a common weedy plant that spreads by prolifically producing seeds, but rarely becomes aggressively invasive, since its seeds require open ground to germinate. It is a very minor problem for most agricultural crops, since it is not a very competitive species, being intolerant of shade from other plants and unable to survive tilling. It also hosts many insects, some of which can be harmful to other plants. Although individuals are easy to remove by hand, populations are difficult to eliminate permanently. It is widely used for herbal remedies with emollient and astringent properties. It is known to possess anti-inflammatory, anti-tumour, antiviral, antifungal, antibacterial, expectorant, and analgesic properties. It is especially recommended for coughs and related problems, but also used in topical applications against a variety of skin problems. The plant was also used to make dyes and torches." From Wikipedia. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Verbascum_thapsus "Beynon is primarily a private 500+ acre ecological preserve. Located within a deeply sculpted portion of the Rosebud River valley, the area is recognized as being regionally significant. Due to its unique topography, picturesque valley setting, and relative rarity in terms of biodiversity, Beynon protected its surrounding area by permanently protecting over 400 acres (1.6 km2) from development. This protection was achieved by way of an outright donation of land by Beynon's founding family, who still own most of the unincorporated area called Beynon. The Nature Conservancy of Canada were the recipients of the 400-acre (1.6 km2) land donation in 1999." From Wikipedia. By the way, the Beynon Canyon was featured in the cemetery scene from the 1978 film Superman: The Movie. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beynon,_Alberta

Purple Prairie-clover is one of the plants that we saw at the Beynon Ecological Preserve, SW of Drumheller, in Alberta Badland country. On 3 August 2013, a group of us drove east of Calgary to visit and record all flora and fauna found on the Beynon Ecological Preserve. This land belongs to the Nature Conservancy of Canada. I don't often see this species, as it grows only in a few places in Calgary. There was a lot of it at Beynon, along with White Prairie-clover, which is another plant I very rarely see. It was a fairly windy day and so many of the wildflowers were blowing in and out of the viewfinder when I was trying to photograph them, lol. "Beynon is primarily a private 500+ acre ecological preserve. Located within a deeply sculpted portion of the Rosebud River valley, the area is recognized as being regionally significant. Due to its unique topography, picturesque valley setting, and relative rarity in terms of biodiversity, Beynon protected its surrounding area by permanently protecting over 400 acres (1.6 km2) from development. This protection was achieved by way of an outright donation of land by Beynon's founding family, who still own most of the unincorporated area called Beynon. The Nature Conservancy of Canada were the recipients of the 400-acre (1.6 km2) land donation in 1999." From Wikipedia. By the way, the Beynon Canyon was featured in the cemetery scene from the 1978 film Superman: The Movie. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beynon,_Alberta

We saw a number of these vibrant yellow wildflowers when a group of us visited the Beynon Ecological Preserve, east of Calgary, on 3 August 2013. This is a macro shot, as the flowers are not very big. "Upright Prairie Coneflower (Ratibida columnifera) is a species of flowering plant in the daisy family, Asteraceae, that is native to much of North America. It inhabits prairies, plains, roadsides, and disturbed areas from southern Canada through most of the United States to northern Mexico." From Wikipedia. "Beynon is primarily a private 500+ acre ecological preserve. Located within a deeply sculpted portion of the Rosebud River valley, the area is recognized as being regionally significant. Due to its unique topography, picturesque valley setting, and relative rarity in terms of biodiversity, Beynon protected its surrounding area by permanently protecting over 400 acres (1.6 km2) from development. This protection was achieved by way of an outright donation of land by Beynon's founding family, who still own most of the unincorporated area called Beynon. The Nature Conservancy of Canada were the recipients of the 400-acre (1.6 km2) land donation in 1999." From Wikipedia. By the way, the Beynon Canyon was featured in the cemetery scene from the 1978 film Superman: The Movie. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beynon,_Alberta

