All posts by The Chubby Woman

Mary K. Hanson is an author, nature photographer and Certified California Naturalist living with terminal cancer.

birding, Citizen Science, Firsts, galls, General Blog, Naturalist, photography, Surprises, Volunteering

Low to No Water at the SNWR, 05-26-23

May 26, 2023 The Chubby Woman Leave a comment

I got up around 5:30 this morning, so I could get the dog and myself ready to make the long drive to the Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge (SNWR). It takes about 2 hours to get there from the house. We stopped to top off the gas tank and get some coffee, and were on the road in earnest by 6:00 AM.

With the place nearly devoid of any standing water, it was more like a late-spring grassland than a wetland area.

There was a little water near the turnouts on the auto route, but not a lot. And I didn’t see any waterfowl in those areas.

Even the large “permanent wetland” pool was just barely full of water. It looked like it was maybe only a few inches deep, and when the coots and grebes swam through it, their knobby knees came up over the surface of the water.

This pond had recently been reformed, and along a large swath of the bank all of the vegetation had been completely removed. I didn’t understand that. The place is supposed to be a “refuge” for wildlife, but removing the vegetation meant the little Marsh Wrens wouldn’t be able to build their nests there, dragonflies and damselflies wouldn’t be able to emerge there, and the summer spiders wouldn’t have anywhere to build their webs.

The lack of vegetation does mean you have a much better view of the water. But with the lack of waterfowl at the moment and the shallow depths of the pool, there wasn’t much to see anyway. I also noticed that some of the “islands” that had stood in the pond previously, were now gone. That was upsetting because traditionally, cormorants and White Pelicans used to rest on those islands.

I DID get to see some of the usual suspects like the Coots, Canada Geese, the last of the migrating Snow Geese, Killdeer, Lesser Goldfinches, Meadowlarks and Mallards. In some places along the auto tour route, the Killdeer ran in front of the car, sometimes laying down in their “broken wing” displays — which meant they had nests on the ground around there. I drove really slowly, worrying all the while that I was inadvertently crushing the nests and their eggs hidden in the gravel. Yikes!

In the water of the permanent pool were a few Clark’s and Western grebes floating about, but none of them seemed to be paired up yet. There were also a few Pied-Billed grebes. One of them was hoot-calling to its mate; such a cool sound. I also got a little footage of a Black-Necked Stilt complaining about something. They’re so loud!

There was also a pod of Ruddy Ducks, males and females, and most of the males were in their breeding plumage, bright blue bills and everything.

I saw a couple of the males doing their courtship displays, which are really kind of hilarious. The males swim in front of the females with their tails and eyebrows raise high, then they thrum against their chests with their bills, making bubbles appear in front of them. Hah!

“…They punctuate the end of the display with a belch-like call,,, Everything about this bird is interesting to the naturalist, but almost nothing about it is interesting to the sportsman…” –– Cornell

I got a tiny bit of video of the behavior, but the birds were pretty far away, and sometimes had their back to me.

I had better luck getting some video and photos of the male Marsh Wrens, including one that was standing next to one of the nests it had built.

Along another part of the pond, there was nothing but Bird’s-Foot Trefoil on the bank. And in other areas there was Poison Hemlock, Blessed Milk Thistle, and teasel in various levels of blossoming. I also saw some Brass Buttons, Downingia, Spikeweed, Cocklebur, Smartweeds, and Dock. The Yellow Star-Thistle was just starting to emerge.

One of the things that surprised me was seeing a few different forms of witches broom on the mustard plants. The wild growth is caused by a kind of phytoplasma.

