Houston Arboretum & Nature Center

How about a star-spangled scavenger hunt as we round out the holiday weekend celebrating America’s 250th anniversary? See how many species with “American” in the name you can find on your next visit to the Arboretum! Can you name all of the plants and animals in this post?

📸 Christine Mansfield, Kelsey Low, Pisum, Joe Liggio

Happy Independence Day! It’s a perfect time to celebrate the things that make America special, including our incredible native flowers. Why not take a patriotic stroll around the Arboretum and enjoy the floral fireworks?

As a reminder, the Nature Center building is closed today, July 4, however the grounds, Nature Playscape, and outdoor restrooms are open normal hours.

Flowers in order of appearance:
- American Basketflower (Plectocephalus americanus)
- Common Buttonbush (Cephalanthus occidentalis)
- Common Sunflower (Helianthus annuus)
- Firewheel (Gaillardia pulchella)
- Sunshine Mimosa (Mimosa strigillosa)
- Halberd-leaf Hibiscus (Hibiscus laevis)
- Purple Passionflower (Passiflora incarnata)

Have you seen Waldo in the Nature Shop lately? The Arboretum is once again excited to be participating in the Where's Waldo Shop Local Challenge organized by our friends at Brazos Bookstore!

During the month of July, visit the Arboretum's Nature shop, or one of 22 other local businesses, to pick up a Waldo passport and start your scavenger hunt. Once you've found Waldo at 10 different locations, you can bring your passport to Brazos Bookstore for a special Waldo prize! They'll also be hosting a Finale Party on Saturday, August 1 at 1 pm where you can win prizes from local businesses.

The Tufted Titmouse is both adorable and somewhat controversial. They have nothing to do with mice: “tit” was an old English word for “small,” and “mase” was an even older English word for “small bird,” so “titmase” was a “small, small bird.” Over time, the pronunciation shifted to titmouse, and now we’re stuck with a problem. What is the plural of titmouse? Some insist it should be “titmouses,” while others say “titmice” sounds better, even though it is grammatically incorrect. Either way, you can spot these cheerful little birds at any of the Arboretum’s bird feeders, especially the one at the Nature Playscape bird blind!

📸 Joe Liggio