Bogbean

I spent a 14-hour day today with three friends, doing a Bio-assessment of someone's property north-west of the city, fairly near Cremona. We had a wonderful walk (actually, three), recording any plants and birds that we found on their many acres. In a separate area a short drive away, where we saw Pelicans and Cormorants in the distance, as well as three Common Loons), we also saw several plants that I had never seen before. One of them was this Bogbean, also known as Buckbean. Each of the five petals are bearded inside, giving an unusual appearance. Not every plant has a round flower cluster like in this photo - just depends on how many of the flowers happen to be open. This is my absolute favourite way to spend a full day, exploring new "territory"!

Bogbean, as its name implies, grows at bog, swamp and pond edges. LOL, I was down on my hands and knees in about three or four inches of swamp water to get a few photos of this and several other plants!