blackoaknaturalist

The Art of Seeing

2012-01-25T10:35:00.000-08:00

Soon I'll be participating in another blog, a group effort showcasing my home town of Quincy. My part of this enterprise will be called Seldom Seen Delights. Yesterday, as I was waiting for an appointment with a colleague at the Mt. Hough Ranger Station, I decided to wander around with the camera for a few minutes. At first glance, the area around the parking look looks overly groomed, or one might say "tamed." Very little underbrush, lower branches trimmed - boring! However, the job of a photographer/naturalist is to look beyond the obvious. This practice is always rewarded. When one chooses to place a rectangle (the frame of the viewfinder) around a portion of nature, many considerations come into play. The most important consideration is light. Am I trying to show the scene "as it is" or am I trying to use some poetic license to convey a message? Am I highly conscious of what I'm leaving out? Examples: litter, vandalism, unpopular items. I think a unifying theme in my photography and drawing is "seldom seen." I think "discovery" is one of the greatest possible human experiences, so I try to share my discoveries. These are rarely, if ever, things discovered for the first time, but my particular view is a discovery for me and usually for most people who accompany me. Like Thoreau, I marvel at the wonders in my own back yard. No need to travel to a rain forest or the Arctic to feel I'm seeing something exotic. I'm glad I arrived a bit early and decided to wander around a bit. Click on any photo for a closer view.

Grazing in the Snow

2012-01-25T10:02:00.000-08:00

I've never seen a Golden Eagle on Golden Eagle Drive. Plenty of Canada Geese, though. In this meadow on the way out to Feather River College, I've seen lots of wildlife. I've probably been a traffic hazard more than once as I stopped to watch waterfowl, coyotes, kingfishers, and ospreys. Seems like a good place for a raised boardwalk out to a wildlife viewing platform. I can think of lots of reasons for not building such a thing, but I do sometimes get nostalgic for the many such structures in the brackish marshes in South Carolina's Low Country.

Life in the Cambium Layer

2012-01-25T09:55:00.000-08:00

Seems that I can't pick up a piece of firewood these days without getting distracted. Busy writing when the house got a little cold. I figured five minutes to load the wood stove wouldn't interrupt the flow, but I was wrong. When I saw these beetle tracks on the first piece of firewood I picked up, I started daydreaming about life beneath the bark. As the larva chew their way around, how do they decide when to make a left or right turn? Do they ever get curious enough to chew toward the surface or deper in? Maybe they're just hooked on the tastiest layer and are not capable of curiosity. Of course curiosity can be a blessing or a curse. I forgot what I was writing about.

I'm catching up.

2012-01-21T19:27:00.000-08:00

There's been a break in the rain and snow this afternoon, so we took a walk. The mosses, ferns and lichens were bright green having quickly resurrected from their dehydrated state of only a few days ago. A good photo op in my driveway for showing the differences between Douglas-fir and White Fir. In the top photo you can see how the lower branches of Douglas-fir tend to droop, while those of White Fir (fourth photo from top) tend to stick out horizontally from the trunk. Also, while Douglas-fir needles tend to grow out from the bark all the way around each twig, the White Fir needles tend to grow out sideways producing a flat, fern-like look (4th photo from top). On closer inspection, you will see that each White Fir needle tends to have a 1/4 to 1/2 turn twist at the base where it attaches to the twig. No so with Douglas-fir needles. Finally, the cones are quite different. I saw lots of Douglas-fir cones on the ground, still intact (third photo from top), but White Fir cones tend to explode into a pile of individual scales when they hit the ground or get torn apart immediately by squirrels seeking the seeds. Thus, I saw no intact White Fir cones today. Douglas-fir cones tend to hang downward from their attachment points on the branches, while White Fir cones are cylindrical and tend to grow upright from the branches like traditional Christmas tree candles. Finally, another treat on today's walk were the lichens. They suddenly look lush and colorful after having gotten rather dry over the past month or two. The bottom photo here shows a nice patch of fruticose lichens growing on a tree stump at the foot of my driveway. This whetted my appetite for a trip down the Feather River Canyon where the mosses and lichens are probably entering their peak season of lush greenness. The area where Rock Creek enters the Feather River is especially great for viewing mosses, ferns and lichens. Also, the stretch on the south side of the highway where great slabs of exfoliating granite hang over the highway. In the canyon, it is always best to find a turnout and get out and walk, or you might get rear-ended by someone trying to get through the canyon too fast. I called this post "catching up" because I'm catching up to my self-imposed quota of a post per day.

Class Announcement

2012-01-21T19:07:00.000-08:00

Click on the image for an enlargement. Easier to read. E.mail me if you have questions. blackoaknaturalist@att.net. Looking forward to some adventures, discovering the seldom seen delights of Plumas County.

Striking a Balance in "Bad" Weather

2012-01-21T18:40:00.000-08:00

During a heavy rain last night, my son Ryan created this balance out of copper wire with pans made of sheets of stainless steel. We were anticipating more snow and rain for at least a week. We've gotten pretty good at creating indoor activities when we aren't in the mood to bundle up and brave the stormy weather. Inspired by Thoreau's "There's no such thing as bad weather, just good clothes," we decided to take a walk today and gather up some small natural objects to weigh on this balance. Lacking a set of standardized weights, we decided to use shiny new coins. We found the weights of pennies, nickels, dimes, and quarters, and chose shiny new ones. We'll pile small seeds, bugs, pine needles, or other small objects on one side until they balance a given coin or coins on the other. I also collected a small bag of items for drawing practice - white fir cones and needles, blackberry leaves, rose hips, and seeds of a boxelder tree. I'm also working on a painting of two damselflies mating, hoping to finish it in time for the February show at Main Street Artists. The February show will have a Valentine's Day theme. If you're looking for a unique Valentine's Day card, stop by the gallery and take a look at my Convergent Ladybird Beetles and Oak Treehoppers mating.

Looking for a Taste of Spring

2012-01-20T06:12:00.000-08:00

This photo of a gathering of Convergent Ladybird Beetles was taken last fall at around 5,000' elevation near Quincy. These beautiful beetles may now be found at the lower elevations, say 1,000' to 2,500' and will be mating soon. Then most of them will head for the Central Valley for careers in aphid control. In Quincy, with the present lingering storm, we're having the feeling of winter just getting started. If you're a fan of spring, as I am, just drive down the Feather River Canyon, and in places like Table Mountain and Bidwell Park, as well as in the lower reaches of the canyon itself, spring is underway. Bring a camera and a notebook and you'll find wonders.

Time to Hibernate?

2012-01-18T18:51:00.000-08:00

The bitter cold that prevented me from outdoor journaling has passed for now. It warmed up enough to melt the snow off my front lawn. However, there's a big storm moving in, and the Brown Bear in my neighborhood seems to be contemplating going back into hibernation inside a giant nautilus.

The first meeting of my Community Education class, Adventures in Nature Journaling, will begin at the FRC student center at 9:00 a.m., on February 4. Watch this blog and/or the college's web site for information on how to register. The college will be issuing a catalog shortly. Meanwhile, feel free to e-mail me with any questions. The class will meet for 6 Saturday mornings between February 4 and March 17. The class may be repeated and a second 6-Saturday session will be offered between March 24 and May 5. The class will meet at a different site near Quincy every week. Depending on weather, we'll meet on established trails and/or inside coffee shops and art galleries. I'll contact participants weekly to announce each Saturday's venue.

9 Degrees F; Too Cold to Journal!

2012-01-17T11:11:00.000-08:00

My next class in Nature Journaling begins February 4. Judging from today's temperature, I'll need to arrange alternative venues to prevent frostbite. Fortunately, Quincy has some pleasant coffee shops and an art gallery, and I have a growing collection in my personal natural history museum as objects of discussion and drawing. Sitting on today's page of my open journal is a photo of juvenile Oak Treehoppers, three seashells, and two electronic devices my son created that look rather like flowers.

Cold Day Musings

2012-01-15T12:34:00.000-08:00

"In the depths of winter, I finally learned there was in me an invincible summer." Albert Camus said that, or something like it. I've found dozens of variations on this statement attributed to him. Either he said it or something like it many times, or people weren't listening or reading accurately. This began as a very cold day, 13 degrees according to the usual unreliable sources, yet sunny. No snow on the ground, so the sun put me in the mood of yearning for sunflowers and bees. I just happened to have the above photo from last summer on my laptop. One can interpret the quote literally, and I relate to it literally, but, if you know Camus, it seems likely there are layers of metaphorical meaning.

Some folks experience the winter blues so deeply, they give the impression that the condition is a self-fulfilling prophecy. Not me. I grew up in New England, and if you don't like winter, that's not a good place to be. I loved playing ice hockey on frozen, flooded cranberry bogs. Before our skates scratched up the surface, rendering it translucent then opaque, I was constantly getting distracted by the fish and turtles I could see swimming slowly beneath the ice. On a certain level, I was probably yearning for spring so I could renew my acquaintance with these critters. In Quincy, at 3,500', we are the borderline between true winter and semi-winter. That is, we sometimes get lots of snow but other times get little or none. For instance, despite the bitterly cold mornings, rain is forecast for later this week. Minor variances in conditions in the oncoming front could turn rain to snow or vice versa. I wait. It always interests me to see how various humans and other animals respond. If I take the position of anthropologist, I am pleasantly occupied and don't mind whatever weather Mother Nature delivers. However, I can assure you there is in me an invincible summer. I can hardly wait to resume photographing, drawing, and writing about wildflowers and bugs, and showing others where to find some seldom seen delights of Plumas County.

Nature Journaling at Art Camp

2012-01-12T19:21:00.000-08:00

In my previous post I listed a number of gallery showings and class offerings I have coming up in 2012. I'd like to add to the list an adventure available in Quincy that not many Quincy residents are aware of and that is Feather River Art Camp that takes place the third week of June on the grounds of Oakland Feather River Camp just a few miles from downtown Quincy. I'll be offering a class in Nature Journaling at the Art Camp this year, but there are many other great offerings by artists, writers, dancers, etc., at the camp run by Berkeley's Karen LeGault for over 20 years. Check it out at http://www.featherriverartcamp.com.