“…Phytoplasmas are obligate intracellular parasites of plant phloem tissue and of the insect vectors that are involved in their plant-to-plant transmission. Phytoplasmas were discovered in 1967 by Japanese scientists who termed them mycoplasma-like organisms…” — Wikipedia

“…Dr. Saskia Hogenhout, a scientist at the John Innes Centre in England, and her colleagues reveal that some of these creepy alterations are driven by the work of a single protein from the parasite called SAP05, which stands in the way of the plant’s maturation…In the new paper, they explain how SAP05 seems to drive some of the more surprising effects, like the life-span extension. ‘It looks like it stays in a juvenile phase,’ [she] said…” — The Indian Express

I didn’t see any evidence of the large orb-weaver spiders that usually inhabit the pond area in the summer, and I only found a few damselflies and dragonflies. Among the dragons, I only found male and female Variegated Meadowhawks. It’s still early in the season, though. A kind of Deer Fly with “crazy eyes” came into the car for a short period of time. I also saw some Sulphur and Cabbage White butterflies flitting around, but I was only able to get photos of a cooperative West Coast Lady butterfly.

As I left the pond area and headed toward the viewing platforms, I saw some Cliff Swallows darting back and forth, into and through a drainage block. [I assume they were building nests in there, and/or feeding nestlings.] Some of the fledglings sat among the tules, waiting for their parents to feed them.

Other critters I saw today were quite a few jackrabbits, a pond turtle, some Western Fence Lizards, and a California Ground Squirrel grooming itself.

Because I was in my vehicle for the majority of this trip, I didn’t count it toward my #52hikechallenge for the year.

Species List:

American Coot, Fulica americana
American Pipit, Anthus rubescens
Ash Tree, California Ash, Fraxinus dipetala
Bees, European Honeybee, Western Honeybee, Apis mellifera
Bindweed, Field Bindweed, Convolvulus arvensis
Bird’s-Foot Trefoil, Lotus corniculatus
Black Phoebe, Sayornis nigricans
Blackberry, Armenian Blackberry, Rubus armeniacus [red canes, white flowers]
Black-Necked Stilt, Himantopus mexicanus
Black-Tailed Jackrabbit, Lepus californicus
Brass Buttons, Cotula coronopifolia
Brewer’s Blackbird, Euphagus cyanocephalus
Bufflehead Duck, Bucephala albeola
California Ground Squirrel, Otospermophilus beecheyi
Canada Goose, Branta canadensis
Cinnamon Teal, Spatula cyanoptera
Common Spikeweed, Centromadia pungens
Dock, Curly Dock, Rumex crispus
Dock, Fiddle Dock, Rumex pulcher
Downingia, Flatface Calicoflower, Downingia pulchella
Dragonfly, Variegated Meadowhawk Dragonfly, Sympetrum corruptum
Eucalyptus, Tasmanian Blue Gum, Eucalyptus globulus
Flax-Leaved Horseweed, Erigeron bonariensis
Flies, Deer Fly, Chrysops sp. [many have wild-looking eyes]
Flies, Face Fly, Musca autumnalis
Grasses, Foxtail Barley, Hordeum murinum
Grasses, Harding Grass, Phalaris aquatica [a kind of canary grass]
Grasses, Rabbitfoot Grass, Polypogon monspeliensis
Great Egret, Ardea alba
Grebe, Clark’s Grebe, Aechmophorus clarkii [black above the eye]
Grebe, Pied-Billed Grebe, Podilymbus podiceps
Grebe, Western Grebe, Aechmophorus occidentalis [black through/below the eye]
House Finch, Haemorhous mexicanus
Killdeer, Charadrius vociferous
Kingbird, Western Kingbird, Tyrannus verticalis
Lesser Goldfinch, Spinus psaltria
Mallard Duck, Anas platyrhynchos
Mourning Dove, Zenaida macroura
Pacific Pond Turtle, Western Pond Turtle, Actinemys marorata
Pineappleweed, Matricaria discoidea
Phytoplasmas, Phytoplasma sp. [creates witch’s broom]
Poison Hemlock, Conium maculatum
Red-Tailed Hawk, Western Red-Tailed Hawk, Buteo jamaicensis calurus
Red-Winged Blackbird, Agelaius phoeniceus
Rough Cocklebur, Xanthium strumarium
Ruddy Duck, Oxyura jamaicensis
Rushes, Sea Clubrush, Bolboschoenus maritimus
Smartweed, Pale Smartweed, Persicaria lapathifolia
Sneezeweed, Helenium sp.
Snow Goose, Chen caerulescens
Swallow, Cliff Swallow, Petrochelidon pyrrhonota
Teasel, Fuller’s Teasel, Dipsacus sativus [flowers in bands]
Teasel, Wild Teasel, Dipsacus fullonum [flowers overall]
Thistle, Blessed Milk Thistle, Silybum marianum
Thistle, Yellow Star-Thistle, Centaurea solstitialis
Turkey Vulture, Cathartes aura
West Coast Lady Butterfly, Vanessa annabella [blue spots]
Western Fence Lizard, Blue Belly, Sceloporus occidentalis
Western Meadowlark, Sturnella neglecta
White-Faced Ibis, Plegadis chihi
Wren, Marsh Wren, Cistothorus palustris

