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General Blog, Naturalist, photography

A Short Visit to the WPA Rock Garden, 06-19-19

After stopping at the Ibis rookery in Woodland, I drove back to Sacramento, and visited the WPA Rock Garden in William Land Park for a short walk.

CLICK HERE to see the album of photos.

Species List:

  1. American Coot, Fulica americana,
  2. American Wisteria, Wisteria frutescens,
  3. Anna’s Hummingbird, Calypte anna,
  4. Bear’s Breeches, Acanthus mollis,
  5. Bird of Paradise, tree, Caesalpinia gilliesii,
  6. Black-Necked Stilt, Himantopus mexicanus,
  7. Black-Tailed Jackrabbit, Lepus californicus,
  8. Blue Corn-Lily, Aristea ecklonii,
  9. Bush Katydid nymph, Scudderia pistillata,
  10. Butterfly Bush, Buddleja davidii,
  11. California Buckwheat, Eriogonum fasciculatum,
  12. Caper Bush, Capparis spinosa,
  13. Cardoon, Artichoke Thistle, Cynara cardunculus,
  14. Cleveland Sage, Salvia clevelandii,
  15. Common Toadflax, Linaria vulgaris,
  16. Day Lily, Hemerocallis sp.,
  17. Desert Cottontail, Sylvilagus audubonii,
  18. Desert Willow, Chilopsis linearis, (pink flowers)
  19. Dianella, Dianella ensifolia, (blue seeds)
  20. Field Bindweed, Convolvulus arvensis,
  21. Fig, Common Fig, Ficus carica,
  22. French Lavender, Lavandula stoechas,
  23. Garden Snail, Cornu aspersum,
  24. Gerber Daisy, Gerbera jamesonii,
  25. Giant Fennel, Ferula communis,
  26. Golden Feverfew, Tanacetum Parthenium aureum,
  27. Great Mullein, Verbascum Thapsus,
  28. Great-Tailed Grackle, Quiscalus mexicanus,
  29. Green Bottle Fly, Lucilia sericata,
  30. Green Lacewing, Chrysoperla carnea,
  31. Grevellea, Grevilerulea sp.,
  32. Jacaranda Tree, Jacaranda mimosifolia,
  33. Killdeer, Charadrius vociferous,
  34. Lacy Phacelia, Phacelia tanacetifolia,
  35. Lavender, Lavandula angustifolia,
  36. Leafcutter Bee, Megachile sp.,
  37. Love-in-a-Mist, Nigella damascena,
  38. Mojave Prickly Poppy, Argemone corymbose,
  39. Money Plant, Silver Dollar Plant, Moonflower, Lunaria biennis,
  40. Myrtle, Myrtus communis,
  41. Northern Catalpa, Indian Bean Tree, Catalpa speciosa,
  42. Painted Lady Butterfly, Vanessa cardui,
  43. Pincushion Flower, Scabiosa atropurpurea,
  44. Pinkladies, Oenothera speciosai,
  45. Rattlesnake Master, Eryngium yuccifolium,
  46. Red Mite, Spider Mite, Tetranychinae sp.,
  47. Rose, Rosa sp.,
  48. Smokebush, Smoke Tree, Cotinus obovatus,
  49. Spice Bush, Calycanthus occidentalis,
  50. Statice, Sea lavender, Limonium perezii,
  51. Steely Wings, Salvia canariensis,
  52. Tree Aeonium, Aeonium arboretum,
  53. Western Fence Lizard, Sceloporus occidentalis,
  54. Western Kingbird, Tyrannus verticalis,
  55. Western Meadowlark, Sturnella neglecta,
  56. White Lily of the Nile, Agapanthus africanus var. albus,
  57. White-Faced Ibis, Plegadis chihi,
  58. Yarrow, Common Yarrow, Achillea millefolium,
General Blog, Naturalist, photography

At the Ibis Rookery, 06-19-19

This was a busy day, but in a fun way.  I got up at 5:00 am and headed out to Woodland to go to the ibis rookery at the Woodland-Davis Clean Water Agency facility off of Road 102 and East Gibson Road. Then I headed out to the WPA Rock Garden, and later in the day, I attended a Monarch monitoring training. Phew!