Seldom Seen Delights

2012-01-12T10:58:00.000-08:00

The above image as well as the ones I posted here on December 16 (scroll back a page) are now available in the form of greeting cards - blank inside and with natural history notes on the back - at the Main Street Artists Gallery in Quincy.
Beginning Saturday February 4, I hope to offer a class through Feather River College called Adventures in Nature Journaling. Watch for official announcements soon. In this class we will visit a different site in or near Quincy for each scheduled Saturday morning in order to discover the many "seldom seen sights" in our local forests, meadows, and roadsides, and indulge in several possible ways of creating nature journals. People who are interested in creative writing, drawing, painting, photography, or combinations of these modes, are welcome to inquire further by e-mail (blackoaknaturalist@att.net) before 'official' advertising begins. I plan to offer two, 6-week sessions of the class during the spring semester, Session I on Saturdays between Feb. 4 and March 17, and Session II on Saturdays between March 24 and May 5. I will also offer at least one all-day excursion to Table Mountain near Oroville (car pooling to be organized) during the peak time of wildflower blooming, usually between late March and early April. Watch here and elsewhere for announcements. Join me in discovering Plumas County's many "seldom seen delights."

He/She's Back!

2012-01-10T19:59:00.000-08:00

I love nature's surprises - usually. Today I was bringing some firewood up from the carport when I found this live butterfly. I posted a photo of this species a couple of months ago when we had already got many freezing nights. Since that time it has been much colder, seldom rising above freezing even in the afternoon, yet the butterfly was still alive. Not at all active, he/she stayed put as I carried the log up to my porch and fetched my camera. I was in the house for less than a minute, but it was gone when I got back outside. I found it a few feet away crawling around, apparently looking for a new hiding place. Got a couple of photos then let it be. Must have antifreeze in its veins.

Got Blogged Down

2012-01-10T13:54:00.000-08:00

I have three projects going at once - or is it four? Got a bit behind on my blogging. I used to try to maintain an average of one post per day. So, I'll take this opportunity to advertise three projects that are on the drawing board.
First, is my Valentine's Day project. I am an exhibiting member of Main Street Artists gallery where currently my photo greeting cards and two framed photos are on display. For the month of February the gallery will have a Valentine's theme. I am producing a Commonplace Book (definition and explanation to follow soon) with a Valentine's theme. The top two images here, plants with heart-shaped leaves, have inspired some original sketches that will be in that book. The bottom image, a flower variously named Harvest Brodiaea, Cluster Lily, etc., etc., will be a part of a small book(let) that will be the first in a series of Natural History "zines." Volume 1 will be called Those Elusive Lilioids." I hope to publish it electronically, although a limited number of hard copies will be produced. Back to the drawing board - more to follow soon.

Jack Frost, artist, still busy

2012-01-07T20:40:00.000-08:00

Greeting Cards coming soon

2012-01-01T19:32:00.000-08:00

I've got six photos and accompanying natural history notes made into greeting cards which will be available within a week in Quincy. The above seven are the next set to be made into cards. I am currently working on the natural history notes. The fungus in the 2nd photo was taken by my son Greg in a forest near Arcata. The rest were taken by me in and near Quincy during 2011.

Two Evergreens and a Nevergreen

2011-12-27T21:30:00.000-08:00

I Wish I Knew How to Hibernate

2011-12-25T17:12:00.000-08:00

When I start feeling sorry for myself as I walk the frigid 25 yards to my firewood pile, I'm humbled by the Wooly Bear caterpillar that seems to be perfectly content without a jacket - well, I guess he has a built-in jacket. The cats are having fun fighting to keep warm in the front hallway. When they go outside to eat, it's interesting to see how they get twice as big by puffing up their hair. Meanwhile, I go back to writing. The electronic sentinel my son Ryan built me for Christmas stands guard over my subscription renewal form for Poets and Writers. I must say, one advantage of holing up in the cold weather is that I'm more motivated to write and draw. In the summer, it's hard for me to slow down long enough for deliberative activities. That's one thing I've always liked about a climate with four distinct seasons. Impossible to become too set in my ways.

It's Not My Fault!

2011-12-20T12:15:00.000-08:00

Interesting day. I read an article about the woes of the US Postal Service. They're blaming their financial difficulties on the increased use of e.mail and decreased use of conventional (i. e., snail) mail. Then I went to the Post Office and found in my box a purple card reading "Excess mail; please come to the counter." When I approached the counter, there was a long line and only one clerk on duty. They've evidently reduced staff just in time for the Christmas rush. "Tis the season for irony."
So, what's this commentary doing in a Natural History blog? Here's the tie-in:
I had just been talking with my daughter about an important biological and sociological concept: adaptation. She's taking high school biology, but hasn't got to that part of the book yet. I told her that a particular set of social skills that might be a successful adaptation to one high school environment might be especially maladaptive in another. My examples from biology were a.) kangaroo rats specifically adapted to a desert environment would not likely do well in a rain forest, and b.) polar bears don't do well in temperate environments, like zoos in Florida, unless great care is taken to keep them cool. I suggested that the path to social success at our local high school might not be the same in, say, an urban magnet school focused on math and science skills.
So, will the Postal Service adapt to the increased use of e.mail? Does it care? Will a critical mass of people maintain a preference for letters and cards they can hold in their hands, or will they adapt to cyberspace? The larger question is - will adapting to life in cyberspace prove to be maladaptive for our species in the long run? Sure wish I had a crystal ball - metaphorically speaking, of course.

Yet Another Cat Position

2011-12-19T15:10:00.000-08:00

In between opportunities to make bona fide nature observations during the winter months, I enjoy watching our cats. The two whose "fighting" photo I posted here recently spent last night sleeping in the same wicker basket outside our bedroom door. They quickly scattered when I opened the door (can two things scatter?) so I couldn't get to my camera quickly enough. However, Radar struck this relaxed pose on a tote bag on our dining room table. Domesticated cats are such an interesting blend of domesticity and wildness. It's no wonder they have often been revered by royalty.

2011-12-18T18:37:00.001-08:00

It was a very cold day, but there must be pockets of warmth here and there. While i was splitting firewood, I heard frogs croaking. I wonder if it was these guys?

Nature Greeting Cards

2011-12-16T19:04:00.000-08:00

These 5 photos are now available on 5" by 7", blank (on the inside) greeting cards with brief natural history notes on the backs. $3.50 each with envelope plus shipping. For orders of 10 or more, $3.00 each with free shipping. Inquire by e.mail at blackoaknaturalist@att.net. Despite all the red and green, these are not strictly seasonal cards. Many photos that have appeared in this blog will be available as greeting cards soon.

Dust of Snow

2011-12-15T20:34:00.000-08:00

Robert Frost put it this way:

The day a crow
Shook down on me
The dust of snow
From a hemlock tree

Has given my heart
A change of mood
And saved some part
Of a day I rued.

I saw no crows today, nor hemlocks, but viewing the fresh snow early in the morning, before it got sanded and plowed, was exhilarating. There's a secret thrill in planting the first footprints. We are accustomed to hoping for a white Christmas, but just once I'd like to experience Christmas in the southern hemisphere. So many of our symbols of the season are northern European in origin, it might be interesting to experience the alternatives. I wonder if Santa crosses the equator.

Anti-freeze for blood?

2011-12-14T16:02:00.000-08:00

We've had early morning temperatures in the teens (Fahrenheit) and barely rising above freezing in the afternoons. Somehow this butterfly was clinging to life in our woodpile. It was actually quite active and would not sit still on my hand, as if it knew it wasn't camouflaged.

Monday Nite Fights

2011-12-12T21:14:00.000-08:00

Radar, the gray one on the bottom, rules the cat kingdom at our house, but the newcomer, Dulce, isn't afraid to challenge. I guess it's a learning experience. Somehow this photo of the Red Milkweed Beetle from my August archives looked like a similar event.

I Love Irony

2011-12-11T09:51:00.001-08:00

Just read the S. F. Chronicle "Grabbers; A Selection of First Sentences From New Books." One that caught my eye was "There is hardly anything more natural than hating Nature." In my line of work, that sort of sentiment gets my attention! It's the opening line in a novel by Milen Ruskov titled Thrown Into Nature. I read several reviews and I think I need to get this novel. It appeals to my sense of humor. Reminds me of a favorite quote from Lily Tomlin: "No matter how cynical I get, I can't keep up." Maybe I'm in this mood because of watching excerpts from last night's Republican debate.

Buzzards' Roost Christmas Tree

2011-12-09T20:21:00.001-08:00

The first time out, I forgot to bring my saw. Perhaps a good thing because someone tipped us off to a better place and we got a nice Red Fir near Buck's Summit. Fringe benefit, as always, is seeing many beautiful objets de natur. I'm sure the tree in the top photo is considered one of the prettiest around by the vultures and ravens. For that reason, it seemed beautiful to us, too. As we approached the summit, there were several patches of bright red Mountain Ash berries. Slipped on ice while photographing this cluster. Managed to do a kind of judo fall and save my camera from destruction. Here's our tree on the roof. I hope the permit is visible.

Dolce

2011-12-07T20:49:00.001-08:00

This is the third in a series I call "Cat Positions." I do this for amusement when it's too cold outside or I'm too busy to pursue close-up nature photos. I think our youngest cat, Dolce, knows about the project because now he's taken to posing.

Make Lemonade

2011-12-06T18:44:00.001-08:00

"When life serves you lemons, make lemonade." That quote, attributed to Dale Carnegie, among others, was running through my head on my way back from finding a Christmas tree on Claremont Mountain. This morning my son and I headed up Claremont on the Peppard Flat Road to a place where we found a nice tree last year. This year I remembered to bring the permit along. However, right after finding a really nice-looking white fir, I discovered that I had forgotten to bring the saw!
A senior moment, I suppose. However, during the outing we saw lots of wonderful subjects for photography. I won't say I remembered to bring my camera; I simply forgot to take it out of the car after my previous outing. The manzanita at the side of the road exhibited some great frost patterns. We wondered why the frost persisted on the manzanita while it had melted off all the other nearby plants. There were also some attractive chinquapin bushes. Then, the ultimate view was of Lassen Peak in the distance. And, it looks like we'll have to drive up there again tomorrow, with the saw. We always see something new. Stay tuned.