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#52HikeChallenge, birding, Citizen Science, Firsts, galls, General Blog, lichen, Naturalist, photography, Volunteering

The Pipevine Swallowtail Caterpillars are Abundant at the River Bend Park, 05-24-23

May 24, 2023 The Chubby Woman Leave a comment

I felt really good after doing the chores I did yesterday, and was looking forward to doing some exercise today with a walk at the American River Bend Park. Third or fourth visit there over the last month or so, but I always see something different every time I go there. It was a gorgeous morning, 51ºF, clear, sunny, and breezy.

The American River was still way up. Water covered most of the bank areas and swamped the trees. Some of the trails that led down to the bank, now led right to the water. According to the Department of Water Resources, releases from the Nimbus Dam are currently at 15,000 CFS. That’s up from 7,521 CFS just last month. Wow.

The first thing I saw when I drove into the park was a young buck in his velvet grazing along the side of the road. I later saw a couple more deer near the equestrian area. I also saw a few Black-Tailed Jackrabbits, Fox Squirrels and California Ground Squirrels. I was hoping to come across a coyote (as there were signs all over the park stating there is an active den in the park), but… no such luck.

I didn’t see a lot of birds, although I could hear them singing and moving through the trees overhead. I did see some Black Phoebes, and watched as a House Wren brought bright green caterpillars to her fledglings for breakfast. They’re such cute little birds. I also found an old hummingbird nest held to the forked branches of an oak tree with spider webs.

The river was running so fast, I only saw two waterfowl braving the current: a male Mallard and a female Common Merganser. Across the river in the the high naked branches of a tree were several Turkey Vultures sunning themselves.

The big news for me today was: I saw lots and lots of Pipevine Swallowtail caterpillars ,in various instars, almost everywhere I looked. Although some had climbed up into the tall grass and Mugwort plants to warm themselves in the sunlight, I didn’t see any of them making themselves ready to form their chrysalises. CLICK HERE to see a video of the butterfly’s lifecycle.

I saw some of the butterflies flitting about, and was also able to catch a well-worn female to get some close-up photos of her. Her wings were ragged from dealing with males, winds, and the razor-edges of the grasses. As battered as she was, she was still very much a fighter. I took a few photos of her and released her back onto a pipevine plant.

In one of the photos above, you can see a caterpillar extending its bright, gooey, orange osmeteria. “…The everted organ resembles a fleshy forked tongue (not unlike a snake tongue)… [and emits] a foul, disagreeable odor which serves to repel ants, small spiders, and mantids…” It’s also said to have a foul taste.

The pipevine plants and Wild Grape plants were climbing along the ground and high into the trees. Some of the grapevines were already brandishing clutches of not fully formed “baby grapes”.

I was happy to see that the Orange Bush Monkeyflowers were out in force, as were the Elegant Clarkia flowers. I saw color variations from different shades of pink, to bicolored pink-on-pink, and pure snowy white.

Along with the common Oak Apple galls on the Valley Oak trees, I found a new-to-me gall on the leaves of an ash tree. There were a lot of shot-holes on some of the leaves, and on one leaf were hard little chambers that I believe were formed by the Ash Bead Gall Mite.

I was out for about 3 hours. This was hike #30 of my #52hikechallenge for the year.

