DAY 13 OF MY VACATION. I got up around 6 o’clock this morning and headed out to the Cosumnes River Preserve. I was looking for damselflies and dragonflies; it’s early in the season but as the weather is turning warmer, I thought they should be starting to emerge… It got up to 85º today…

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At the preserve, I didn’t see a lot of dragon- or damselflies, but I did find a great example of exuvia – the exoskeleton left behind when a dragonfly leaves its aquatic body and emerges as a winged dragonfly. I was able to get a lot of close-up photos of it.  I also saw two garter snakes and got some photos of the Virginia Rail and she scurried back and forth getting bugs for her babies.  And for some reason there were a lot of crayfish all over the place; most of them in areas where the egrets and herons couldn’t get in to eat them. They must’ve figured out where it was safer… I also saw quite a few tiny Pacific Tree Frogs, and came across a small Tadpole snail.  I’m always surprised when I’m able to catch sight of the teeny stuff like that…

When I got to the preserve its was 54º, but by the time I left it was already 76º — which is “too hot” for walking.  I walked for about 4 ½ hours… and was exhausted by the time I got back home. My feet and ankles just can’t take walks that long anymore…