The Back of My Hand

2011-12-06T18:25:00.001-08:00

The other day in Reno with family, I was asked to drive us from point A to point B. I took a route that my passengers didn't think was correct. In defending my choice of route, I said, "I know this town like the back of my hand." I did get us to the requested destination, but I suddenly realized the back of my hand was not a very good measure. In fact, I knew I was not that familiar with the back of my hand and probably knew the streets of Reno better. I've never had a compelling reason to study the back of my hand.
Now the two birch leaves pictured above are another story. Early one morning as I was leaving the house, I was startled by the beauty of the heavily frosted leaves on the front lawn. Then I noticed these two and pondered why on one leaf the frost was concentrated on the veins while on the other the frost accumulated between the veins. I stared at these two leaves for quite a while, in fact longer than I ever stared at the back of my hand. So, the next time you let slip "I know this _______ like the back of my hand, realize that you might not know it all that well! Do I recommend getting to know your hand better? No. But I highly recommend spending more time looking closely at nature's details.

A Most Interesting Plant

2011-12-01T20:20:00.001-08:00

A reason for the season? Mistletoe. Folklore and science, coming soon.

A Little Sea Life in Quincy

2011-11-30T20:39:00.001-08:00

Oops!

2011-11-30T20:30:00.001-08:00

Accidentally posted today's nature photos and a bit of text on the other blog I participate in. Check it out! Quincy Writers Group.

Slug Makes a Statement

2011-11-29T07:14:00.001-08:00

Says the slug, "According to the latest data-mining sources, retail sales over the recent Thanksgiving weekend rose 16% above last year's; the 'average shopper' spent $398.62; and, retail sales totaled $52.4 billion. Here's what I think about all of that!" "Click on the photo if you can't hear me."

Cyber Monday Antidote

2011-11-28T12:22:00.001-08:00

Tainted Thursday, Black Friday, Satiated Saturday, Succumbing Sunday, and Cyber Monday. Not all are official - yet. As the comedian said, "Enough is Too Much." Not as eloquently expressed as Wordsworth, but the same general idea. If you've had too much, please enjoy this set of photos I took this morning. Click on each one for a closer view. When I look at the these ice crystals close up, I imagine them forming. Maybe I should participate in Cyber Monday after all and see if I can find a great deal on a video camera. Nah, I think I'll stay home and use my imagination.

Another Cat Position

2011-11-26T14:03:00.001-08:00

I do a lot of my best creative thinking on the other side of the wall behind this coolest of cats. Watching this cat assume his/her position in front the Alley Cat cafe, I was reminded of two things. First, an old poem by Lawrence Ferlinghetti that begins "Sometime during eternity...." The poet uses jazz musician terminology to describe a Christmas theme. Jesus is a cool cat, and "the cat who really laid it on us is his Dad...." At least one theme in the poem is the futility of petitionary prayer. Knowing Ferlinghetti, there are probably several more themes that I missed. Second, I'm reminded of a wonderful passage in Hannah Hinchman's book, A Trail Through Leaves, in which she compares getting used to various artists' tools to learning the idiosyncrasies of individual cats in terms of what they and their owners expect out of their relationships. The way one cat likes to be stroked might make another cat angry. Likewise, we need to learn the nuances of different pens, brushes, papers, etc., and make sure our expectations of their performance fits with what they are capable of delivering. To me, Hinchman's description of this process reads like poetry. I am finding that humans' relationships with pets, just as their relationships with the wilderness, reveals more about us that warrants introspection.
With that said, our youngest cat is due to be neutered. After the process is completed, I suspect I'll have more to report on cat positions.

Cat Positions

2011-11-25T18:28:00.001-08:00

I couldn't resist getting this photo of our newest kitten, Dulce. As he gets used to our home, he sometimes seems very tame and intelligent. At other times, he's very wild and intelligent. It's fun to watch him practice hunting skills with ping pong balls, pencils, and random scraps of paper, then graduate to practicing on our older cats. So far, our dogs ignore him, probably because they know they could squash him like a bug or swallow him whole.
I recently viewed a video called "My Life as a Turkey" and was amazed. Those birds are smart!! Also saw a video of octopi. They, too, seemed much smarter than I would ever have imagined. Between these videos and my cat, it seems obvious that intelligence comes in many forms and that humans differ in degree and style from other animals but are not necessarily of superior intelligence. In fact, if you pay much attention to the current campaigns for president, you might conclude that we rank below cockroaches.
Our cat often assumes positions that make me think. That's more than most of my elementary school teachers did. I guess that's another sign of their intelligence.

Saints and Strangers

2011-11-24T19:31:00.001-08:00

Some things never change. Story to be inserted tomorrow, but I wanted it dated Thanksgiving Day.

The following story appeared in the now-defunct Green Mountain Gazette 31 years ago today.

Saints and Strangers,

Let Us Give Thanks

by Joe Willis

This is dedicated to my late high school history teacher, Homer Paulus, who taught me that wanderers should remember their roots.

When that largely ignored holiday, Columbus Day, rolls around, I develop an atavistic desire for fresh cranberries. It's not that I'm particularly fond of cranberries per se, but each fall it's the arrival of fresh cranberries that first triggers my Thanksgiving memories which go back to playing on the lawn beneath a magnificent statue of Massasoit in Plymouth, Massachusetts.

While growing up in what used to be rural, southeastern Massachusetts, children are surrounded by reminders of their heritage. For me, it was an environment remarkably different from what my own children are experiencing while growing up here in Quincy West.

During my cowboy and Indian days, I always insisted on being an Indian. My brother and I, for reasons I've never discovered, sided with the underdogs at an early age. We hid our bicycles - that's right, Indians on bicycles - in King Philip's Cave a few miles from our home. King Philip's given name was Metacomet. He was a son of Massasoit, the chief (or sachem) who allegedly befriended the Pilgrims.

   I always wondered why, if Massasoit was such a friend to the Pilgrims, his son Metacomet would wage one of the bloodiest wars in history against the colonists. My teachers didn't want to talk about it, if in fact they knew anything about it. Another mystery: while we were always taught that if the Pilgrims' advance began with their landing on Cape Cod in 1620, it was never explained how the Indian, Squanto, met them on the shore already able to speak English. I wondered about that as a Boy Scout during summer outings at Camp Squanto, but I never got an answer.
   Just north of Plymouth is the Myles Standish Monument, a beautiful stone cylinder with a circular stairway inside and a statue of Captain Standish on top, rifle in hand. While enjoying racing up that stairway and admiring the giant stone rifle in Standish's hands, we kids were vaguely aware that this early hero had some sort of peacekeeping role around the time of the first Thanksgiving.
   The nearby town of Carver is a memorial to John Carver whose compassion and sense of community enabled him to persuade a skeptical group of Mayflower passengers to sign a Compact for self-government. This, of course, was a precedent to much of the best American political thinking of the next 300 years. What mattered more to us kids, though, was that the town of Carver was the center of the cranberry industry, which, like me, has since moved westward.
    My fondest memories of cranberries are not so much of the taste of Mom's cranberry sauce, but of the cranberry bogs themselves. Much of Pilgrim territory is now taken up by numerous rectangular, diked cranberry bogs which are flooded in winter to protect the cranberries from freezing. To energetic young teenagers like my brother and me, cranberry bogs frozen over in winter represent the ideal hockey rink more so than a source of Thanksgiving delicacies. But, at our present ages, the Thanksgiving memories are becoming more important than the hockey.
    Another childhood activity somehow connected to our Thanksgiving memories and ties with our Pilgrim heritage was shooting herring with bows and arrows. The herring run of all herring runs was in a creek near Brewster on Cape Cod. There were so many herring that we could aim anywhere into the water and hit a herring nearly every time. During our teepee days, we even buried herring, like Samoset had shown the Pilgrims, in order to help the corn grow. We forgot to put in the corn seeds, though, and local dogs and cats got the herring. Brewster, by the way, was named after William Brewster, one of the most humane spiritual leaders among the Mayflower group.
    Among our strongest Thanksgiving memories, of course, are the traditional foods. I never really cared for turkey, maybe because we'd always cook a 25-pounder then have to eat turkey sandwiches for about a month. We'd run out just in time for our Christmas turkey! Now, being mostly vegetarian, my memories are focused more on the pumpkin pie, Indian pudding, baked potatoes and onions, fresh corn on the cob, and endless desserts. We began the feast each year vowing not to eat too much 'this time,' but we'd all end up immobilized anyway.
    In recent years, this mosaic of memories traceable, via my New England upbringing, to the first Thanksgiving, has become expanded and altered. A changing philosophy has led to a few meatless Thanksgivings. From the research of a number of Native American and black historians, I've learned that the relationship between the Puritans and the Indians was not so benign as I had been taught. After all, the palefaces did invent the term 'redskin' and they also stole a lot of corn. And Myles Standish turns out to have been a smallish, hot-tempered soldier looking for a war or some similar puberty rite. The turkeys, who never appreciated Thanksgiving, are now being raised with such electronic, seasonal regulation, that it's an embarrassment to any humane-minded person who takes a close look. Interestingly, that motley group who started all this were rather sharply divided, according to their own perceptions, into "Saints" and "Strangers." The former term referred to those who had gathered together for a common religious purpose, and Strangers were all the others.
    So, what do I have to be thankful for? After all, that is what this day is all about. An obvious fringe benefit for the kids is the vacation from school. Despite my discovery of some blemishes in the First Thanksgiving story, I love the story, and I'm glad merely to be aware of the personalities and events that took place in my first back yards long before I played in them. As for my children, I am anxious to show them Pilgrimland at our first opportunity. As for giving thanks, we are most thankful to the Pilgrims, despite their shortcomings, for imbuing us with the spirit of pulling together and sharing during the hard times and knowing how to share in celebration during the good times. We can't ask for much more from a heritage.

Now, over 30 years later, I still have most of the same feelings and beliefs - except for that last paragraph. I was too kind. It turns out those first white settlers in New England were not very nice, and they now seem to me to resemble the current US Congress, mostly Strangers, not too many Saints.

What's Christmas All About?

