Here is my running species list for 2021. I’m including those I’ve taken photos of, heard, saw without getting a photo of, or found tracks/scat that I could identify. You can see last year’s species list HERE.
Total Species Identified in 2021: 254
JAN | FEB | MAR | APR | MAY | JUN |
254 | |||||
JULY | AUG | SEPT | OCT | NOV | DEC |
Arachnids:
- California Turret Spider, Antrodiaetus riversi
- Sheet Weaver Spiders, Family: Linyphiidae
Birds:
- Acorn Woodpecker, Melanerpes formicivorus
- American Coot, Fulica americana
- American Kestrel, Falco sparverius
- American Pipit, Anthus rubescens
- American Robin, Turdus migratorius
- American White Pelican, Pelecanus erythrorhynchos
- American Wigeon, Anas americana
- Anna’s Hummingbird, Calypte anna
- Audubon’s Warbler, Yellow-Rumped Warbler, Setophaga coronata auduboni
- Azure-Winged Magpie, Cyanopica cyanus
- Bald Eagle, Haliaeetus leucocephalus
- Bewick’s Wren, Thryomanes bewickii
- Black-Necked Stilt, Himantopus mexicanus
- Black Phoebe, Sayornis nigricans
- Brewer’s Blackbird, Euphagus cyanocephalus
- Buff Orpington Duck, Anas platyrhynchos domesticus var. Orpington
- Bufflehead Duck, Bucephala albeola
- Bushtit, American Bushtit, Psaltriparus minimus
- California Quail, Callipepla californica
- California Scrub Jay, Aphelocoma californica
- California Towhee, Melozone crissalis
- Canada Goose, Branta canadensis
- Canvasback Duck, Aythya valisineria
- Caribbean Flamingo, Phoenicopterus ruber
- Cinnamon Teal, Anas cyanoptera
- Common Gallinule, Gallinula galeata
- Common Goldeneye, Bucephala clangula
- Cooper’s Hawk, Acipiter cooperii
- Crested Duck, Anas platyrhynchos domesticus var. Crested
- Crested Screamer, Chauna torquata
- Crow, American Crow, Corvus brachyrhynchos
- Dark-Eyed Junco, Junco hyemalis
- Double-Crested Cormorant, Phalacrocorax auratus
- Downy Woodpecker, Picoides pubescens
- Emu, Dromaius novaehollandiae
- Eurasian Collared Dove, Streptopelia decaocto
- European Starling, Sturnus vulgaris
- Fox Sparrow, Passerella iliaca
- Gadwall Duck, Mareca Strepera
- Golden-Crowned Sparrow, Zonotrichia atricapilla
- Great Blue Heron, Ardea herodias
- Great Egret, Ardea alba
- Great Horned Owl, Bubo virginianus
- Great-Tailed Grackle, Quiscalus mexicanus
- Greater Roadrunner, Geococcyx californianus
- Greater White-Fronted Goose, Anser albifrons
- Greater Yellowlegs, Tringa melanoleuca
- Green-Winged Teal, Anas carolinensis
- Hermit Thrush, Catharus guttatus
- Herring Gull, Larus argentatus [spot on bill, gray legs, pale eye]
- Himalayan Monal, Lophophorus impejanus
- House Finch, Haemorhous mexicanus
- Killdeer, Charadrius vociferous
- Laughing Kookaburra, Dacelo novaeguineae
- Lesser Goldfinch, Spinus psaltria
- Mallard Duck, Anas platyrhynchos
- Mourning Dove, Zenaida macroura
- Mute Swan, Cygnus olor
- Northern Flicker, Colaptes auratus
- Northern Harrier, Marsh Hawk, Circus hudsonius
- Northern Mockingbird, Mimus polyglottos
- Northern Pintail, Anas acuta
- Northern Shoveler, Anas clypeata
- Nuttall’s Woodpecker, Picoides nuttallii
- Oak Titmouse, Baeolophus inornatus
- Osprey, Pandion haliaetus
- Ostrich, Common Ostrich, Struthio camelus
- Pekin Duck, Anas platyrhynchos domesticus var. Pekin
- Pied-Billed Grebe, Podilymbus podiceps
- Red-Shouldered Hawk, Buteo lineatus
