The alpine meadows at the Santa Rosa Ecological Preserve were full of Chocolate Lillies and Shooting Star, Dodecatheon clevelandi as well as a whole host of other wildflowers. It was quite a sight. There was also a lot of variation from plant to plant which was fun to speculate about.
Here is a Blue-Grey Gnatcatcher, Polioptila caerulea, tending her nest just outside the Anza Borrego Wildlife Preserve Guest Center. I saw her hopping around and followed her back to her nest for the photograph. I didn't see the babies pop up in spite of all the fussing she was doing around the nest. Perhaps she was still in construction? However, if they were in there, they're pretty well protected up there in that very spiny cactus.
Chinch Weed, Pectis papposa,blooming along the roadside near my office. It was growing in a carpet among the grasses, turning the hillside yellow.
Here's a close-up of the Lupine growing along Highway 805. They have a whole big patch of it growing making a very dramatic display.
I hauled the Nikon to work to get a picture of the lupine. While hiking down the hill, I saw this Red Shouldered Hawk, Buteo lineatus, swooping down after some prey. They are fast and amazingly attractive with their patterned tails and red shouldered wings.
Spring is really gorgeous in San Diego. Highway maintenance has planted all sorts of amazing flowers that just light up in Spring. There are huge swaths of California poppies and even bigger stretches of purple ice plant. This patch has a beautiful mix of Lupine and California Poppies. I used my little pocket camera but it's nice enough that I may need to haul the Nikon to work with me tomorrow (heavy bulky thing that it is...). Stay tuned.
The desert is alive in wildflowers right now. We've had an extremely wet Winter/Spring and everything is blooming. Wow. Miles of sand was just covered with purple, yellow and white flowers. It's a few weeks of glory and then it all disappears but what a sight! Shown here is Coyote Canyon near Anza Borrego. The flowers were growing all along the road and extended up to the hills. Coyote Canyon has one of the few springs that is active all year round and hosts a herd of Big Horn Sheep as well. In the foreground is Dune Evening Primrose, Oenothera deltoides and Sand Verbena, Abronia villosa (purple).
I just finished a major draft of my paper. I know, what a boring, dull way to spend a Saturday. Here's a picture of a flowering plum (I think...) that I caught with the sun highlighting the rain drops last weekend. Spring is here. The desert is in bloom as well. I may have to take a study break for a desert tiki-tour. Laters...
Wood Duck, Aix sponsa, stretching his wings. Or, maybe he was thinking of flying away. Either way, it was a funky pose. They are beautiful though, aren't they?
Here's an Andean Condor, Vultur gryphus, showing us some wing. Perhaps he was enjoying a little sun on an otherwise cool and cloudy day.
Hear no evil; see no evil; speak no evil! Well, this swamp monkey is seeing no evil anyhow. They are the most expressive, human-like creatures!
Blue Crowned Hanging Parrot, Loriculus galgulus. Cute little guy, huh? These cute little guys are from Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Sumatra and Borneo and are very fond of fruit.
Those herons get around don't they? Into your koi pond for a little sushi? Into your lilly pond for a little frog? On top of your lamp post? Hahah! This Great Blue Heron was enjoying his vantage point. This is a mature one with awesome neck plumage!
Peacock, Peafowl, whatever you call them, they sure do glisten under a good flash. Especially the pearlescent feathers on their head! It was rainy on Sunday so I was snapping with my flash.
Clearly, a little barbed wire was not enough to scare off this Western Meadowlark, Sturnella neglecta. Nor was it enough to keep him from singing a wonderful melodious tune. Not even my passing by with my huge telephoto was enough to phase this Meadowlark. I have heard them for years but, ironically, this is the first one that was audacious enough to pose in plain view for a snapshot. What a sight indeed.
Do you ever dream of flying? Wake up in the middle of a dream of soaring through the sky? Either way, birds make it look so easy. CA Brown Pelican coming in for a landing here.
Even ducks have hissy days. Here are two Blue-Winged Teals, Anas discors, having a hissy (literally). They are discernable by that telltale white crescent on their face. Blue-Winged Teals Summer in Canada through the Southern U.S. and range all the way down to Argentina for the Winter. This one was at the Mission River Preserve.
A posting or two back, I promised a picture of an American Avocet, Recurvirostra americana. Well, here he is showing his lighter Winter colors. I had been pondering why their beaks are upturned so I did a little digging and found my answer. They use the base of their beak to stir up the mud and the little crustaceans which they prey upon. They also have a predilection for Brine Shrimp in the Great Salt Lake although they are more likely feeding on little amphipods in San Diego. Oh, and in case your Latin is a little rusty, Recurvirostra refers to the upturned (recurvi) nose (rostra/rostrum).
This is Clowesia Grace Dunn, a hybrid that strongly resembles its Clowesia rosea parent. Clowesia rosea is a sturdy, drought tolerant, bulbous orchid from Michoacan and Oaxaca, Mexico. It certainly made a stunning display.