2011-11-23T18:54:00.001-08:00

My previous post was a short photo-essay on a non-native tree, the pistache. The current one is more typical of my work in that it focuses on a native species, the Mountain Ash, and pays some attention to the season, in this case the "holiday" season. To partially answer my title question: Christmas is partly about red and green, thus the Mountain Ash. It is also about buying lots of stuff, thus the despicable message on the window of a local shop. Maybe this was meant to be satirical, but maybe it wasn't. It might be interesting to do a natural history of Black Friday. Some merchants are acting a bit sheepish and apologetic about continuing the pressure to launch the Christmas shopping season earlier and earlier, yet doing it anyway. One such example is a merchant calling the big day "plaid Friday." I hope that posting the bottom photo will suffice to get my cynical streak out of the way. Then, over the coming days I will post items about ties between nature and traditional celebrations of the season. From the perspective of a naturalist, the many different pagan celebrations are the richer field to mine. Stay tuned, and Happy Thanksgiving.

Out of my element, seeking beauty....

2011-11-23T18:00:00.001-08:00

This post is dedicated to Rex Burriss of Oroville, fellow naturalist and friend. My blog is almost entirely devoted to celebrating native plants, animals and fungi in the vicinity of my home town of Quincy punctuated by occasional political commentary. A while back, Rex introduced me via e.mails to the Pistache tree which puts on a wonderful show of color around his home town as well as around the malls in nearby Chico. On this past Monday, some friends and I drove to Davis to see the artwork of a sketchbook artist we admire, one Pete Scully. A show of his work is at the public library during the month of November. But the library was closed for the week!!!! I see that now as a blessing in disguise - we found the color of the pistache trees around the library to be spectacular. I must admit that if we had become absorbed in Pete Scully's wonderful art, the pistache trees around the parking lot might not have gotten our attention. Today, just before posting these photos, I checked me e.mail, and lo and behold there was a message from Rex with a photo of a pistache tree near Oroville. Thank you Rex, and Happy Thanksgiving.

Things to do in winter

2011-11-21T06:01:00.001-08:00

The choices available to me at the moment: Walk in snow, curl up and keep warm, dream of summer.

A Desert Visit

2011-11-16T10:09:00.001-08:00

A story about my interesting rest stop in the desert will follow soon. I can say that the desert is far more interesting when walking about in the sagebrush than while driving through at freeway speeds.

It's now late Thursday. Ironically, I was pondering a narrative about my trip through the desert off and on all day Wednesday and was thinking about teeth. Today, I visited my dentist, and that cinched it. You see, the technical name for the sagebrush is Artemesia tridentata, so named because the distal margin of each leaf has three projections that resemble teeth (to imaginative botanists anyway). The second photo shows the teeth (i. e., dentition) in a canid skull. I was in too much of a hurry to determine if it was Coyote or Dog. Besides telling my dentist about this blog post, I told him that Dandelion is a compression of the French "dent de leon," tooth of the lion, or lion's tooth, after the "dentate" margins of the leaves. We were having fun sharing the large amount of dental terminology that overlaps that of plant taxonomy.
What struck me about this particular brief visit to the desert was the difference between viewing it at highway speeds vs. getting out and walking around. First, the fragrance of the Sagebrush is impressive - only apparent while driving during specific conditions of temperature and humidity, but always pleasant and powerful when walking among the bushes. Second, one immediately stumbles across evidence of a great deal of animal activity, most of which takes place at night. I think the droppings in the fifth photo are jackrabbit, but they could be deer. I'm not an expert in scatology. The ant hill was impressive. It was a very cold morning, so when I poked the hill with a stick, it didn't arouse any ants. On a hot afternoon, sometimes a single poke with a stick will cause an explosion of ants. I've even seen an ant stampede erupt in response to a little foot stomping from several feet away from their hill. This brief roadside stop brought back memories of exciting times spent in the Sonoran desert from the Mojave to western Texas. Traveling at night with a flashlight is the most exciting, although one does need to watch out for rattlesnakes. Many different kinds of animals spent their days underground and walk and crawl about on the surface at night. The Spadefoot Toad spends most of each year underground, but emerges during the slightest of spring rains to breed. Their rate of development from egg to adult is quite adjustable according to the rate of evaporation of the puddles in which the eggs are laid. The process can take as little as a week. Even though the desert north of Reno is only an hour from my home in Quincy, it is literally another world as it is on the eastern side of the Sierra crest, a rain shadow, and supports literally hundreds of species of plants and animals that are not found around Quincy. One of the things I love about studying natural history in Plumas County is the proximity of so many different biological communities by traveling only an hour or so east or west, or getting off the main highways and experiencing a range of elevations from 2,000 in the lower Feather River Canyon, to many peaks that exceed 8,000' to Lassen Peak, at the northern tip of the county at 10,400'. Also, it is in this county that the Sierra meets the Cascades. Many different species have the northernmost or southernmost extent of their range in this county.
One last thought about teeth. I've always found the dentists' system of numbering our teeth from 1 to 32 rather boring compared to the zoologists' terms: incisors, canines, premolars and molars. In canines and felines these four categories of teeth have much more differentiation of shapes and functions than human teeth. For my comparative anatomy class, many years ago, I did a term paper on mammalian teeth. I collected many skulls in the forests and swamps around New Orleans, Louisiana, then visited slaughterhouses in Massachusetts when I went home for Christmas. My paper included ink line drawings of every skull with emphasis on the similarities and differences of their teeth. I still have the paper; in fact, this year the paper is fifty years old! I think I'll dig it out of my file cabinet and reminisce.

An Old Friend

2011-11-14T21:15:00.001-08:00

We drove to Chico last Thursday for the first time in many months. Took a little Stretch break as we neared the Oroville Reservoir and was struck by the beauty of Gray Pine, Pinus sabiniana, AKA Foothill Pine. Ironically, my favorite field guide to this region uses these politically correct two names for the pine that was formerly known as Digger Pine, yet adds "large heavy cones with savage spines." [italics mine] The cones are certainly impressive, but I don't think I'd call them savage. That implies a motive! Very heavy, and I'd hate to get hit on the noggin by one. I brought two cones home and photographed them on my front lawn. I've eaten the seeds of this pine, and they taste very good. However, the shells seem as hard as ebony and are very difficult to crack. This pine has three needles per bundle so it's in the yellow pine group like the Ponderosa and Jeffrey Pines at higher elevations. I'll share more information about this pine another day.

Refugees from the Courthouse Lawn

2011-11-13T19:37:00.001-08:00

I rescued these from the courthouse lawn. The leaf blowers will be back Monday morning, using lots of fossil fuel to transport the rest of them somewhere. It would be nice to see them raked into piles for kids to jump in, and then know that they'd return to the soil whence they came. Meanwhile, I can return to this page or my nature journal to remember their beauty.

Fall Images

2011-11-12T15:52:00.001-08:00

When most of the flowers and colorful leaves are gone, I search for the more subtle objects of beauty in my environment. One of the last stands of colorful broad-leaf trees is in my friend Mike's yard. Besides the bright red leaves, there's just enough shrubbery to create mini-wild habitats where I find lots of interesting bugs, worms, frogs, and fungi. A beautiful, late-season Crimson Columbine I photographed here a couple of weeks ago wilted and dried up rather quickly leaving behind this "shell" which was a fountain of seeds, another form of beauty. A close-up of a 5'-diameter Ponderosa Pine, especially if you click on it, shows why some call it "Puzzle Tree."

The Illusion of Spring in the Fall

2011-11-11T19:39:00.001-08:00

I'd never visited the Butterfly Valley botanical area in the fall until today. I was quite surprised to see the fresh green look of the Pitcher Plants, AKA Cobra Lily (not really a lily), Darlingtonia californica. I expected the leaves to be brown and mostly smashed into the muck of the meadow. I have often visited this area in late spring when the flower stalks are also plentiful, and there are literally hundreds of other species of wildflowers in the area, including several species of Sundew. Since I only live about 6 miles from this spot, I plan to pay much more attention to the Pitcher Plant next spring and summer. I'd love to discover what pollinates the flowers. Might need to bring my mosquito repellant and camp out.

Messing Around before the Next Snow

2011-11-09T19:16:00.000-08:00

Most of our local wildflowers have acknowledged that summer is over and have gone to seed, as you can see from the dandelion and milkweed above. Others are not so sure. The top photo shows some newly-formed seed pods of filaree, AKA Storksbill, but the second photo, taken just a foot away from the first one, shows that some are still blooming. The bud of a cultivated peony surrounded by fresh-looking green foliage gives an impression of spring. There were several large, white blooms on this plant. They'll undoubtedly perish quickly if we get a significant snowfall this weekend.
Having grown up in New England, known for its unpredictable weather, I guess I have an enduring fascination with changes of season and the unpredictable nature of them in the mountains. While we're expecting a storm here at the 3,500' elevation, tomorrow I'm driving down to the Chico area, below 1,000', where they never get a true winter. In fact, the forecast calls for a 60-degree high and possibly a warm sprinkle. Compared to Quincy, it will look quite green and, as far as I'm concerned, it's the beginning of spring. I hope I get time to tip over a few logs and rocks and photograph some bugs. In Quincy, most are already secure in their winter resting places.

An End, or a Beginning?

2011-11-08T10:45:00.000-08:00

Why this photo, when the blooming is done for the season? I just sold an 8x10 of this image to a friend, and, in fixing up a mat and frame, fell in love with it all over again. The Crimson Columbine was blooming in this same friend's yard at least a month later than this species was going to seed everywhere else in the vicinity. There must have been something special about the microclimate in the shade on the north side of his house. This little area recently has been the home of some beautiful fungi and a very large toad.
On this very cold morning, my oldest daughter's birthday, I finally dressed for the occasion and thoroughly enjoyed a two-mile walk while waiting for an oil change. I'm now in a warm cafe, looking back on the morning. I just realized that I probably never looked up at the sky for the entire two miles. I was focused on the weedy ground in front of me, hoping to see the last few blooming flowers. I am still resisting the end of summer, even while looking forward to winter. I managed to spot one small patch of filaree with two blossoms. Then I came across lots of wild mustard. Got to thinking about cruciferous vegetables in general, even though the family name has been changed from Cruciferae to Brassicaceae. Somehow brassicaceous vegetables doesn't have that same 'ring.'
Among the many other thoughts I entertained on this walk, is my admiration for a book by Hannah Hinchman, A Trail Through Leaves. I am rereading the book. I managed to read Chapter 1, for about the tenth time, over a cup of tea. The result, I had to make the momentous decision whether to take out my highlighter or buy a package of Post-it(r)'s. I decided in favor of the latter. Then, I decided to start yet another journal. In fact, I'm calling this one "Yet Another Nature Journal." It will start off as a dialogue between myself and the passages I mark in Hannah's amazing book. Hopefully, at this point, my readers will understand the title of today's post. I'll keep you posted (pun intended).