- Red-Tailed Hawk, Buteo jamaicensis
- Red-Winged Blackbird, Agelaius phoeniceus
- Rio Grande Wild Turkey, Meleagris gallopavo intermedia
- Ring-Necked Pheasant, Phasianus colchicus
- Ruby-Crowned Kinglet, Regulus calendula
- Ruddy Duck, Oxyura jamaicensis
- Savannah Sparrow, Passerculus sandwichensis
- Say’s Phoebe, Sayornis saya
- Snow Goose, Chen caerulescens
- Song Sparrow, Melospiza melodia
- Spotted Towhee, Pipilo maculatus
- Spur-Winged Lapwing, Vanellus spinosus
- Swan Goose, Anser cygnoides [can be white, or gray/brown, knob on the bill]
- Swedish Blue Duck, Anas platyrhynchos domesticus var. Swedish Blue
- Thick-Billed Parrot, Rhynchopsitta pachyrhyncha
- Tree Swallow, Tachycineta bicolor
- Turkey Vulture, Cathartes aura
- Western Bluebird, Sialia Mexicana
- Western Meadowlark, Sturnella neglecta
- White-Breasted Nuthatch, Sitta carolinensis
- White-Crowned Sparrow, Zonotrichia leucophrys
- White-Faced Whistling Duck, Dendrocygna viduata
- White Tailed Kite, Elanus leucurus
- Wood Duck, Aix sponsa
- Yellow-Billed Magpie, Pica nuttalli
Fish:
- Bluegill, Lepomis macrochirus
- Koi Fish, Cyprinus rubrofuscus
Fungi and Molds:
- Barometer Earthstar fungus, Astraeus hygrometricus
- Bonnet Mushrooms, Genus: Mycena
- Bracket Fungus, Family: Hymenochaetaceae
- Common Bonnet Mushroom, Mycena galericulata
- Cramp Ball Fungus, Annulohypoxylon thouarsianum
- Cytospora Canker, Cytospora chrysosperma [bright orange fruiting body, looks like frozen dodder]
- False Turkey-Tail, Stereum hirsutum [thin, flattish, brown underside]
- Fragrant Funnel Mushroom, Clitocybe fragrans
- Gem-Studded Puffball, Common Puffball, Lycoperdon perlatum
- Goldenhaired Inkcap Mushroom, Parasola auricoma
- Green Trichoderma Mold, Trichoderma viride
- Hare’s Foot Inkcap Mushroom, Coprinopsis lagopus
- Honey Fungus, Honey Mushroom, Armillaria mellea
- Jelly Spot Fungus, Dacrymyces stillatus
- Mica Cap, Coprinellus micaceus [an inkcap, tan cap, dark gills]
- Nitrous Bonnet, Bleach-Scented Mycena, Mycena leptocephali
- Oak-loving Gymnopus, Gymnopus dryophilus [tan-orange with pale gills; cap can be flat or curved up as it ages]
- Oyster Mushroom, Pleurotus ostreatus
- Paltry Puffball, Puffball Fungus, Bovista californica
- Pleated Inkcap Mushroom, Parasola plicatilis
- Scurfy Twiglet Mushroom, Tubaria furfuracea [small, tan-yellow]
- Small Moss Oysterling, Arrhenia retiruga [tan, thin like a fingernail, tan or brownish]
- Trembling Crust Fungus, Merulius tremellosus [flat, kind of like stereum, white fuzzy edges when young/growing, can have teeth/netting underneath]
- Turkey Tail Fungus, Trametes versicolor
- Veined Mossear, Rimbachia bryophila [small, while, fingernail like]
- Witch’s Butter Jelly Fungus, Tremella mesenterica
- Yellow Fieldcap Mushroom, Bolbitius titubans
- Yellow Knight Mushroom, Tricholoma equestre
Galls:
- Alder Tongue, Western American Alder Tongue Gall Fungus, Taphrina occidentalis
- French Broom Gall Mite, Aceria genistae
- Manzanita Leaf Gall Aphid, Tamalia coweni
Insects, Arthropods, Hexapods:
- Chinese Praying Mantis, Tenodera sinensis [largest]
- Rosy Short-Head Millipede, Brachycybe rosea
Other Invertebrates (Worms, Mollusks, etc.):
Lichen on Trees:
- Bark Rim Lichen, Lecanora chlarotera [looks like Whitewash Lichen but has apothecia]
