I got up around 7:30 this morning and by 8:15 was out the door headed to the Effie Yeaw Nature Preserve.  My former co-worker Nate Lillge was leading a hike there for Tuleyome.  It was 46ºF when I arrived, and Nate was already there, in the parking lot, waiting for his hikers: Alice and Amy.  It was a perfect day for walking, though, mostly sunny skies and temperatures that got up to about 57ºF before we left.

Start Time: 8:30 am
Start Temperature: 46ºF
End Temperature: 57º F
Weather: Mostly sunny
Total Hours in the field (includes travel time): 3.5 hours
Kilometers Walked: 3.75
Number of Individual Species Noted Today: 54

CLICK HERE for the full album of photos.

Nate walks a lot faster than I do, so I was lagging behind a lot, and there were several times when he just stopped and waited for me to catch up.  Each time, I brought up something with me, like a twig with lichen on it, or different kinds of fungi, or an example of Sudden Oak Death on a tree we passed.  Because we were moving so quickly, I didn’t get anywhere near as many photos as I normally would on a walk there but the exercise was good.

We got to see several deer, including one of the big bucks (a four-pointer), but mostly we saw and heard a variety of birds: Spotted Towhees, Golden-Crowned Sparrows, Black Phoebes, Turkey Vultures, Wild Turkeys, Northern Flickers, Canada Geese (flying overhead), Lesser Goldfinches, a Ruby-Crowned Kinglet, Nutthall’s Woodpeckers, Acorn Woodpeckers, Red-Shouldered Hawks… the usual suspects.           

We walked for about 2 ½ hours and then headed back to our respective homes.  It was really nice to see Nate again; I’ve been missing him and Bill. 

Species List:

• Acorn Woodpecker, Melanerpes formicivorus
• Anna’s Hummingbird, Calypte anna
• Barometer Earthstar fungus, Astraeus hygrometricus
• Black Jelly Roll fungus, Exidia glandulosa
• Black Phoebe, Sayornis nigricans
• Blue Elderberry, Sambucus nigra cerulea
• Brown Jelly Fungus, Jelly Leaf, Tremella foliacea
• Bryum Moss, Bryum capillare
• California Ground Squirrel, Otospermophilus beecheyi
• California Mugwort, Artemisia douglasiana
• Canada Goose, Branta canadensis
• Chinese Pistache Tree, Pistacia chinensis
• Columbian Black-Tailed Deer, Odocoileus hemionus columbianus
• Common Duckweed, Lemna minor
• Common Snowberry, Symphoricarpos albus
• Coyote Brush, Baccharis pilularis
• Coyote, Canis latrans [dashed by]
• Eastern Fox Squirrel, Sciurus niger
• European Starling, Sturnus vulgaris
• False Turkey Tail fungus, Stereum hirsutum
• False Turkey Tail fungus, Stereum ostrea
• Flax-Leaf Horseweed, Erigeron canadensis
• Golden Crowned Sparrow, Zonotrichia atricapilla
• Green Shield Lichen, Flavoparmelia caperata
• Horsehair Mushroom, Gymnopus androsaceus
• Interior Live Oak, Quercus wislizeni
• Lace Lichen, Ramalina menziesii
• Lesser Goldfinch, Spinus psaltria
• Mallard duck, Anas platyrhynchos
• Mazegill Fungus, Daedalea quercina
• Mourning Dove, Zenaida macroura
• Mower’s Mushroom, Haymaker Mushroom, Panaeolus foenisecii
• Northern Flicker, Colaptes auratus
• Nuttall’s Woodpecker, Picoides nuttallii
• Oak Apple Gall Wasp, Andricus quercuscalifornicus
• Oak Titmouse, Baeolophus inornatus
• Oakmoss Lichen, Evernia prunastri
• Pleated Ink Cap, Parasol Ink Cap, Parasola plicatilis
• Puffball Fungus, Bovista californica 
• Red-Shouldered Hawk, Buteo lineatus
• Rio Grande Wild Turkey, Meleagris gallopavo intermedia
• Ruby-Crowned Kinglet, Regulus calendula
• Russet Toughshank, the “Weed Mushroom”, Gymnopus dryophilus
• Saw-Whet Owl, Sophia, Aegolius acadicus
• Spotted Towhee, Pipilo maculatus
• Sudden Oak Death pathogen, Phytophthora ramorum
• Swainson’s Hawk, Buteo swainsoni
• Tule, Common Tule, Schoenoplectus acutus
• Turkey Vulture, Cathartes aura
• Valley Oak, Quercus lobata
• Water Fern, Azolla filiculoides
• Western Redbud, Cercis occidentalis
• White Finger Slime Mold, Ceratiomyxa fruticulosa
• White Horehound, Marrubium vulgare