I Was Wrong

2011-11-07T06:24:00.000-08:00

Last Thursday, just before the snow hit, I found only one Oak Treehopper on the branch where I had been watching them for two months. I brought her inside for photos - see Nov. 3 post - and wrote her obituary. Yesterday afternoon, in a bitter cold wind, I took another look at that branch and here was another treehopper. A little smaller than the one I photographed Thursday, this one was undoubtedly one of the progeny, probably wondering where all the others went. I brought this one inside for one last photo session, then returned it. I'd love to be able to track these to their winter destinations.
I'm pretty sure this will be the last post of Oak Treehoppers this year.

A Quick Walk in the Woods

2011-11-05T19:03:00.001-07:00

We took a quick walk into Boyle Ravine Thursday afternoon, hoping to photograph a few items that would likely get buried by the forthcoming snowstorm. It's now Saturday, and we've gotten very little snow. But I got photographs of a nice variety of fungi. Although not as photogenic, the ones that had not quite broken the surface but had pushed up little mounds of pine needles were the most intriguing. There were also patches of wide-spread caps of a given species that made one wonder at the underground mycelium connecting them all. As one of my professors used to say, "Don't call it dirt. It's soil. And it is a complex community made up of literally millions of organisms, not just broken down rock. The fungi, of course, are involved in many food-chain relationships with plants and animals. In fact, most plants are in obligatory relationships with soil fungi. Our hike lasted only about a half hour, but I saw enough to make me hope the snow will hold off a while longer. I need a few more visits to Boyle Ravine before I can accept its turning white for several months.

Soon To Be Soil

2011-11-04T19:12:00.000-07:00

Sole Survivor

2011-11-03T21:18:00.000-07:00

I was splitting my remaining firewood, anticipating the predicted snow storm, when I got the urge to check on my local family of Oak Treehoppers. The two branches they'd occupied since September 8 were bare of leaves, and there was just one treehopper remaining. It looked the like original mother of the brood. Rather than let her perish in the snow storm, I carried her into the house for a photo session on my hand. For a while she was too cold to move. As she got warmer, she wiggled around and righted herself, spread her wings, and got ready to take off. Then, true to her name, she hopped! Around two feet straight up, too fast for my camera hand, then took flight horizontally. My imagination went wild. I remembered seeing an Air Force VTOL craft take off just outside Oklahoma City one summer. I wondered how much fuel was consumed as an ordinary looking airplane rotated its engine-bearing wings 90 degrees to power the plane straight up. Then the wings slowly rotated into position for horizontal flight. It seemed like it must have been an incredibly wasteful operation, although obviously helpful if there were no runway available. In the case of the treehopper, I wondered how many molecules of ATP were involved in that jump, at least 100 times the insect's height. How many such jumps could it perform before recharging its mitochondria. The bugs seemed to sit still most of the time throughout the two months that I watched them. Didn't seem to eat much. I didn't get a chance to see how many times I could make her jump. My cat got her the second she landed on the floor. Probably a better fate than dying slowly in a snow storm. Thus ends my Oak Treehopper Saga for 2011. I hope to learn more about them from direct observation next year.

The Last Stand

2011-11-02T17:31:00.000-07:00

The forecast calls for wind and snow tomorrow. I thought this might be my last chance to photograph the Oak Treehoppers by my driveway. The cold weather and probably some built-in cycle of life span has reduced the several dozen treehoppers to just three. Two, a mother and child (now adult) are shown here, and the third one is about a foot away. The branch they've been occupying for two months has lost all its leaves, so it's a pretty lonely outpost in their last days. Don't forget to click on the photo for a closer view. Elegant insects!

Calm Before the Snow

2011-11-01T18:52:00.000-07:00

My squeamish followers have suggested that I get yesterday's image off the "front page" as soon as possible. So here are a couple of shots of the beautiful, bright oaks in front of Papa's Donuts. The snow storm on the way might end our colorful leaf viewing for the season. But these will remain here for those who want to reminisce during the winter.

How I Feel on Halloween

2011-10-31T18:41:00.001-07:00

ALIENATED!

Spring Forward

2011-10-29T18:57:00.000-07:00

I've been discovering little micro-climates around my home as the season of freezing nights and early morning frost moves in. Sometimes a dark-colored wall, or an evergreen shrub captures enough sunlight and converts it to radiant energy and in a small space spring-like conditions occur in a place that is mostly still freezing. So, on a 28-dgree morning, I tipped over a 1"x6" Douglas-fir board and found what looked like alfalfa sprouts. They were undoubtedly some species of weed that grows in that part of my yard every summer. The gravel actually felt warm to the touch while the neighboring gravel that was not covered by the board was still covered with frost. I love finding the worms, insects and spiders that are able to find these places, take advantage of them, and remain active for a few extra weeks while their neighbors either die or become dormant for the winter.

Time for an elevation change

2011-10-28T08:17:00.000-07:00

It was hard to get these photos yesterday as most fungi, colorful leaves, and insects in my vicinity have retired for the winter. There are only a few Oak Treehoppers remaining on my oak tree and most of the fungi have disintegrated. For a stimulus for new natural history themes, I have the urge to travel up or down a couple thousand feet. If I drive toward Chico, which is the more tempting option, I'll encounter Spring. From my perspective as a product of New England, Chico doesn't really have a winter. The brown grasses that dominate the scenery at the end of summer are starting to turn green now, and, to me, it's an early spring. Any time between now and the "real" spring, I can explore Bidwell Park and find new plant sprouts and worms and bugs under rocks and logs. The other option is to head eastward toward Reno and possibly swing through the Lakes Basin where a true winter is just around the corner. When I head in that direction during the winter extreme weather gets my attention more than the vegetation. I'm looking forward to photographing and writing about lots of new subjects as the season changes.

The End Is Near

2011-10-26T14:01:00.000-07:00

I've posted the top photo before. The point here is the contrast with the next two photos, taken this morning following our first hard frost of the season. For the past months and a half, two clusters of around 40 treehoppers each have occupied low branches of a California Black Oak near my driveway. This morning, following the frost, at least two thirds of them are gone and the remaining ones have spread out and no longer look like a community. I couldn't help but imagine them carrying little signs reading "The End Is Near." The next two photos are of the frost in my front yard, one of our nursery-bred yarrow and the other of leaves of our birch tree. The bottom photo is a repeat of some puffballs growing in our front garden. They already looked like little snow balls, so not much change there. This cold snap will cause sudden changes all around. Many trees loaded with colorful leaves are dropping those leaves today. I hope visitors who've driven long distances to see our fall colors will discover the many other wonderful sights our county offers and not go home disappointed. As usual, I suggest getting down on hands and knees and wandering around for a closer look at things. You'll discover wonders.

Some Quincy Biology

2011-10-24T19:40:00.000-07:00

The top photo notwithstanding, I've found it quite liberating to get my mind off the fall foliage. Plenty of other people are submitting nice photos of bright-colored leaves to the various Chambers of Commerce and Visitors Bureaus, and Plumas County is definitely a hot spot for enjoying fall colors. But I've been having a great time discovering fungi, invertebrates, seeds. and persistent flowers. The top photo here was taken in the Courthouse lawn, the bottom one on the side of Chandler Road, and all the rest in my front yard. Great fun, and a learning experience. In shooting the top photo, I barely beat the Leaf Blowers.

How Naturalists Find Things

2011-10-23T17:34:00.000-07:00

When we arrived near the northern end of Snake Lake, we looked over meadows that were mostly brown grasses, rushes and sedges. They all look more or less alike from a distance, although after repeated close observation one can remember different shades of green and recognize a patch of rushes or sedges in a field of grass while driving by on a freeway at 70 mph. One also learns that the rushes and sedges indicate wet areas. With repeated explorations and observations one learns to anticipate the presence of certain invertebrates. A lot of the fun and skill of naturalists has to do with anticipation. Anticipation and hope. One might visit a place known for eagles and hope to spot an eagle. It might take twenty visits before one is lucky enough to spot an eagle. However, if one visits with open eyes and mind, he/she will almost always see something else interesting.
When we got out of our vehicles and looked over the landscape, we saw that the meadows were punctuated by taller plants here and there. For the most part, these were the dried stems and branches of taller wildflowers such as mullein, certain thistles, and a few small trees like willow and alder. This is where the fun begins. As we approach an individual mullein or small tree, we mostly looked at the ground. I was the experienced naturalist in the group, but my companions kept spotting small bits of color amongst the dried up, brown vegetation. Perhaps a tiny red flower, or a tiny blue one. That's when we got on hands and knees for closer inspection.
While crawling round on the ground trying to identify tiny flowers, I spotted the Praying Mantis egg case in the top photo. Within seconds, one of my companions spotted a live, female Praying Mantis. It was a 3"-long, brown beauty. We noticed it had either a weird parasite or a serious injury on one side. Later when I enlarged the photos on my computer I was able to tell it was an injury and the large bubble on one side of its abdomen was a cluster of eggs leaking out of a laceration.
Then one of my companions spotted a mostly dried up Yarrow (2nd and 3rd photos) which had just a few white blossoms remaining. I decided to inspect the flower cluster more closely and spread the individual blossoms apart. This revealed one of our favorite bugs hiding out - the Ambush Bug. We never would have seen it had curiosity not set in. And, on any given day there could be quite a variety of possible denizens of these flower clusters. For example, a few minutes later we were looking closely at some 6-foot tall mulleins. As I explained their life cycle as biennials, we were probing every individual blossom and leaf for possible tiny critters hiding out. I ended up with a nice photo of a Carpenter Ant in one of the leaf axils (4th photo from top).
As we continued to wander around the mostly dry and brown meadow, we'd often spot some small areas of color among the brown. There were a few asters still blooming, a few yellow salsify, both native and non-native dandelions, and a very few thistles. I found the thistle pictured above particularly intriguing because the rather large plant was mostly dead, but there was this one blossom still bright red. There must have been at least a few xylem and phloem operating so the plant was not entirely dead.
Most of the dandelions had gone to seed, and recent rains and wind had set most of the seeds free. However, there were a few plants whose heads full of seeds had not yet opened. As the last photo above shows, just prior to opening, the head is wrapped in sepals that can be quite colorful.
It was quite rewarding to visit a scene that on first glance seemed to offer nothing much but dried, brown vegetation, then to discover in an hour and a half several dozen species of interesting flowers, bugs, seeds, cloud patterns, etc., and to share stories of prior outings and plan future ones. These past two weeks, students in my Adventures in Nature Journaling class and I have taken lots of photos and notes. You'll probably see us from time to time during the winter months in one of our local coffee shops perusing photos and entering notes and drawings in our nature journals. Reviewing these journals later is a great way to build the anticipation that will fuel another season of wandering. Meanwhile, as our weather changes into winter, we will do another kind of wandering with different expectations.