Species List:

Acmon Blue Butterfly, Icaricia acmon
Acorn Woodpecker, Melanerpes formicivorus
Alder, White Alder, Alnus rhombifolia
Anna’s Hummingbird, Calypte anna [bird and nest]
Araneomorph Meshweaver Spider, Dictyna sp.
Ash Bead Gall Mite, Aceria fraxini
Ash Leafcurl Aphid, Prociphilus fraxinifolii
Ash Tree, California Ash, Fraxinus dipetala
Bees, Yellow-Faced Bumble Bee, Bombus vosnesenskii
Black Phoebe, Sayornis nigricans
Black Walnut, Eastern Black Walnut, Juglans nigra
Black-Tailed Jackrabbit, Lepus californicus
Blue Elderberry, Sambucus nigra cerulea
Broom, Spanish Broom, Spartium junceum
Bumpy Rim-Lichen, Lecanora hybocarpa [tan to brown apothecia]
Bur Parsley, Anthriscus caucalis
California Ground Squirrel, Otospermophilus beecheyi
California Mugwort, Artemisia douglasiana
California Pipevine Swallowtail Butterfly, Battus philenor hirsuta
California Pipevine, Dutchman’s Pipe, Aristolochia californica
California Scrub Jay, Aphelocoma californica
California Wild Grape, Vitis californica
Canada Goose, Branta canadensis
Candleflame Lichen, Candelaria concolor
Columbian Black-Tailed Deer, Odocoileus hemionus columbianus
Common Merganser, American Common Merganser, Mergus merganser americanus
Common Saint John’s Wort, Hypericum perforatum
Coyote Brush, Baccharis pilularis
Deerweed, Acmispon glaber
Eastern Fox Squirrel, Sciurus niger [rusty belly]
Elegant Clarkia, Clarkia unguiculata
Fennel, Sweet Fennel, Foeniculum vulgare
Grasses, Bristly Dogtail Grass, Cynosurus echinatus
Grasses, Greater Quaking Grass, Rattlesnake Grass, Briza maxima
Grasses, Pink Grass, Windmill Pink, Hairypink, Petrorhagia dubia
Grasses, Smilo Grass, Oloptum miliaceum
Iris, Yellow Water Iris, Iris pseudacorus
Lesser Goldfinch, Spinus psaltria
Live Oak Erineum Mite Gall, Aceria mackiei
Live Oak Folded Leaf Aphid, Stegophylla essigi
Mallard Duck, Anas platyrhynchos
Monkeyflower, Orange Bush Monkeyflower, Diplacus aurantiacus
Mourning Dove, Zenaida macroura
Mullein, Moth Mullein, Verbascum blattaria [thin stick, white or yellow]
Non-Biting Midges, Cricotopus sp.
Oak Apple, California Gall Wasp, Andricus quercuscalifornicus
Oak, Interior Live Oak, Quercus wislizeni
Oak, Valley Oak, Quercus lobata
Powder-Edged Speckled Greenshield, Flavopunctelia soredica [pale green, soredia on the edges of the thalus]
Rio Grande Wild Turkey, Meleagris gallopavo intermedia
Rose, California Wild Rose, Rosa californica [pink]
Silverpuffs, Silverpuffs, Uropappus lindleyi [pointed tips]
Strap Lichen, Ribbon Lichen, Ramalina leptocarpha
Swallow, Tree Swallow, Tachycineta bicolor
Tarragon, Artemisia dracunculus
Towhee, Spotted Towhee, Pipilo maculatus [heard]
Turkey Vulture, Cathartes aura
Vetch, Hairy Vetch, Vicia villosa
Western Bluebird, Sialia mexicana
Western Fence Lizard, Blue Belly, Sceloporus occidentalis
Western Hoptree, Ptelea crenulata
Wren, House Wren, Troglodytes aedon

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#52HikeChallenge, birding, Cancer, Citizen Science, galls, General Blog, Naturalist, photography, Surprises, Volunteering

This and That at Effie Yeaw, 05-21-23

May 21, 2023 The Chubby Woman

Around 6:45 AM today, I decided to go over to the Effie Yeaw Nature Preserve for a walk. My “cancer-leg” was hurting, around a “5”, but I thought the walk might loosen up the muscles and stretch it out.