- California Camouflage Lichen, Melanelixia californica [dark green with brown apothecia, on trees]
- Common Sunburst Lichen, Golden Shield Lichen, Xanthoria parietina [yellow-orange,on wood/trees]
- Farinose Cartilage Lichen, Ramalina farinacea [like Oakmoss but very thin branches]
- Fluffy Dust Lichen, Pacific Fluffy Dust Lichen, Lepraria pacifica [blue-green dust lichen]
- Gold Dust Lichen, Chrysothrix candelaris
- Green Shield Lichen, Flavoparmelia caperata
- Hooded Rosette Lichen, Physcia adscendens [hairs/eyelashes on the tips of the lobes]
- Hooded Sunburst Lichen, Xanthomendoza fallax [leafy, yellow-orange, on trees]
- Pin-Cushion Sunburst Lichen, Polycauliona polycarpa [bright orange, apothecia, close, piled]
- Poplar Sunburst Lichen, Xanthomendoza hasseana [sunburst on Cottonwood]
- Powderhorn Lichen, Common Powderhorn, Cladonia coniocraea
- Shadow Lichen, Family: Physciaceae
- Shrubby Sunburst Lichen, Polycauliona candelaria
- Speckled Greenshield Lichen, Flavopunctelia flaventior
- Strap Lichen, Western Strap Lichen, Ramalina leptocarpha [without soredia]
- Western Shield Lichen, Parmelia hygrophila [blue-gray, foliose, dull isidia on leaves]
- Whitewash Lichen, Phlyctis argena
Lichen on Rocks/Metal:
- Bare-bottom Sunburst Lichen, Xanthomendoza weberi [yellow to orange, shrubby, on rock/metal]
- Concentric Boulder Lichen, Porpidia crustulata [circles of black spots on rock]
- Cumberland Rock-Shield Lichen, Xanthoparmelia cumberlandia [gray on rocks, brown apotheca
- Ear-leaf Lichen, Normandina pulchella [green leaf-like on rocks]
- Hidden Goldspeck Lichen, Candelariella aurella [small, scattered, yellow, on rocks]
- Rock Greenshield Lichen, Flavoparmelia baltimorensis [light green to gray, crumbly center]
- Rock Shield Lichen, Xanthoparmelia conspersa
- Rock Tripe, Emery Rocktripe Lichen, Umbilicaria phaea
- Sagebrush Goldspeck Lichen, Candelariella rosulans [bright yellow, lumpy clumps on rocks]
- Smokey-Eyed Boulder Lichen, Porpidia albocaerulescens
- Stonewall Rim Lichen, Lecona muralis [pale green/gray thallus with rose/tan apothecia gathered in the center; color can be quite variable]
- Sunken Disk Lichen, Aspicilia sp. [like crusty patches, tan to black]
- Yellow Map Lichen, Rhizocarpon geographicum [bright yellow-green with dark spots]
Mammals:
- African Lion, Panthera leo
- Beaver, American, Beaver, Castor canadensis
- Black-Tailed Jackrabbit, Lepus californicus
- California Ground Squirrel, Otospermophilus beecheyi
- Cat, Felis catus
- Chimpanzee, Pan troglodytes
- Columbian Black-Tailed Deer, Odocoileus hemionus columbianus
- Coyote, Canis latrans
- Dog, Canis lupus familiaris
- Douglas’ Squirrel, Tamiasciurus douglasii [brown with white belly]
- Eastern Bongo, Tragelaphus eurycerus isaaci
- Eastern Fox Squirrel, Sciurus niger
- Grevy’s Zebra, Equus grevyi
- Jaguar, Panthera onca
- Masai Giraffe, Giraffa tippelskirchi
- Mongoose Lemur, Eulemur mongoz
- Muskrat, Ondatra zibethicus
- Red Kangaroo, Macropus rufus
- Red Panda, Ailurus fulgens
- Red River Hog, Potamochoerus porcus
- Reticulated Giraffe, Giraffa camelopardalis reticulata
- River Otter, North American River Otter, Lontra canadensis
- Sumatran Orangutan, Pongo abelii
- Water Vole, Arvicola amphibius
- White-Faced Saki, Pithecia pithecia
- White-Handed Gibbon, Hylobates lar