White Prairie-clover is one of the plants that we saw at the Beynon Ecological Preserve, SW of Drumheller, in Alberta Badland country. On 3 August 2013, a group of us drove east of Calgary to visit and record all flora and fauna found on the Beynon Ecological Preserve. This land belongs to the Nature Conservancy of Canada. I don't often see this species, as it grows only in a few places in Calgary. There was a lot of it at Beynon, along with Purple Prairie-clover, which is another plant I very rarely see. It was a fairly windy day and so many of the wildflowers were blowing in and out of the viewfinder when I was trying to photograph them, lol. Unfortunately, it's not exactly the most photogenic flower, but I need to add it to my Beynon album. "The flower spike is about 1-3" tall and ¾" across. The small flowers form a wreath around the bottom of the spike, which moves upward as the season progresses. Each flower is about ¼" across, with 5 petals and 5 white stamens. The flowers often have a pleasant fragrance." www.illinoiswildflowers.info/prairie/plantx/wpr_cloverx.htm "Beynon is primarily a private 500+ acre ecological preserve. Located within a deeply sculpted portion of the Rosebud River valley, the area is recognized as being regionally significant. Due to its unique topography, picturesque valley setting, and relative rarity in terms of biodiversity, Beynon protected its surrounding area by permanently protecting over 400 acres (1.6 km2) from development. This protection was achieved by way of an outright donation of land by Beynon's founding family, who still own most of the unincorporated area called Beynon. The Nature Conservancy of Canada were the recipients of the 400-acre (1.6 km2) land donation in 1999." From Wikipedia. By the way, the Beynon Canyon was featured in the cemetery scene from the 1978 film Superman: The Movie. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beynon,_Alberta

On 3 August 2013, a group of us drove out east of Calgary to visit and record all flora and fauna found on the Beynon Ecological Preserve. This land belongs to the Nature Conservancy of Canada. Shortly before we turned off the main highway to travel southwards, we called in at Horseshoe Canyon, near Drumheller, to take a look from the rim, as seen in my photo. Such spectacular and unique scenery, known as the Badlands. Many fossil Dinosaurs have been discovered in the Badlands area.

Gumweed is one of the plants that we saw at the Beynon Ecological Preserve, SW of Drumheller, in Alberta Badland country. On 3 August 2013, a group of us drove east of Calgary to visit and record all flora and fauna found on the Beynon Ecological Preserve. This land belongs to the Nature Conservancy of Canada. It was a fairly windy day and so many of the wildflowers were blowing in and out of the viewfinder when I was trying to photograph them, lol. "Beynon is primarily a private 500+ acre ecological preserve. Located within a deeply sculpted portion of the Rosebud River valley, the area is recognized as being regionally significant. Due to its unique topography, picturesque valley setting, and relative rarity in terms of biodiversity, Beynon protected its surrounding area by permanently protecting over 400 acres (1.6 km2) from development. This protection was achieved by way of an outright donation of land by Beynon's founding family, who still own most of the unincorporated area called Beynon. The Nature Conservancy of Canada were the recipients of the 400-acre (1.6 km2) land donation in 1999." From Wikipedia. By the way, the Beynon Canyon was featured in the cemetery scene from the 1978 film Superman: The Movie. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beynon,_Alberta

Not a good photo, but I rarely ever see Evening Primrose and needed to add this shot to a couple of Albums. Seen when a group of us was lucky enough to spend the day, on 3 August 2013, hiking on the Nature Conservancy land at the Beynon Ecological Preserve, a long drive east of Calgary. This area is not far from Drumheller, in the Badlands of Alberta.

One of my favourite wildflowers because of the ring of tiny, bright green hearts around the centre. This was seen on 27 July 2013, when a group of us visited and hiked the Nature Conservancy of Canada land at Beynon Nature Preserve. This lies east of Calgary, near Drumheller, in the Badlands of Alberta.