Today's Bugs and Toadstools

2011-10-22T18:14:00.000-07:00

A narrative accompanying these photos will be posted early tomorrow. They were taken at Snake Lake and in my woodpile.
Since posting these photos, lots of people have been asking me about the caterpillar in the fourth photo from the top. I didn't know what it was when we found it, but after some searching I've found it's likely a "woolybear" caterpillar, the larva of the Isabella Tiger Moth.

Riotous Reds

2011-10-21T20:03:00.001-07:00

Did some manual labor for a friend today and had no plans for photography, but the "fall colors" in his yard were irresistible. Bright red maples and a couple of interesting fungi. Meanwhile, on the way home I spotted a fantastic brown fungus around a foot in diameter. I hope it's intact in the morning. I drive by camera-ready.

Everything's Connected...Intermission

2011-10-20T19:15:00.001-07:00

My son Ryan is interested in natural history. I guess that's a family requirement. But, he's more inclined toward the physical sciences and engineering. He built this approximate cube out of 270 matches. No adhesives. The matches are interlocked. As with his origami projects, I'm always intrigued by the possible natural history connections. In this case, I haven't quite found the connection except to note that the matches are made from trees. That's good enough to qualify for being on my blog because it's a really cool-looking object.

In search of exotic fungi

2011-10-19T18:46:00.000-07:00

Beauty on the FRC campus! This afternoon I took a break from processing my photos of fungi from Snake Lake to look for a beauty on the Feather River College campus that my son told me about. He spotted it under an outdoor stairway between the computer lab and the admin building. The distractions began as soon as I pulled into the faculty parking area. I was confronted by a beautiful cherry tree (top photo) and a cluster of asters at my feet (second photo). As I began to walk up the paved path to the upper campus, I had to step into the little wet thicket where I have often seen attractive ferns, corn lilies, and other plants that like shade and moisture. This time I found the patch of Wild Ginger (third photo) looking very fresh. This is a great spot to catch a glimpse of their flowers in late spring. After that, I saw lots of colorful foliage and other attractions on my way up the path but figured I'd better turn off the camera or I'd never make it to fungi in question. When I arrived at the rumored spot, I was amazed. There was a patch of bright orange fungi surrounding the stump of a Ponderosa Pine. I assume they were probably feeding off the pine's decaying root system. There were also a few fungi of another type that reminded me of Brain Coral. Also nearby, I spotted a beautiful blue flower that I didn't recognize. Probably an exotic. Also, a couple of buds of what looked like young Snow Plant. Seems like the wrong season for these to be emerging from the soil, but that's what they looked like. I'll keep an eye on them during my thrice-weekly visits to campus. On my way back down to the parking lot I was struck by the beauty of a cluster of birch and cottonwood trees, both of which have attractive patterns of woodpecker holes in their bark. I finish off this baker's dozen with my favorite photo of the aforementioned orange fungus. Hopefully, tomorrow I'll get back to the project I started nearly a week ago of posting selected photos from last weekend's trip to Snake Lake.

The Wonders Never Cease!

2011-10-19T18:06:00.000-07:00

Ever since last Saturday's outing to Snake Lake I've been reviewing my photos of fungi and preparing to post a few with a summary of that trip. Then I take a break and walk around my front yard and up and down my driveway and there's always something new and exciting there that tempts me to push the other project aside. Above is a modest example of that. Two current photos of my friends, the Oak Treehoppers, and six of various fungi and slugs. The top photo was particularly intriguing to me because I had never before seen an adult treehopper perched with its wing covers or fore-wings spread aside and the under-wings spread, apparently ready for flight. As we approached fall during September, I was a bit nostalgic for the wildflowers I had seen during the previous spring and summer and a bit forlorn about what I thought would be diminished photo opportunities in the fall. I was very wrong. When I distanced myself a little from the Awesome Autumn focus on fall colors (meaning mostly red and orange leaves), I discovered all sorts of new plants and animals that I had overlooked before. It's been a very exciting fall. Lots to think about and write about during the coming winter by the wood stove and in local coffee shops.

Dead or Alive? Which One's the Real Rock?

2011-10-17T12:21:00.001-07:00

Last Saturday during my Adventures in Nature Journaling class at Snake Lake we saw dozens of different types of fungi, many of them very colorful. I keep getting distracted from the process of choosing a few to post here. Distracted by stumbling across more and more new (to me) types. The photos from Saturday can wait a while longer. The above four were taken today in my front yard.

Fascinating Bug of the Day

2011-10-16T17:15:00.000-07:00

A friend of mine found this Snake Fly larva (top photo) on her windowsill at home. The bottom photo is of an adult Snake Fly photographed by my son Greg last year in the Stanislaus National Forest or thereabouts. I had only seen the adults previously, and the rather long body, especially the head and thorax regions, look somewhat snake-like. But today, when I dumped the larva out of its container onto white paper it took off rather quickly and the whole body undulated much like a snake and I wondered if it was originally named after the larva. Quite interesting at it would spurt along a few inches then stay perfectly still for quite a while and look dead. Upon minor provocation it would then spurt another few inches in its snake-like pattern. I think I'll try to find out more about this bug. Fun to watch.

The Taming of the Shrew

2011-10-16T17:07:00.001-07:00

I found this cute little shrew, about the size of my thumb, curled up in a depression in my front yard. Unfortunately, I think it has been permanently "tamed." Probably one of our cats did it. Rather amazing little animals. Very high metabolism, and they have more teeth than we do. In a mammalian order called Insectivores. Seldom seen alive except by naturalists and biologists who seek them out - and my cats.
Had a great day at Snake Lake yesterday during the last session of my Adventures in Nature Journaling class. Saw at least couple dozen different kinds of fungi. Very colorful. Also lots of lichens and a few species of late-blooming wildflowers. Took over 100 photos. Will make some selections and post them here by tomorrow.

Bug Activity?

2011-10-14T14:52:00.001-07:00

In my previous post I said I was going to take a hike and look for more fungi and see if there was any bug activity. I found some of my favorite bugs still hanging around, but I wouldn't call it "activity." The treehoppers have occupied the same basic positions for a month and a half. Most of the young ones have become larger than their mom and have changed their color pattern. The pair on the right hand side in the second photo are particularly intriguing. They've been standing eyeball to eyeball for days. I wonder what they're thinking. The plant bug in the last photo is still hanging out on Tansy even though the plant has dried up and is shedding its seeds. It, too, stands still for hours if not days. Its metabolism barely distinguishes it from a rock, except when food or enemies arrive.

Fungi Erupting

2011-10-14T14:27:00.000-07:00

For a short while this morning it felt like I was back in Mendocino County. Cool, foggy weather and lots of different fungi have erupted from the layer of wet oak leaves lining my driveway. After lunch, I'm going to hike up hill a ways and see if they're erupting in Boyle Ravine. I'll also check whether there's still some late season bug activity. If the Oak Treehoppers are still around the youngsters should be as big or bigger than their mom by now. Hopefully there will also be some activity on the Tansy by the Boyle Ravine water tanks.

More Color of the Day

2011-10-12T20:30:00.001-07:00

When I got to Snake Lake this morning there were Yellow-legged Frogs hopping across the dam in both directions. Only one was willing to pose. The Cat-o-nine tails and Pond Weed were the most colorful foliage in contrast to the dominant green of conifers and the blue sky. Most of the red foliage I saw today was in town. Here I show a branch of the Black Oak in front of Papa's Donuts and branch of a Staghorn Sumac on Lee Way. The centipede already posted earlier was the highlight of my day.

My Version of Fall Colors

2011-10-12T19:52:00.001-07:00

I went out in search of fall colors, at least subconsciously thinking "leaves" but found more color in the roadside flowers. These are all still blooming along Lee Road and Quincy Junction Road.

Either it slowed down or I sped up

2011-10-12T15:38:00.000-07:00

I came back to the spot where I saw this centipede early in the morning and it was still there. This time it wasn't quite so active so I got relatively sharp photos. I love to watch these and compare their locomotion and food-finding techniques with those of millipedes. I recommend it. Free entertainment, and one usually ends up with more appreciation of their roles in ecosystems and less fear of them.

My Favorite Oak

2011-10-12T13:57:00.001-07:00

I'd estimate that 10% of the leaves on this particular oak tree have turned red. I'll add that this business of converting fall colors observations into percentages and trying to pin down a "peak" makes me very uncomfortable. There's the feel of commercialization behind it. There's also the feel of some sort of contest. As I wandered around my neighborhood this morning and took a brief drive up to Snake Lake and Meadow Valley, I was looking for photogenic subjects and also scouting for a location for the next session of my Adventures in Nature Journaling class that meets Saturday morning. I saw lots of pretty leaves and scenes, some of which I'll share with our local Visitors Bureau. I must say, though, my most exciting observation of the day was the centipede under a rock where I keep my trash can. Unfortunately it was too fast for me to get a good photo. I decided not to post a blurry one. Might try again this afternoon.
I keep asking myself, "What would Thoreau think of this 'leaf peeper' business?" Then I get an ever stronger urge for solitude. Maybe these thoughts are related to my attitude about changing our significant holidays to Mondays for the benefit of commercial entities. Today is the "real" Columbus Day. It is my parents' 71st wedding anniversary. My mom, being of Italian descent, considers this date to be very special. In recent years, as i've become closer to the Native American community, I appreciate that this date is celebrated by many as Indigenous Peoples Day. Mr. Columbus, after all, was not a very nice fellow. Now that I've got that off my chest, I'm going to select some more photos from this morning's wanderings and will post them later today.