I was surprised that it was actually cloudy and chilly at the preserve. I wished I had brought my jacket with me. The place was pretty quiet as far as humans went; I saw just a handful of people on the trails and most of them were around my age — and that made for a quiet restful place to walk this morning. No screaming children.

There was a lot of birdsong in the air, but I was unable to get photos of most of the birds — like the Black Phoebes, wrens and quails. I did get a few photos, though, of the ubiquitous Acorn Woodpeckers, Spotted Towhees, a Western Bluebird, White-Breasted Nuthatches, and others.

It was really a “squirrel day”, though. I saw them everywhere. Mostly Eastern Fox Squirrels — including one very pregnant female. But I also came across Western Gray Squirrels and a few California Ground Squirrels. One of the Ground Squirrels was a pregnant female who seemed to be standing guard outside her large burrow. As I watched, another Ground Squirrel came up from the burrow and relieved her. [You can READ MORE about the Ground Squirrels in an article I wrote in 2017.]

The Ground Squirrels and Western Gray Squirrels are native to California, but in many areas the Western Grays have been driven out by the invasive Fox Squirrels.

“…Both eastern gray and eastern fox were brought from the other side of the United States in the early 1900s and have been increasing their range and population ever since, both on their own and from humans deliberately spreading them through the state, unaware of the consequent damage to environment, agriculture, and property that would cause. Meanwhile, the western gray has decreased in range and abundance…” Bay Nature

A very pregnant Eastern Fox Squirrel, *Sciurus niger* [rusty belly]

Another reason why the Fox Squirrels outnumber the Gray Squirrels is because the Fox Squirrels breed twice a year, and the Gray Squirrels only breed once a year.

“…Fox Squirrels mate twice a year, from mid-December to early January and June. Gray Squirrels mate from December to February and May to June…” Welcome Wildlife.

As I was walking along — I took the Pond Trail –I noticed that the tree across from the 4B stanchion had been felled. That upset me because for several consecutive years the resident Red-Shouldered Hawks had used that tree to hold their back-up nesting site. The hawks cleaned and brought new material for a nest in that tree each year– even though they actually chose a different site to nest.

And worse than that loss was the fact that it looked like the “bee tree”, where wild honeybees had built and maintained a hive for several years, had been broken open, its different trunks split apart. I couldn’t see the entrance hole to the hive and didn’t see any bees there. A travesty. That made me so angry and sad. And it just seemed to really hit home for me that there is NOTHING in the preserve that hasn’t been disrupted or manipulated by humans tasked with “protecting” the space.

There are plots where they’re trying to grow more Showy Milkweed at the expense of natural plants and grasses. And there were outcroppings of Lupines and Fleabane that has escaped the confines of the gardens near the Nature Center and showed up near the river. I also saw what looked like dip-system lines and hoses in the “nature area”.

The river was running very high. There was so much water that some of it was gathered into a large pond that reach out very near to the trail. The geese were making use of it to exercise their goslings. I’m assuming the extra water is from the snowmelt in the Sierras.

I had been looking for deer in the preserve today, but only found a small group of them browsing on elderberry leaves near the large river-pond. They were all mostly in silhouette from where I stood, but I was able to tell that one of them was a young buck in his velvet.

I was happy to see that the wild, native Elegant Clarkia was starting to bloom near the river, and I found a few outcroppings of Harvest Brodiaea, a perennial herb that is also native to California. There was a little bit of the Miniature Lupine left in a few spots, and the California Trees were in bloom.

I was able to find a few more insects to add to my species list for the year including a kind of Darkling Beetle, a silverfish, and a Ground Spider (that looked like it was made of rubber). I also found a couple of galls including Oak Apples and a Fimbriate Wasp gall.

I realized, as I continued on, that I was often distracted by my pain, and I was keeping an eye on the trail under my feet where it was very rocky, so I wasn’t doing much of my “naturalist eye” thing. I wasn’t immersing myself in the environment, and I wasn’t looking for or seeing much detail as I normally might. [I’m thinking of my friend and my naturalist student Deborah Dash who died recently, and I am really missing her insights, comments, and her encouraging naturalist work right now.]

I was out for about 3½ hours and was tired when I got home. This was hike #29 o my #52hikechallenge for this year.

