Sometime in May, these little bluish-purple flowers begin blooming and will cover the prairie hillsides with a wash of blue. 

The basal, singly-stalked leaves are divided into three narrow segments radiating from a single point, and each leaf is further lobed and divided.  Each leaf is nearly symmetrical in it's divisions.  The flowers extend 3-6 inches above the leaves on bare stems that curve at the top.  The single flower is 5-parted, lavender to blue, with the lower petals becoming white at the center with purple veins.  The orange stamens are prominent in the center, setting this violet apart from other prairie violets, which lack the exposed stamens, and have differently shaped leaves.   

The Bird's-foot violet reproduces sometimes by rhizome, or, more often, by seeds that are ejected from the exploding seedhead.  The seeds contain a sugary gel that is attractive to ants.  The ants will carry these seeds to their nests. 

The flowers attract long-tongued bees, small butterflies, and skippers. Bee visitors during the spring include bumblebees and Anthophorine bees. Compared to other violets, the flowers of this species attracts more butterflies and skippers, which are often held horizontal to the ground (face up) and easier for such insects to land on. The caterpillars of various Fritillary butterflies feed on the foliage and flowers; the caterpillars of Speyeria idalia (Regal Fritillary) may prefer this violet species over others as a food source. ¹