More Jumping Galls and Scale, 07-17-20

Around 6:30 I headed over to William Land Park, again, to check on the jumping galls and iceplant scale. I wanted to see if they’d increased or matured in any way since I last saw them on Monday when I went to the zoo.

There were only a few jumping galls out on Monday, but significantly more have dropped from the leaves of the trees and onto the ground now. There were long swaths of them in the gutters along the parking lot, and many more of them gathered under fallen leaves. I was able to get a “pinch” of them into the palm of my hand so I could feel them moving, and vibrating and jumping. So cool!

CLICK HERE for the full album of photos and look for more videos at my YouTube site.

Nearby, on the iceplant, I checked out the Iceplant Scale again, hoping to see eggs this time. Well, I was too late for the eggs, but I did get to see quite a few of the babies and larger scale insects that didn’t have their scale “shells” yet. I’d never seen that before.

Because of the summer heat, there’s not a lot flowering in the garden right now, so not a lot to look at there. The pond is still totally overgrown with Sacred Lotus, most of it going to seed.

While I walked once around the pond, taking photos of the flowers, a pair of Asian ladies did a fast-walk around the same pond THREE TIMES. Hah!

Lot of geese and domestic ducks in the pond, but nothing unusual. I did see a light-morph female Mallard who had two ducklings with her. One of the babies wasn’t really ready to be awake yet, and kept snoodling down in against her feathers to sleep. They’re so cute.

Mama Mallard, Anas platyrhynchos, and her ducklings

I was at the park for about 90-minutes and then headed back home.

Species List:

Aster, Pacific Aster, Symphyotrichum chilense [small purple-blue flowers with yellow center]
Bear’s Breeches, Acanthus mollis
Black Phoebe, Sayornis nigricans
Bull Thistle, Cirsium vulgare
California Pipevine, Dutchman’s Pipe, Aristolochia californica
Common Crow, Corvus brachyrhynchos
Common Toadflax, Linaria vulgaris [kind of looks like snapdragon]
Cutleaf Teasel, Dipsacus laciniatus
Dense-flowered Mullein, Verbascum densiflorum
House Holly-Fern, Cyrtomium falcatum
Iceplant, Pigface Iceplant, Highway Iceplant, Carpobrotus edulis
Iceplant Scale, Pulvinariella mesembryanthem
Jumping Oak Gall Wasp, Neuroterus saltatorius
Leaf Gall Wasp/ Unidentified per Russo, Tribe: Cynipidi [on Valley Oak]
Mallard duck, Anas platyrhynchos
Mission Prickly-Pear Cactus, Opuntia ficus-indica
Narrowleaf Milkweed, Asclepias fascicularis
Nightshade, Kangaroo-Apple Nightshade, Solanum laciniatum
Oceanblue Morning Glory, Ipomoea indica
Pleated Ink Cap, Parasol Ink Cap, Parasola plicatilis
Queen Anne’s Lace, Wild Carrot, Daucus carota
Red Amaranth, Cock’s Comb, Amaranthus cruentus
Sacred Lotus, Nelumbo nucifera
Santa Cruz Island Wild Buckwheat, Eriogonum arborescens
Strawberry Tree, Arbutus unedo
Sweet Four-o’Clock, Mirabilis longiflora [white flower, long pink stamens]
Wand Mullein, Verbascum virgatum
Western Lily, Lilium occidentale
Western Marsh Rosemary, Sea Lavender, Limonium californicum
White Sage, Salvia apiana