Another denizen of my woodpile

2011-10-11T09:44:00.001-07:00

I don't yet have a positive ID, but I'm thinking this might be a male of some species of woodwasp, AKA horntail. With that bright orange and black abdomen, it should be easy to spot in an illustrated field guide, if it's there. I don;t have a technical manual on California insects. I'll keep looking.
Fascinating behavior. It just sits still, as in the top photo, unless i poke at it. Then it opens its wings, revealing the colorful abdomen, but is reluctant to fly. Possibly newly hatched and too soft to fly. No apparent inclination to sting. I suspect it can't. Smaller than the wood wasp I've shown here before. Body length about 5/8".
The over-sized pair of rear legs are a curiosity. They don't seem to be positioned for hopping, and they wouldn't be of much use for fighting, unless to ward off an attack from the rear. Could they possibly dig backwards into hiding places like seashore crabs? I really want to find out these things.
Hoping to hear from an entomologist.

Great Parenting

2011-10-10T13:17:00.001-07:00

We've experienced several rainstorms, a couple of snow flurries, and a wide range of other conditions since these treehoppers occupied a couple of branches on one of my oak trees on September 8. I should say that's the date I became aware of their presence. Most of the nymphs I had been photographing over the past month have become adults, although a different color pattern than their mom. Mom is still standing by, though. She's the olive drab one with pale yellow and orange spots. The other adults are the ones of similar size that have longitudinal red and white stripes. We have a week of sun in the forecast, so I'm predicting this will be the week they gain the strength and inclination to do what they do and fly away. I'll continue to check on them daily in case I should spot some other report-worthy behavior.

Get those nasty things off that lawn!

2011-10-07T10:32:00.001-07:00

When I stepped out of my car I heard the roar of internal-combustion engines approaching. Then I saw the leaf blowers and lawnmowers approaching. I knew I'd miss my chance to photograph those nasty red and yellow, maple-leaf-shaped splotches on the courthouse lawn. So, I quickly gathered up a few choice specimens, pressed them into my notebook, and ducked into Alley Cat to watch the cleansing operation. A few minutes later the courthouse lawn was returned to its Astroturf-like glory. I then drove home and photographed the invaders in the safety of my dining room. With a background of copy paper - not upstaged by the chlorophyll in the lawn - and here you have it. Evidence of our "Awesome Autumn" preserved in electrons. Actually, I might also seal these leaves in my journal under transparent Contac(r) paper.

Late Season Bugs

2011-10-06T19:16:00.000-07:00

There are lots of bugs that are not easily intimidated by the early winter-like weather. During yesterday's walk during a break in the rain, I found a small Goldenrod Crab Spider on Tansy after not having seen any of this species for over a month. Then, on another Tansy, I found two different species of bugs interacting. I'm not sure if they were fighting or just doing some inter-species socializing. I shook them both gently into my open hand and the shield-shaped plant bug played possum while the other started racing around my hand and eventually fell off. Today, after the snow stopped, I found both types as well as my friendly neighborhood Oak Treehoppers still hanging out on their favorite plants.

Booting Up at the Cafe

2011-10-06T11:51:00.001-07:00

This morning I woke up to a scene that some would call dreary, but I found it exciting. Sometimes any sort of change is exciting. Raised in New England, I have come to expect four seasons with all the thrills and complaints that accompany them. I used a large, waterproof envelope to shield my camera and capture two views of the storm in my front yard, then headed for one of my favorite "hangouts," an internet cafe. I noticed in this environment replete with many forms of caffeine and radio waves, that I was surrounded by fellow writers and artists booting up. Booting up brains on caffeine and computers on the WiFi service. This is a nice spot to eavesdrop on traffic entering town. I never thought of it this way before, but because of our split, one-way "main" street, the Alley Cat Cafe is a perfect place to see who's coming into town from the West. My other favorite meet-up place is Morning Thunder where one can observe who's leaving town in a westerly direction. Either way, the habit of holing up on a rainy/snowy day with other creative people is a pleasure and lots of what appears in this blog was hatched at one of these two locales. Thank you to the respective hostesses!

Wet Stuff, Part 2

2011-10-06T11:28:00.000-07:00

Here are some more images from yesterday's brief jaunt between rainy periods. I had the idea of a title, "Wet Stuff," before I took any photos. I actually set out to photograph water drops. But something unexpected always happens. The water drops on the back of a plant bug in yesterday's post was a particularly enjoyable find. Also, the wetness enhanced the green color of leaves so the leaves were not entirely upstaged by the water drops. One other exciting find was the group of fungi in the bottom photo. Actually, it might be a single fungus. The exciting thing was that they were growing on the underside of a rotting log. When I rolled over the log (as seen in the photo) it was apparent that the fungi had begun to grow downward, then negative geotropism took over and they curved upward. Hence, the curved stems. And, I just noticed that SpellCheck doesn't recognize the word geotropism. They need to upgrade their dictionary.

Wet Stuff, Part 1

2011-10-05T20:47:00.001-07:00

Around noon today we had a brief break in the rainstorm, so I wandered into the woods to see what was photogenic. The common thread here is hanging raindrops. More photos and text tomorrow morning about my discoveries on this half-hour walk. The rain quickly resumed, and at bedtime it had turned to snow. Not sticking yet, but I suspect it will before morning. Then I'll check on how the various invertebrates in the yard are responding.

Now I Can Sleep Better

2011-10-04T19:56:00.001-07:00

I've had trouble sleeping lately, and it has resulted in a cold. Today, I stumbled across a flower photo on a website that reminded me that back in April, 2010, I posted photos of the flower shown above that was growing in my dirt driveway. I couldn't identify it. Well, now I think it's Allophyllum gilioides, Purple Gilia, among other common names. Maybe a real botanist out there could confirm or correct this for me?

Front Yard and Treehopper Updates

2011-10-04T19:07:00.000-07:00

I leave a few short boards in strategic places around my yard as hideaways for the various slugs and bugs that may find respite there. Checking on them today, I noticed some gatherings of slugs, pill bugs, earwigs, and centipedes that looked suspiciously like awareness of the impending storm. Naturally, I wonder what specific conditions they are responding to. I also wonder how many will survive the storm. It is now raining pretty heavily and it will get colder tonight.
The Oak Treehoppers on each of the two branches I have been monitoring seem to have become more tightly clustered as if aware of the coming storm. Also, although I never counted (I should look at my older photos), there seems to be a bit of attrition. Predation? Or perhaps a few adults have flown the coop. I hope they survive the storm.

I rescued this milkweed

2011-10-04T16:32:00.000-07:00

On October 1st, I visited an old friend on the side of the road leading into Oakland Camp. When I first met this specimen of Showy Milkweed, Asclepias speciosa, it was lying flat on the ground with a badly injured trunk. On a whim, I propped it into an upright position with a couple of rocks. That was during the last week of June. Every day during the summer, I stopped to inspect this plant on my way to work at the camp. On days that I led nature hikes, we'd also stop and pay a visit. I photographed many different bug visitors including the Red Milkweed Beetle, the Small Milkweed Bug, grasshoppers, and several kinds of spiders. The camp season ended in mid-August. This past weekend, I was thrilled to see the plant still standing. The beautiful fragrant flowers are long gone and it is now sporting a couple of seed pods. The larger one is supporting quite a colorful colony of aphids. Click on the photo for a closer look, although readers who cultivate roses might want to demur. Personally, I would raise roses specifically to attract aphids. They are quite fascinating.

They did it!

2011-10-02T12:46:00.001-07:00

Yesterday there was just a hint that some of the juveniles would become brightly striped adults after their next shedding. Must have happened over night because here they are! Maybe by tomorrow the whole group will have finished the process. There are around 50 altogether on two neighboring branches. It's the Oak Treehopper, moving toward the top of the list of my favorite bugs.

Some Saturday Stuff

2011-10-01T19:53:00.000-07:00

I've been checking on my neighborhood colony of Oak Treehoppers every day. The nymphs are getting bigger, and a few have just shed for the fourth time. One more shedding to go, and we'll have some more adults. In the top photo, you see the mama on the right. She is a kind of olive drab color with yellow spots. Not nearly as colorful as her young. Well, a couple of the young ones look like they are going to turn into the other color pattern for adults, namely longitudinal red and white stripes. For a preview, just type Oak Treehopper into a browser and find a page of images. Or, just wait for my photos when these colorful adults appear.
The next photo is of the lone blooming Cinquefoil remaining in my yard. During this morning's walk with my nature journaling class, we came across a patch of dried up Cinquefoil that had gone to seed. I described the absent flowers as looking like buttercups but with more stamens and pistils like you'd find in a rose. They are in the rose family. When I got home I noticed this one last blossom.
At the foot of my driveway there's a very tall White Fir which is losing lots of cones. Most of them have small pieces of branch attached indicating they're probably being cut down by squirrels. When they reach a certain degree of dehydration they can fall apart explosively. I stepped on this one as a demonstration and the scales readily separated and made a tinkling sound like broken glass. Sometimes they get dry enough while still on the tree, then if they fall onto solid rock, as often happens in places like Bucks Wilderness, they explode and sound like breaking light bulbs.

How about those eyes?

2011-09-30T12:32:00.001-07:00

My local crop of Oak Treehoppers has maintained its position on my Black Oak trees ever since September 8, when I first spotted them. These nymphs have about doubled in size, and still have their brilliant coloration. They are about 6 mm long, halfway to adult size. They hardly move at all. The adult mama that perches nearby rarely moves either. When I poke her with a leaf or pine needle, she'll fluff her wings a little, but mostly crawls to the far side of the twig. She does that when I approach with my camera, too. Basically, pretty unflappable. Rarely cause any harm to the trees, and this year there are so few that it's safe to say they cause no harm at all.
I hope some of these will mature to the adult form that has red and white longitudinal stripes. That would be prettier than the current mom of the group which is sort of olive drab with pale yellow spots.

Been watching bugs too long!