 Last year when I went to the rookery, the water was a lot lower in the settling ponds. This year, the water is a lot higher, so all of the scrubby trees and tules the ibises were able to nest in before are now under water, and there was no real shore for them to rest on. All of the birds were clambering to get into the high branches of the few trees that weren’t submerged, and I saw some pretty brutal fights over nesting spots. I also watched as several of the birds pulled dried grasses up from the edges of the pond and flew them over to line their nests.

Some of the ibises, though, had already settled in, and a few of them already had eggs laid in their nests. The eggs are a bright neon-turquoise color so they’re easy to spot even at a distance. 

A mated pair of ibises near their nest.

Amid the ibises there were also Great-Tailed Grackles, American Coots (and a few babies), Killdeer, Black-Necked Stilts, Western Kingbirds and Western Meadowlarks. I also saw quite a few Black-Tailed Jackrabbits and Desert Cottontails. I saw Coot courtship behavior, which I’d never seen before. (I’d read about it but never saw it “live”.) The male and female chased after one another with their wings arched up and their tiny tail fanned out to show of the white patches on it.  They’re kind of dorky-looking birds to begin with, so seeing them hunched up trying to look sexy was a hoot. Hah!

CLICK HERE to see the album of photos. You can also CLICK HERE to access the feature article I wrote about the rookery in 2018 as published in the Lake County News online newspaper.

I took quite a few photos, but because the sun was coming up behind the birds, a lot of the stuff was in silhouette and I had to force the iris of the camera open to let more light in on the subjects.  I might go in again before class one morning to get different light. The area where you view the ibises is relatively small, so I was able to cover it in about an hour or so.

Species List:

  1. American Coot, Fulica americana,
  2. American Wisteria, Wisteria frutescens,
  3. Anna’s Hummingbird, Calypte anna,
  4. Bear’s Breeches, Acanthus mollis,
  5. Bird of Paradise, tree, Caesalpinia gilliesii,
  6. Black-Necked Stilt, Himantopus mexicanus,
  7. Black-Tailed Jackrabbit, Lepus californicus,
  8. Blue Corn-Lily, Aristea ecklonii,
  9. Bush Katydid nymph, Scudderia pistillata,
  10. Butterfly Bush, Buddleja davidii,
  11. California Buckwheat, Eriogonum fasciculatum,
  12. Caper Bush, Capparis spinosa,
  13. Cardoon, Artichoke Thistle, Cynara cardunculus,
  14. Cleveland Sage, Salvia clevelandii,
  15. Common Toadflax, Linaria vulgaris,
  16. Day Lily, Hemerocallis sp.,
  17. Desert Cottontail, Sylvilagus audubonii,
  18. Desert Willow, Chilopsis linearis, (pink flowers)
  19. Dianella, Dianella ensifolia, (blue seeds)
  20. Field Bindweed, Convolvulus arvensis,
  21. Fig, Common Fig, Ficus carica,
  22. French Lavender, Lavandula stoechas,
  23. Garden Snail, Cornu aspersum,
  24. Gerber Daisy, Gerbera jamesonii,
  25. Giant Fennel, Ferula communis,
  26. Golden Feverfew, Tanacetum Parthenium aureum,
  27. Great Mullein, Verbascum Thapsus,
  28. Great-Tailed Grackle, Quiscalus mexicanus,
  29. Green Bottle Fly, Lucilia sericata,
  30. Green Lacewing, Chrysoperla carnea,
  31. Grevellea, Grevilerulea sp.,
  32. Jacaranda Tree, Jacaranda mimosifolia,
  33. Killdeer, Charadrius vociferous,
  34. Lacy Phacelia, Phacelia tanacetifolia,
  35. Lavender, Lavandula angustifolia,
  36. Leafcutter Bee, Megachile sp.,
  37. Love-in-a-Mist, Nigella damascena,
  38. Mojave Prickly Poppy, Argemone corymbose,
  39. Money Plant, Silver Dollar Plant, Moonflower, Lunaria biennis,
  40. Myrtle, Myrtus communis,
  41. Northern Catalpa, Indian Bean Tree, Catalpa speciosa,
  42. Painted Lady Butterfly, Vanessa cardui,
  43. Pincushion Flower, Scabiosa atropurpurea,
  44. Pinkladies, Oenothera speciosai,
  45. Rattlesnake Master, Eryngium yuccifolium,
  46. Red Mite, Spider Mite, Tetranychinae sp.,
  47. Rose, Rosa sp.,
  48. Smokebush, Smoke Tree, Cotinus obovatus,
  49. Spice Bush, Calycanthus occidentalis,
  50. Statice, Sea lavender, Limonium perezii,
  51. Steely Wings, Salvia canariensis,
  52. Tree Aeonium, Aeonium arboretum,
  53. Western Fence Lizard, Sceloporus occidentalis,
  54. Western Kingbird, Tyrannus verticalis,
  55. Western Meadowlark, Sturnella neglecta,
  56. White Lily of the Nile, Agapanthus africanus var. albus,
  57. White-Faced Ibis, Plegadis chihi,
  58. Yarrow, Common Yarrow, Achillea millefolium,

