Spring comes and goes so fast. Don't miss the willow catkins. This twig was observed at Strathroy Wetlands Marsh Walk on my lunch. On the right is willow gall.  Also spotted a great blue heron - a resident.

From http://www.talkaboutwildlife.ca/profile/?s=1892:

Pine-cone Willow Gall Midge
Rhabdophaga strobiloides

General Description

By Nora Bryan

You will probably never notice the minute, slender, fragile Pine-cone Willow Gall Midge, which is found everywhere willows are found. If you've ever been puzzled at what appear to be pine cones growing on willow shrubs, then you've seen the interesting galls that these tiny flies make. These galls, which are about the size of a white spruce cone, really do like pine cones, except that they are pale green and a bit fuzzy.
It is the larval stage, or maggot that lives within the characteristic gall. The larva is a minute featureless maggot. If you ever were to see one under a microscope you would see it's characteristic T-shaped breastplate.
Galls are a kind of arrangement between the host plant and the gall-making insect, and they can have very bizarre forms. Although galls rarely do significant harm to the host plant, they probably don't gain any benefit from the gall either. The gall is a reaction of the plant to the specific gall-making insect. The insect is concealed within the gall, and has to create an opening in the gall to get out when it is an adult.