I got up around 6:30 this morning and got myself ready to go out to the Cosumnes River Preserve with my friend Roxanne. Roxanne had a new camera she’d gotten for her birthday, a Lumix, and she wanted to test it out.

My cancer pain level was at about a 2 or 3 (instead of an 8 or 11), so I was hoping to do some real walking; I was hoping to make a mile — which I haven’t been able to do since my surgery on October 8^th. We weren’t really looking for anything in particular; we really just wanted to get outside and moving so we were open to anything Nature wanted to show us. And she showed us quite a bit: birds, squirrels, lichen, galls, fungi, even a slime mold. Cool.

It was cool outside with some lingering fog and a dense overcast. Not really “cold” but I did need to wear my jacket while I was out of the car.

We took Franklin Road to Twin Cities rather than going along the freeway (because a lot of the freeway on/off ramps were closed for construction). At one cow pasture, we could see hundreds of birds flying overhead and collecting on the roof of the pasture’s hay barn. Starlings. Their noise was incredible.

A little further along the road, we saw a pair of ravens in the top of a tree. They were touching beaks, but I couldn’t tell if they were “kissing” or if one was feeding the other.  I know ravens are monogamous; maybe this was a male/female pair strengthening their pair bond.

Among the raptors, we saw Red-Tailed Hawks, Red-Shouldered Hawks, Kites, Kestrels and Northern Harriers, and some Turkey Vultures.

Among the smaller birds, we saw Savannah Sparrows, House Finches, White-Crowned and Golden Crowned Sparrows, Brewer’s Blackbirds, Red-Winged Blackbirds, Meadowlarks, Black Phoebes, and Magpies.

In some of the fields, we saw Sandhill Cranes (usually among flocks of Greater White-Fronted Geese that had settled onto the ground at their feet). There were also a few Snow Geese in the mix, some of them juveniles still in their “blue goose” coloring.

In the shallow waters we also saw Black-Necked Stilts, Least Sandpipers, Greater Yellowlegs, and Long-Billed Dowitchers and several Great Egrets. And among the ducks we saw were Green-Winged Teals, Cinnamon Teals, Mallards, Northern Pintails and Northern Shovelers… Oh, and American Coots.

CLICK HERE for the full album of photos.

We chanced across a few of the common, early season mushrooms including Meadow Mushrooms, Scurfy Twiglets, some kind of chanterelle, Yellow Fieldcaps, some tiny Oak Leaf Pinwheels (which I, at first, mistook for Horsehair Fungi), and some pretty little Peeling Oysterlings.  We weren’t really looking for them, so they were a nice surprise.

The slime mold we found was an almost-used-up specimen of Chocolate Tube Slime, Stemonitis splendens. It was right on the verge of going totally to spore. We found it on a stick laying by the road.

Checking out other sticks and stumps we found a variety of crust fungi, including some Giraffe Spot, and some really beautiful tooth fungi: one bright yellow orange, and one pure white with huge “teeth”.  There was also some bright green Trichoderma viride fungi thrown in the mix of things on the sticks.

Among the lichens we found were Green Shield, Common Sunburst, Hooded Rosette, and Western Strap Lichen. All of those are pretty common and visible almost everywhere in this area.

Because of the lingering fog and overcast, I was hoping to see some Orbweaver spider webs decorated with dew, but no such luck. We DID find sheet web and funnel webs with the droplets on them, however.

We came across several Eastern Fox Squirrels, some of them foraging in the leaf litter, others pulling down twigs and leaves to make their dreys. They’re so accustomed to humans along the trail that they let us get pretty close to them before scurrying off.

Between the drive and the walking we did along the River Trail at the preserve, we were out for almost 6 hours! Although I was totally exhausted at the end of the walk (I hadn’t done that much in weeks), I was very happy and exhilarated that I was able to do it.  Nature heals.

This was hike #85 of my annual hike challenge.

Before going home, we stopped at Huckleberry’s restaurant in Elk Grove for a late breakfast-for-lunch lunch. Everything on the menu looked sooooo appetizing; whoever took the photos for that did an excellent job. I wanted to eat EVERYTHING. I ended up ordering the steak and eggs combo with potatoes and huckleberry tea. Ummm… And a bacon Bloody Mary, of course. Hah! Oh…and green fried tomatoes. Never had them before and they were super yummy. Both Rox and I noticed they featured catfish on the lunch menu, so we’ll need to go back soon and get some of that. I love catfish.

We got back home around 3:30 pm, so it was a long but very fun day. Thank you, Rox.  And thank you, too, to Melissa who kept an eye on Esteban all day.

Species List:

1. Alcoholic Flux bacteria, Foamy Canker, Slime Flux, Phytophthora sp. X other bacteria [white, brown or black ooze with a yeasty, sour beer smell.]
2. American Coot, Fulica americana
3. American Kestrel, Falco sparverius
4. Ash Flower Gall Mite, Ash Key Gall Mite, Aceria fraxiniflora
5. Belted Kingfisher, Megaceryle alcyon [heard]
6. Black Phoebe, Sayornis nigricans
7. Black-Necked Stilt, Himantopus mexicanus
8. Black Walnut, Eastern Black Walnut, Juglans nigra
9. Brewer’s Blackbird, Euphagus cyanocephalus
10. Briar Rose, Sweet Briar, Rosa rubiginosa [rose hips]
11. California Scrub Jay, Aphelocoma californica
12. California Wild Grape, Vitis californica
13. Chanterelle Mushroom, Cantharellus sp.
14. Chocolate Tube Slime Mold, Stemonitis splendens
15. Cinnamon Teal, Spatula cyanoptera
16. Clustered Gall Wasp, Andricus brunneus
17. Coast Live Oak, Quercus agrifolia
18. Common Sunburst Lichen, Golden Shield Lichen, Xanthoria parietina [yellow-orange,on wood/trees]
19. Cottonwood Petiole Gall, Poplar Petiole Gall Aphid, Pemphigus populitransversus
20. Coyote Brush Bud Gall midge, Rhopalomyia californica
21. Coyote Brush, Baccharis pilularis
22. Crow, American Crow, Corvus brachyrhynchos
23. Double-Crested Cormorant, Phalacrocorax auratus
24. Dunlin, Calidris alpina
25. Eastern Fox Squirrel, Sciurus niger
26. European Praying Mantis, Mantis religiosa [flat body in adults; ootheca is like a football shape, most common one we see]
27. European Starling, Sturnus vulgaris
28. Flat-Topped Honeydew Gall Wasp, Disholcaspis eldoradensis
29. Fremont’s Cottonwood, Populus fremontii
30. Funnel Weaver Spider, Family: Agelenidae
31. Giraffe Spots Crust Fungus, Peniophora albobadia
32. Golden-Crowned Sparrow, Zonotrichia atricapilla
33. Great Egret, Ardea alba
34. Greater White-Fronted Goose, Anser albifrons
35. Greater Yellowlegs, Tringa melanoleuca
36. Great-Tailed Grackle, Quiscalus mexicanus [heard/glimpsed in parking lot]
37. Green Shield Lichen, Flavoparmelia caperat
38. Green Trichoderma Mold, Trichoderma viride
39. Green-winged Teal, Anas crecca
40. Hoary Rosette Lichen, Physcia aipolia [hoary, brown apothecia]
41. Hooded Rosette Lichen, Physcia adscendens [hairs/eyelashes on the tips of the lobes]
42. House Finch, Haemorhous mexicanus
43. House Wren, Troglodytes aedon [nesting box]
44. Interior Live Oak, Quercus wislizeni
45. Jumping Oak Gall Wasp, Neuroterus saltatorius
46. Killdeer, Charadrius vociferous
47. Least Sandpiper, Calidris minutilla
48. Mallard Duck, Anas platyrhynchos
49. Marsh Wren, Cistothorus palustris
50. Meadow Mushroom, Agaricus campestris [white, collared, pink/dark gills]
51. Mediterranean Mantis, Iris Mantis, Iris oratoria [thin narrow ootheca]
52. Mourning Dove, Zenaida macroura
53. Mushroom Fungus, Syzygites megalocarpus
54. Northern Harrier, Marsh Hawk, Circus hudsonius
55. Northern Pintail, Anas acuta
56. Northern Shoveler, Anas clypeata
57. Oak Apple, California Gall Wasp, Andricus quercuscalifornicus
58. Oak-Leaf Pinwheel Mushroom, Collybiopsis quercophila [tiny, on leaf litter]
59. Ocre Spreading Tooth Fungus, Steccherinum ochraceum
60. Orange Crust Fungus, Mycoacia sp.
61. Peeling Oysterling Mushroom, Crepidotus mollis [small oyster mushroom on sticks/bark]
62. Raven, Common Raven, Corvus corax
63. Red Cone Gall Wasp, Andricus kingi
64. Red-Shouldered Hawk, Buteo lineatus
65. Red-Tailed Hawk, Western Red-Tailed Hawk, Buteo jamaicensis calurus
66. Red-Winged Blackbird, Agelaius phoeniceus
67. Rice, Oryza sativa
68. Rio Grande Wild Turkey, Meleagris gallopavo intermedia
69. Rough Cocklebur, Xanthium strumarium
70. RRD, Rose Rosette Disease, Emaravirus sp. [excessive thorniness]
71. Ruby-Crowned Kinglet, Regulus calendula
72. Sandhill Crane, Grus canadensis
73. Savannah Sparrow, Passerculus sandwichensis
74. Say’s Phoebe, Sayornis saya
75. Scurfy Twiglet Mushroom, Tubaria furfuracea [small, pale orange, wide gills]
76. Seven-Spotted Lady Beetle, Coccinella septempunctata
77. Sheet Weaver Spiders, Family: Linyphiidae
78. Snow Goose, Chen caerulescens
79. Spined Turban Gall Wasp, Cynips douglasii [summer gall, pink, spikey top]
80. Spotted Towhee, Pipilo maculatus [heard]
81. Stable Fly, Stomoxys calcitrans
82. Strap Lichen, Western Strap Lichen, Ramalina leptocarpha [without soredia]
83. Toothed Crust Fungus, Antrodia sp.
84. Tule, Common Tule, Schoenoplectus acutus
85. Turkey Vulture, Cathartes aura
86. Valley Oak, Quercus lobata
87. Water Hyacinth, Eichhornia crassipes
88. Western Meadowlark, Sturnella neglecta
89. White Ash Tree, Fraxinus americana
90. White Tailed Kite, Elanus leucurus
91. White-Crowned Sparrow, Zonotrichia leucophrys
92. Willow Apple Gall Sawfly, Pontania californica
93. Willow Bead Gall Mite, Aculus tetanothrix
94. Yellow Fieldcap Mushroom, Bolbitius titubans
95. Yellow-Billed Magpie, Pica nuttalli
96. ?? moss on a downed log
97. ?? oak with “sunburned” leaves
98. ?? tiny insects on willow leaves