General Blog, Naturalist, photography

At William Land Park on 06-03-19

I got up around 6:00 this morning and headed out to William Land Park and the WPA Rock Garden for a walk.  It was 53° when I got there, but it was up to 72° within about 2 ½ hours. Anything over 70° is really “too hot” for any kind of exertion for me, so I headed back home. Got lots of flower photos, so that will probably take me a day or two to ID all of them.  I also got to see some male Wood Ducks and a Green Heron at the pond, as well as the exuvia of several cicadas.

CLICK HERE for the album of photos.

Species List:

  1. Anna’s Hummingbird, Calypte anna,
  2. Bear’s Breeches, Acanthus mollis,
  3. Beaver Tail Cactus, Prickly Pear, Opuntia basilaris,
  4. Bird of Paradise, flower, Strelitzia reginae,
  5. Bird of Paradise, tree, Caesalpinia gilliesii,
  6. Brazil Raintree, Brunfelsia pauciflora,
  7. Bronze Fennel, Foeniculum vulgare,
  8. Butterfly Bush, Buddleja davidii,
  9. Butterfly Milkweed, Asclepias tuberosa,
  10. Calla Lily, Zantedeschia aethiopica,
  11. Campion, Silene sp.,
  12. Canada Goose, Branta canadensis,
  13. Chameleon Plant, Houttuynia cordata,
  14. Cleveland Sage, Salvia clevelandii,
  15. Columbine, Columbinus sp.,
  16. Common Borage, Borago officinalis,
  17. Common Bracken Fern, Pteridium aquilinum,
  18. Common Hibiscus, Hibiscus syriacus,
  19. Common Lavender, Lavandula angustifolia,
  20. Common Toadflax, Linaria vulgaris,
  21. Cream Spike agave, Blue Agave, Agave applanata,
  22. Crevice Alumroot, Heuchera micrantha,
  23. Day Lily, Hemerocallis sp.,
  24. Douglas Squirrel, Tamiasciurus douglasii,
  25. Dwarf Morning Glory, Convolvulus tricolor,
  26. Elegant Clarkia, Clarkia unguiculata,
  27. European Honeybee, Apis mellifera,
  28. Fir Tree, Abies sp.,
  29. Fleabane, Seaside Daisy, Erigeron glaucus,
  30. Garden Snail, Cornu aspersum,
  31. Giant Fennel, Ferula communis,
  32. Globe Daisy, Globularia x indubia,
  33. Golden Feverfew, Tanacetum Parthenium aureum,
  34. Green Heron, Butorides virescens,
  35. Grevellea, Grevilerulea sp.,
  36. Harvestman, Phalangium opilio,
  37. Hollyhock, Alcea rosea,
  38. Honeysuckle, Lonicera sp.,
  39. Iceplant, Carpobrotus edulis,
  40. Introduced Sage, Salvia pratensis,
  41. Jack-in-the-Pulpit, Arisaema sp.,
  42. Jerusalem Sage, Phlomis fruticose,
  43. Lamb’s Ear Hedgenettle, Stachys byzantina,
  44. Love-in-a-Mist, Nigella damascene,
  45. Mallard, Anas platyrhynchos,
  46. Many Flowered Tobacco, Nicotiana acuminata var. multiflora,
  47. Meadow Sage, Salvia pratensis,
  48. Mediterranean Sage, Salvia aethiopis,
  49. Mexican Bush Sage Salvia leucantha
  50. Mock Orange, Philadelphus coronarius,
  51. Mojave Prickly Poppy, Argemone corymbosa,
  52. Moth Mullein, Verbascum blattaria,
  53. Mountain Cicada, Okanagana bella,
  54. Myrtle, Myrtus communis,
  55. Natal Grass, Natal Redtop, Melinis repens,
  56. Nightshade, New Zealand Nightshade, Solanum aviculare,
  57. Pacific Bleeding Heart, Dicentra Formosa,
  58. Pekin Duck, Anas platyrhynchos domesticus var. Pekin,
  59. Peruvian Lily, Alstroemeria aurea,
  60. Pincushion Flower, Scabiosa atropurpurea,
  61. Pineapple Guava, Acca sellowiana,
  62. Red Hot Poker, Torch Lily, Kniphofia uvaria,
  63. Red Poppy of Flanders, Corn Poppy, Papaver rhoeas,
  64. Red Yucca, Hesperaloe parviflora,
  65. Red-Eared Slider Turtle, Trachemys scripta elegans,
  66. Redwood, California Redwood, Sequoia sempervirens,
  67. Rock Rose, Cistus x pulverulentus, cultivar
  68. Rocket Larkspur (purple), Consolida ajacis,
  69. Rocket Larkspur (white), Consolida ajacis,
  70. Rose Vervain, Glandularia canadensis,
  71. Rose, Rosa sp.,
  72. Sacred Lotus, Nelumbo nucifera,
  73. Sage, Salvia officinalis,
  74. Silver Sage, Salvia argentea,
  75. Smokebush, Cotinus coggygria,
  76. Southern Catalpa, Indian Been Tree, Catalpa bignonioides,
  77. Spurge, Egg Leaf Spurge, Euphorbia oblongata,
  78. Statice, Sea lavender, Limonium perezii,
  79. Strawberry Tree, Arbutus unedo,
  80. Swedish Blue duck, Anas platyrhynchos domesticus var. Swedish Blue,
  81. Sweet William, Dianthus barbatus,
  82. Sword Fern, Polystichum sp.,
  83. Tall Buckwheat, Eriogonum elatum var. elatum,
  84. Trumpet Flower, Iochroma cyanea var. Mr. Plum,
  85. Valley Carpenter Bee, Xylocopa varipuncta,
  86. Wand Mullein, Verbascum virgatum,
  87. Weeping Cedar, Glauca Pendula, Cedrus atlantica,
  88. Western Fence Lizard, Sceloporus occidentalis,
  89. Western Sycamore, Platanus racemosa,
  90. White Lily of the Nile, Agapanthus africanus var. albus,
  91. Wood Duck, Aix sponsa,
  92. Wooly Mullein, Verbascum thapsus,
  93. Yucca, Chaparral Yucca, Hesperoyucca whipplei
General Blog, Naturalist, photography