Species List:

Acorn Woodpecker, Melanerpes formicivorus
Aphids, Oleander Aphid, Aphis nerii
Araneomorph Meshweaver Spider, Dictyna sp.
Black Phoebe, Sayornis nigricans
Blackberry, Trailing Blackberry, Rubus ursinus
Blue Elderberry, Sambucus nigra cerulea
California Buckeye Chestnut Tree, Aesculus californica
California Ground Squirrel, Otospermophilus beecheyi
California Pipevine, Aristolochia californica
California Quail, Callipepla californica [heard]
California Scrub Jay, Aphelocoma californica
California Wild Grape, Vitis californica
Canada Goose, Branta canadensis
Columbian Black-Tailed Deer, Odocoileus hemionus columbianus
Common Hedge Parsley, Torilis arvensis
Coyote Mint, Monardella villosa
Crow, American Crow, Corvus brachyrhynchos
Darkling Beetle, Coniontis sp. [shiny, smooth carapace]
Eastern Fox Squirrel, Sciurus niger [rusty belly]
Elegant Clarkia, Clarkia unguiculata
European Starling, Sturnus vulgaris
Fimbriate Gall Wasp, Andricus opertus [on Valley Oak leaf]
Frog, American Bullfrog, Lithobates catesbeianus
Ground Spider, Zelotes sp.
Hairy Curtain Crust, Stereum hirsutum
Harvest Brodiaea, Brodiaea elegans
Killdeer, Charadrius vociferous [flyover, heard]
Leafy Fleabane, Erigeron foliosus
Lupine, Chick Lupine, Lupinus microcarpus [yellow, white]
Lupine, Miniature Lupine, Lupinus bicolor
Mexican Social Spider, Mallos sp. [tiny, body like an Orbweaver]
Milkweed, Showy Milkweed, Asclepias speciosa
Mourning Dove, Zenaida macroura
Oak Apple, California Gall Wasp, Andricus quercuscalifornicus
Oak Titmouse, Baeolophus inornatus
Oak, Blue Oak, Quercus douglasii
Oak, Coast Live Oak, Quercus agrifolia
Oak, Interior Live Oak, Quercus wislizeni
Oak, Valley Oak, Quercus lobata
Olive, Olea europaea
Penstamon, Bunchleaf Penstemon, Penstemon heterophyllus
Poison Hemlock, Conium maculatum
Red-Shouldered Hawk, California Red-Shouldered Hawk, Buteo lineatus elegans
Rio Grande Wild Turkey, Meleagris gallopavo intermedia
Silverfish, Allacrotelsa spinulata
Swallow, Tree Swallow, Tachycineta bicolor [flyover]
Thistle, Italian Thistle, Carduus pycnocephalus
Towhee, Spotted Towhee, Pipilo maculatus
Turkey Vulture, Cathartes aura
Western Bluebird, Sialia mexicana
Western Gray Squirrel, Sciurus griseus
White-Breasted Nuthatch, Sitta carolinensis
Wren, House Wren, Troglodytes aedon [glimpsed, heard]
Yarrow, Common Yarrow, Achillea millefolium
Yerba Santa, California Yerba Santa, Eriodictyon californicum
??? Ladybeetle eggs

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#52HikeChallenge, birding, Cancer, Citizen Science, Firsts, galls, General Blog, Medical/Cancer, Naturalist, photography, Surprises, Volunteering, wildflowers

Lots to See at Mather Lake, 05-15-23

May 15, 2023 The Chubby Woman

Around 7:00 this morning I headed over to the Mather Lake Regional Park for a walk. It was already 56ºF when I got to the park and was over 77ºF by the time I left just a few hours later.

I was looking for whatever galls might be out there, but was also open to looking for just about whatever caught my eye. As I was walking in, I met another photographer who wanted to get photos of the Mute Swan cygnets that had been reported there. The fluffy white cygnets are always fun to see; I asked him to let me know if/when he found them. A few minutes later he returned and said, “They’re on the other side of the lake. I may have to drive over there and see if I can view them from the road.” I was able to get a couple of VERY distant photos of them, but I hope he had better luck.