Plants, Flowers, Trees:
- Azolla, Water Fern, Azolla filiculoides
- Bald Cypress Tree, Taxodium distichum
- Bay Laurel Tree, Laurus nobilis
- Blue Elderberry, Sambucus nigra cerulea
- Borage, Borago officinalis [blue “beaked” flowers]
- Broadleaf Cattail, Bullrush, Typha latifolia
- Bunch-flowered Daffodil, Narcissus tazetta
- Buttonbush, Cephalanthus occidentalis
- California Black Oak, Quercus kelloggii
- California Mugwort, Artemisia douglasiana
- California Sycamore, Platanus racemose
- California Wild Grape, Vitis californica
- California Wild Rose, Rosa californica
- Candelabra Aloe, Aloe arborescens
- Chinese Pistache, Pistacia chinensis
- Common Correa, Correa reflexa [trumpet shaped pink flowers]
- Common Sugarbush, Spicebush, Protea repens
- Coyote Brush, Baccharis pilularis
- Coyote Tobacco, Nicotiana attenuata
- Creeping Moss, Conardia compacta
- Crisped Pincushion Moss, Ulota crispa
- Curly Dock, Rumex crispus
- Dendroalsia Moss, Dendroalsia abietina [long, curling tendrils on trees]
- Dutch Iris, Iris × hollandica
- Elephant’s-Ears, Bergenia crassifolia [like a begonia, bouquet of pink flowers]
- Fremont’s Cottonwood, Populus fremontii
- French Broom, Genista monspessulana
- Ginkgo, Ginkgo biloba
- Golden Dwarf Mistletoe, Western Dwarf Mistletoe, Arceuthobium campylopodum
- Goodding’s Black Willow, Salix gooddingii
- Greater Honeywort, Cerinthe major [spotted leaves, “shrimp-like” flowers]
- Green Hellebore, Helleborus viridis
- Grey-cushioned Grimmia Moss, Grimmia pulvinate [clumpy, on rocks]
- Hairy Violet, Viola hirta
- Heavenly Bamboo, Nandina domestica [bright red berries]
- Hedgehog Holly, European Holly, Ilex aquifolium
- Hen-and-chickens Echeveria, Echeveria secunda
- Himalayan Blackberry, Rubus bifrons [white flowers]
- Incense Cedar, Calocedrus decurrens
- Italian Cypress, Mediterranean Cypress, Cupressus sempervirens
- Interior Live Oak, Quercus wislizeni
- Japanese Aralia, Fatsia japonica [stalks of white flowers, huge leaves]
- Japanese Wisteria, Wisteria floribunda
- Jointed Charlock, Wild Radish, Raphanus raphanistrum
- Large-flower Pink-Sorrel, Oxalis debilis [clover-like leaves, pink flowers]
- Liquid Ambar, American Sweetgum, Liquidambar styraciflua
- Lords and Ladies, Wild Arum, Arum maculatum
- Love-in-a-Mist, Nigella damascena
- Mistletoe, American Mistletoe, Big Leaf Mistletoe, Phoradendron leucarpum
- Mountain Misery, Chamaebatia foliolosa [fern-like leaves]
- Oregon Grape, Barberry, Berberis aquifolium
- Pampas Grass, Cortaderia selloana
- Pink Honeysuckle, California Honeysuckle, Lonicera hispidula
- Plume Moss, Dendroalsia abietina
- Ponderosa Pine, Pinus ponderosa
- Red Gum Eucalyptus, River Redgum, Eucalyptus camaldulensis
- Redvein Abutilon, Callianthe picta [lantern-like flowers]
- Rosemary, Salvia rosmarinus
- Sacred Lotus, Nelumbo nucifera
- Shining Netvein Barberry, Berberis dictyota
- Soft Rush, Juncus effusus
- Spanish Butcher’s-Broom, Ruscus hypophyllum [tiny white flowers in the middle of the leaf]
- Star Moss, Syntrichia ruralis
- Strawberry Tree, Arbutus unedo
- Sulphur Grevillea, Grevillea juniperina ssp. sulphurea [orange spidery flowers]
- Tall Flatsedge, Cyperus eragrostis
- Tree-skirt Moss, Pseudanomodon attenuatus
- Tule, Common Tule, Schoenoplectus acutus
- Valley Oak, Quercus lobata