Early Morning at the Park, 06-17-17

Up at 5:30… mostly because it was already warm in the house and I don’t sleep well when it’s hot.  I decided if I was going to get any exercise today, I’d better head out fast before it got too warm outside to do anything, and I was shocked to find that it was already 71º outside!  And it was humid.  What’s up with that? It got up to 101º today…

CLICK HERE for the album of today’s photos.

I headed over to the WPA Rock Garden and William Land Park, because it was a short distance away and I hadn’t been there in a while.  There were still flowers in bloom there – including the giant artichoke thistles which I think are so pretty – and the walk was shaded for the most part.  I came across one young Anna’s Hummingbird that I think was either just testing out her wings or was totally last, I’m not sure which.  She would hop-fly to a branch near flowers, have a drink of nectar, hop-fly to another branch, have a drink of nectar, hop-fly to a leaf cluster, have a drink of nectar.  I saw her fly out a few times, but didn’t see her hover to get a drink at the flowers for any length of time.  Maybe it was too warm for her already, too, and she didn’t want to exert herself…  Her sitting in the branches, though, made it easy for me to get some photos and a video snippet of her…

There were some Canada Geese by the middle pond with goslings that were still in their yellow fuzz; and I found a mama Mallard with three fuzzy babies.  They had all just come out of the water and were cleaning off their feathers/down.  Then the babies tried climbing under mom. Even though they were still in their fuzz, they were really too big already to fit under her neatly, so their little heads and butts poked out from all around her.  Hah!  I’ll post photos next week…

Because of the humidity and the fact that the air was heating up fast, I only walked for about 2 hours and then headed back to the house.