2011-09-30T06:11:00.000-07:00

While everyone else is photographing the fall colors emerging on our broadleaf trees, I guess I've gotten a little carried away staring at our myriad species of insects and spiders. A friend showed me what happens. I might need to get back to looking at leaves and flowers, and get some skin cream and dark glasses.

Fall Colors Getting More Intense

2011-09-29T20:39:00.001-07:00

The top three photos today are of a small plant I spotted in a dry ditch near Quincy. It looks to me like a member of the nightshade family (tomato, potato, eggplant, peppers, and poisonous nightshade, among others), but I'm not sure. Click on a photo for a close-up. An elegant berry. Anyone recognize it?
The bottom three photos are a sampler of the fall colors appearing rapidly around Quincy: Oregon Grape, Maple, and Virginia Creeper. The native maples in town, Bigleaf Maple and Mountain Maple, tend to turn yellow or brown, but the many non-native types often get brilliant red and orange. There are too many non-native maples around town for me to keep up with - Silver, Norway, Sugar, etc., etc. One of Quincy's great features in the fall, and they're just getting started.

Winter Readiness

2011-09-29T07:07:00.001-07:00

Sometimes I enjoy Fall as an entity in itself, but most of the time I think of Fall as "getting ready for winter." That feeling can alternate between a sense of foreboding and one of excitement, depending on day to day events. I love photographing bees and bee-like flies, but if I get stung, the mood changes.
This post is headed by two photos of an oak tree in front of Papa's Donuts in East Quincy. I show off this tree - actually two trees - every fall because it displays more spectacular fall color than any other oak tree I've seen. As of yesterday, it sported two small clusters of flame-red leaves while most of the trees remain green. The next photo down is of a bee-fly on Chicory, the latter being a roadside wildflower that persists until the first snow or afterwards. The wolf spider in the next photo was seen in my friend's studio where it is undoubtedly making winter preparations. Next is a close-up of the type of Mistletoe that grows on conifers, this one seen on the trunk of a huge Ponderosa Pine. The Ambush bug, one of my favorite photo subjects, seems to rest on composites most of the time. All the ones I've seen this summer and fall have been on daisies, as shown here, and tansy as featured several times in recent posts. This head-on view shows the powerful-looking front pair of legs. Would be a great model for sci-fi thrillers. Last is a praying mantis egg case spotted on a window frame at the Co-op. I check daily, hoping to catch the emergence of hundreds of babies. They are "born" as miniature adults. Mantises 1/4" long a very cute. Oops! A friend and fellow naturalist just reminded me they don't hatch until spring. I'd have a long, cold wait. I just hope no window-cleaning person dispatches them.
I titled this post "Winter Readiness" because I'm reminiscing on an issue of the Green Mountain Gazette than ran 30 years ago and which we called our "winter readiness issue." The cover photo was one I took of my son Dave splitting firewood. I'm still in the middle of splitting firewood this fall and many of my photos are the result of my discovering interesting bug larvae in the logs, then getting distracted and wandering around the neighborhood with my camera. I hope you enjoy the results.

Subtle Fall Colors

2011-09-28T07:19:00.001-07:00

Mike's Yard Again

2011-09-26T18:15:00.001-07:00

He wasn't exaggerating! The largest cap is probably 9 inches across. Lots of growth since I last saw it a couple of days ago. Lots of other beautiful goings on, too. A Crimson Columbine in a shady spot is still putting out blossoms as fresh as in spring time. The pansies are stil looking great. They are actually domesticated violets. The red dragonfly, a species I never see at my house, seems to be the dominant type here on Chandler Road. And finally, a healthy crop of cherry tomatoes. Too many errands today, so I was on the run, but this half hour visit was rewarded by may great sights.

More Front Yard Stuff

2011-09-26T17:35:00.000-07:00

Hectic day, but I can't walk to the car without scanning my yard for photo ops. I planned to get a shot of the fungus in my lawn that has grown about 3 inches taller since my last post and has acquired some sort of tunneling bug, but on the way, I tipped over a small board and saw a pill bug shedding. I've been watching pill bugs all my life and until today had never seen one shedding. It was exciting. And, I was hooked. I had to look at a couple of my other favorite activity spots and got shots of earwigs, spiders, and a dense colony of ants. A few samples are posted here. Then I headed off to Mike's yard based on rumors that his lawn fungus is growing like crazy.

Beauty in Disease?

2011-09-26T08:39:00.001-07:00

My son found this leaf of Bigleaf Maple in the woods near our house and brought it home. We both found it beautiful. Some sort of fungus or lichen (black splotches) seems to have affected the rate at which chlorophyll disappears and reveals the yellow pigments that were previously masked by the green. Seems like a good model for camouflage clothing. Click on the photo once or twice for an enlargement and a better view of the details.

A Still Video Clip

2011-09-25T11:31:00.000-07:00

I almost titled this post "A Remarkable Piece of Engineering" or "A Remarkable Piece of Architecture," but those titles implied the existence of an engineer or architect, and I don't believe this critter was designed with forethought. Instead, it was a product of the greatest story on Earth, natural selection. I decided to call it a still video clip because I don't yet have the facility (in both senses of the word) to produce videos but the experience of taking a rapid sequence of stills of this critter felt like shooting a video. You'll have to use your imagination to get the video effect. I suggest clicking on each photo, once or twice, from the top down, and studying the details.
When I first turned over the 2-foot long piece of 2x6, I startled the centipede, but it was still cool enough that it didn't immediately run for cover. I carefully replaced the board then ran for my camera. When I got back, it was still there. It rather slowly (for a centipede) searched around in several directions for a place to find another dark hiding place. In some of the photos the head is a bit blurry while the tail is sharply focused, indicating that the head end was waving about, left and right, while the eyes and antennae participated in the search. Once it decided which way to run, it straightened out and sped up. This gave me the opportunity to enjoy the wave pattern of its many legs (or are they arms?). As I've written here before, it is quite interesting to compare the wave pattern of centipedes and millipedes.
Did you hear the one about the two centipedes in love who went for a walk hand in hand in hand in hand in hand.....?

Another Woodpile Wonder

2011-09-25T06:34:00.001-07:00

I think every kid loves crickets. But, then what happens? I found this beauty while scrambling to get my firewood under cover after hearing rainstorm warnings. I took it out to the lawn for a better background for my photo. Then I did a little internet research. Seems like a large group of kids grew up to hate crickets and become exterminators. Google mostly provided websites of exterminators. Booooo! Try googling "cricket anatomy" and you'll find all sorts of neat drawings of the common cricket types.
This one is usually called a camel cricket. Note, it has no wings and is tan. The field crickets, which are dark brown or black and have wings are the ones whose songs you hear at night. They both make good fish bait as well as food for your pet lizards. Nice antennae. Everyone asks me, "What's that pointy thing in back?" Most likely an ovipositor, although I'm not positive. The little appendages on either said of the base of the ovipositor are cerci (singular = cercus). Had an amusing time when I "googled" (when will it officially become a verb?) cercus and cerci and the browser gods insisted I was trying to find "circus." These are usually sensory organs, but in the case of earwigs, which have very large ones, they may serve as weapons.

A Great Day for Bugs

2011-09-24T20:54:00.000-07:00

These two photos are a hint of what a wonderful day it was for sightseeing in nature. Everywhere I saw tansy it was covered with grasshoppers and a bug I don't know, and, in one place a mating pair of Ambush Bugs. The Oak Treehoppers on my driveway oaks have been on the same branch for over two weeks. I assume the young ones are growing ever so slowly, but I was not able to measure them. I'd estimate these were about 1/4" long at most. Incredible pattern makes them look like little mechanical toys. More photos from today's adventures will be posted tomorrow.

In-town Wilderness for the Gourmet

2011-09-23T16:21:00.000-07:00

Had a wonderful lunch today at Cafe Le Coq (This is not a paid ad!), celebrating our 25th anniversary four days late. Not only was the food excellent, the outdoor surroundings were right up my alley. Sort of like having all the aesthetic qualities of my favorite jungle without any of the dangers. Great flowers, both cultivated and invasive. (I hate to use that word for beautiful weeds.) A beautiful Calico cat which I imagined to be a tiger, and a variety of attractive shrubs and small trees. A great little hideaway in the middle of town.

My Friend's Yard

2011-09-22T17:23:00.000-07:00

I was really proud of my lawn fungus until I saw Mike's. A fellow nature lover, he does keep his yard looking nice, but due to a good location with enough sun and water, the inevitable visitors show up to make things more interesting than a so-called pristine lawn. I've photographed many interesting insect visitors to his flowers and now some of the broad-leaf trees and shrubs are showing the first signs of fall colors. The Oregon Grape (third photo from top) is showing some briliant red leaves and is a popular resting place for several different butterflies. His maples are starting to turn red, too. I'll photograph those during my next visit. This coming weekend I plan to do more drawing and painting than photographing, so look for a corresponding change in my postings soon.

Why I Don't Mow

2011-09-21T13:11:00.000-07:00

I let my hair and my lawn grow for longer periods between mowings than suit most people. But, in neither case is it a matter of neglect. And, in neither case am I influenced by appearances. In the case of hair, it saves money. I let it grow until it feels uncomfortable. That's usually 5 to 7 weeks between haircuts, about twice or three times the permissible time if I had a job requiring a suit and tie. In the case of the lawn, it's more complicated. First of all, I'm acutely aware that lawns in general are an ecological disaster. They often require water and fertilizer above and beyond what the local environment can provide. Then there's the wanton use of pesticides and herbicides people use in order to acquire the Astroturf look. This plays havoc with the local ecosystems in many ways. Practically every place I've lived came with a lawn. I've never been bold enough to eliminate the lawn in favor of some other form of landscaping, and, in the suburbs, I've never been brazen enough to just let nature take its course. Where I live now, I strike a balance between appearances and enjoying the wild plants and animals that visit. Over the past two years, I've featured in this blog the following visitors to my lawn: Pacific Coast Chorus Frogs, Daisies, Dandelions, Thistles, Ladybugs, Slugs, Sorrel, Orchard Morning Glory, Pill Bugs, Bears (at least evidence of their visits), Field Clover, Spanish Clover, many kinds of insects visiting the "invasive" flowers, and now this - a wonderful, large fungus. Those who mow often are missing out on some wonderful entertainment and understandings of how nature works.