- Western Redbud, Cercis occidentalis
- White Alder, Alnus rhombifolia
- White Horehound, Marrubium vulgare
- Whiteleaf Manzanita, Arctostaphylos viscida
Pathogens/Bacteria:
Reptiles and Amphibians:
- American Alligator, Alligator mississippiensis
- Rhinoceros Iguana, Cyclura cornuta
- ?? Snake bones [Mather Lake]
Other Vocabulary:
- Apothecia: [a-poth-EH-cee-ah] concave cup formations on lichen that bear the spores; asocarp
- Bilateral Gynandromorph: an organism that contains both male and female characteristics that can be distinguished through sexual dimorphism. Usually seen in moths, butterflies, other insects and birds.
- Cilia: outgrowths on the thallus of lichen that look like eyelashes or tentacles
- Crown Shyness: gaps in the canopy between trees in the forest that allow for sunlight to get through, and help the trees “social distance” to help neighboring trees to avoid infections and infestations.
- Fasciation: also known as cresting, a relatively rare condition of abnormal growth in vascular plants in which the growing tip which normally is concentrated around a single point and produces approximately cylindrical tissue, instead becomes elongated perpendicularly to the direction of growth, thus producing flattened, ribbon-like, crested (or “cristate”), or elaborately contorted, tissue.
- Inquiline: an animal exploiting the living space of another, e.g. an insect that lays its eggs in a gall produced by another (not the same as parasite because they don’t necessarily adversely affect the host.)
- Intergrade: There are two types of intergradation: Primary intergradation: Occurs in cases were two subspecies are connected via one or more intermediate populations, each of which are in turn intermediate to their adjacent populations and exhibit more or less the same amount of variability as any other population within the species. Adjacent populations and subspecies are subject to cline intergradation, and in these situations it is usually taken for granted that the clines are causally related to environmental gradients. Secondary intergradation: When contact between a geographically isolated subspecies is reestablished with the main body of the species or with another isolate subspecies, interbreeding takes place as long as the isolate has not yet evolved an effective set of isolating mechanisms. Consequently, a relatively distinct zone or belt of hybridization will develop depending on the degree of genetic and phenotypic difference that was achieved by the previously isolated subspecies.
- Isidia: [EYE-sid-ee-ah] ; small outgrowths of the thallus, from about 50 micrometres to a millimetre or so in length. They contain both fungal hyphae and photobiont cells and vary in shape, depending on species, from bulbous to cylindrical or branched, sometimes even coralloid .
- Soredia: [SORE-dee-ah] powdery grainy-looking balls composed of fungal hyphae wrapped around cyanobacteria or green algae on lichen; asexual reproduction
- Teneral: of, relating to, or constituting a state of the imago of an insect immediately after molting during which it is soft and immature in coloring.
- Thigmotropism: the turning or bending of a plant or other organism in response to a touch stimulus (what causes a vine to wrap around a tree, for example)