The swans are non-natives and can displace the native geese for food and nesting sites. The flock at Mather Park expands and contracts with the birth, development, and flights of the cygnets there.

According to Cornell: “…Females and males similar in size at hatching, but females slightly lighter; after about 2 wk, males larger than females. Tarsus and neck length follow similar growth patterns as mass; thus cygnets must learn to swim and feed before they can fly…”

Along with the swans, I also saw both Downy and Nuttall’s Woodpeckers. At one spot, there were two male Nuttall’s chasing each other around a tree, but they moved so quickly it was hard to get any photos of them.

There were also Canada Geese (some with goslings], Red-Wing and Brewer’s Blackbirds, and Great-Tailed Grackles. I saw a Kingbird gathering nesting materials, and saw several Tree Swallows claiming and using nests. The swallows and the Western Bluebirds often compete for nesting spots — they both use cavities to nest in — and I saw a female Western Bluebird sitting on the sidelines, seemingly waiting for the swallows to settle down somewhere.

I also saw some male House Wrens singing around their nesting spots, a male Anna’s Hummingbird displaying from the top of a tree and a Scrub Jay looking for food on the ground. I startled a Great Blue Heron from the edge of the lake where I was walking, and he flew off over to the opposite side of the lake. Surprisingly, I didn’t see any ducks or coots.

I saw a nest near the top of a telephone pole, but I couldn’t see the bird who took off suddenly from it to identify it. I didn’t check the restroom facility to see if the Cliff Swallows were building nests in there like they did last year.

There were a lot of different and new-to-me flies buzzing all around, and a few beetles snuggled up in the hawkbit flowers and thistles. At a spot on the trail where there was some still-wet goose excretion, a troupe of flies and a larger metallic green Hairy Maggot Blow Fly were puddling. [The video isn’t very long because my battery went out while I was filming them.]

I did eventually get to see some galls including the galls made by Coyote Brush Rust, the Willow Apple Gall Sawfly, and the Willow Bead Gall Mite. When my friend Roxanne and I were last out together, we looked for new pinecone galls on the willows, but only found old ones from last year. Today, I found ones that were just emerging: some in clusters that looked like small heads of cauliflower, and others that looked like rosettes. I’d never seen them this “young” before.

Among the plants and trees were the usual: Goodding’s and Narrowleaf willows, Fremont’s Cottonwoods, Coast Live Oaks. And I also photographed the Cork Oaks, some of the grasses and rushes, Tree of Heaven, Turkey Tangle Frogfruit flowers, thistles and more. And the Woolly Marbles were looking very woolly along the sides of the trail.

Going back to the car after my walk, I think I was suffering the effects of heat exhaustion and could barely make it from the lake to the parking lot, and my “cancer leg” was killing me. It doesn’t take much heat to affect me because, since chemo, my body has trouble thermoregulating. Even in the 77ºF weather, I was suffering from exhaustion, slight dizziness, and and inability to walk very far. I’d tell myself to “just get to that next spot of shade” or “just get that telephone pole” or “now, just get to that fence and you can rest for a moment.” And little buy little, I moved myself forward.

It took me about 30 minutes to get to the car, where I was able to collapse in the front seat, and drink some water with the air conditioner blasting at me. Plah! I thought I was being careful about how much I walked, but the heat snuck up on me. These days, I really should get out by 6:00 for my walks to beat the quickening heat of the early afternoons.

As I drove out of the parking lot, a Western Fence Lizard greeted me from the heights of its rock mountain.

I took Zinfandel Drive to Jackson/Highway 16 East, using the dirt road that runs by the vernal pools, and was very surprised to see several stands of White Brodiaea and a long stand of Narrowleaf Mule’s Ears which I had never seen there before. Amazing. The deep rains earlier in the year must have awakened their seeds and bulbs.

I walked for about 3 hours before heading back home. This was hike #28 of my #52hikechallenge for the year. When I got back home, my leg was in so much pain I had to take the last of my heavy duty pain pills — and then was in medication-induced stupor for the rest of the day. Man that stuff is brutal! But it DID relieve my pain.