The Rain came Down!

Bullock's Oriole nest

We had several days of heavy rain this week! Yahoo! Everything is damp, puddles abound, the ground is plastered in leaves, and the river has risen! Because the rain knocked a lot of the leaves off the trees, you can now see old bird nests in their branches! 

The one above is a Bullock's Oriole nest from last spring. The blue color is from strips of plastic tarp! The one below I found up near Frazier Falls in the Lakes Basin. It was built in a young aspen tree on the edge of a meadow. I'm not sure what bird made it, but I love how it used lichen in its construction! 

These nests probably won't be used again next spring, as they will most likely deteriorate over the winter. However, last spring I saw a female Bullock's Oriole pulling fibers out of an old nest, presumably for use in a new nest! 

Unidentified bird nest with lichen!

unidentified mushroom (left)

Questionable Stropharia (right) - Stropharia ambigua

Fungi!

With the rain and cooler temperatures, mushrooms have started popping up on the forest floor!  It's just the beginning of mushroom season, so there will be lots more mushrooms if the rains continue.  I don't know many of the mushroom species, but I'm learning with the help of a field guide and some friends that are mushroom enthusiasts.

Mushrooms are the fruiting bodies of fungi.  Instead of seeds, mushrooms produce spores that reproduce if conditions are right.  The main part of a fungi is a web of fine threads called mycelium, usually found underground.  The individual threads are called hyphae (see thin white threads below).  This is the part of the fungi that digests nutrients.

 Fungi is either parasitic, saprophytic or mycorrhizal.  Parasitic fungi feed on living organisms, usually trees.  Saprophytic fungi live on dead organic matter, and break it down into simpler, reusable compounds.  They are the natural recyclers in the forest!   Mycorrhizal fungi form a mutually beneficial relationship with the rootlets of plants in which nutrients are exchanged.  Many trees could not grow without mycorrhizal fungi.  They are critical for the health of a forest.  

 If you're interested in learning all about the local mushrooms, and their edibility, join the "20th Annual Fungus Foray" and the "Mushroom Exposition" on Dec. 9-10 in Nevada City.  Use this link to get all the information you need,  http://yubawatershedinstitute.org/events/event/foray2017/

Unidentified mushroom (left) 

Coprinus sp. (right) I'm not sure of the common name.

Mountain Dogwood - Cornus nutallii

Getting ready for Winter

Plants have a variety of strategies for surviving winter!  

As the daylight hours shorten and temperatures drop, most plants become dormant.  During dormancy, a plants' metabolism, photosynthesis, and respiration rate slow down, and growth stops.  Some plants even produce a type of anti-freeze in their cells, to prevent damage from frost and freezing temperatures!

A lot of plants will create the buds for next year's bloom in the late summer and fall. 

The Dogwood tree (above) creates both seeds and flower buds!  The round, green buds will remain dormant throughout the winter, but are ready to burst open once enough cold days have occurred and the temperature and daylight hours have increased.  The bright red seeds will fall off this winter, or possibly be eaten by birds, and hopefully germinate.

Milkweed Seed Pod  (non-native species)

Another way to ensure species survival over winter, is through seeds.  Since they cannot walk, seeds depend on wind, water, animals, and explosion to be dispersed.  The milkweed seeds (above) are just waiting for the wind to disperse them!  Aquatic plants depend on water movement to disperse their seeds.  Animals can eat seeds, or fruits with seeds, and disperse them in their poop!  Seeds can also hook onto an animal's fur or feathers and be transported.  The dispersal by explosion happens when some dry seed pods burst open and propel their seeds!  

Black Locust seed pods - Robinia pseudoacacia

By just looking at a seed or seed pod, you can probably figure out it's method of dispersal!  How do you think locust seeds (in pods above) are dispersed?

Mountain Quail - Oreortyx pictus

New Bird Sightings!

I've been seeing Mountain Quail all over my neighborhood for the past few weeks!  They are usually in small coveys of 5 or 7, and they run away as soon as you get close!  They are super elegant and beautiful with their dramatic markings and their two bobble-head feathers!  I photographed the quail above, one cold morning on our property.  This lone quail was all puffed up and standing still for a few minutes out in our field!  Wow!  The feathering is exquisite!  What a beauty!

Mountain Quail are "uncommon" in our area, but it seems that they've been seen by lots of residents lately!  They feed on seeds, fruits, flowers and a few insects.  They are the largest quail in the United States, measuring 10'-12' in length, and weighing 6.7 to 9.2 ounces!  I'll bet a hungry fox would love to catch one of these!  That's why they travel in groups!  The more eyes and ears there are, the better the protection!

Western Bluebird (female Drab adult) - Sialia mexicana

This beautiful bluebird was sitting on my neighbor's fence one late afternoon!  I was so surprised to see it!  Apparently they may over-winter here in our neighborhood, or farther south in California or South America!  They mainly eat insects and fruit.  In winter I've seen them down at Bridgeport, at the South Yuba River State Park.  

Their bright powdery blue is unforgettable!
  

Golden-crowned Sparrow - Zonotrichia atricapilla

It's official!  The bird who's identification I wasn't sure of last week, is definitely a Golden-crowned Sparrow!  That's another new bird for me!  There's been a group of about 15 ground feeding birds near our garden for the past two weeks.  Most of them are White-crowned Sparrows and Dark-eyed Juncos, but there are also some Fox Sparrows and the newly identified Golden-crowned Sparrows! 

Golden-Crowned Sparrows are here in the winter.  They spend their summers up in western Canada and Alaska.  They too are avid seed-eaters, mainly feeding on the ground.  In the winter they are often seen in flocks with White-crowned Sparrows.

It's a good thing that most of the local plants have gone to seed!  Lots of birds need seeds to eat!

Dark-eyed Junco (males) all fluffed up in the cold! - Junco hyemalis

A flock of Dark-eyed Juncos have returned to our neighborhood for the winter!  They spend their spring and summer at higher elevations, from 3,000'-10,500'!  They are one of the most commonly seen summer birds up in the Lakes Basin.  They come down to our neighborhood to avoid the winter snow!  They are avid seed-eaters!  They search mainly on the ground for seeds, but will also search in shrubs and trees.   

I love how their return at this time of year is so familiar!  

(I'll post a photo of a female in my next blog!)

Gray Fox - Urocyon cinereoargenteus 

Mammal Update!

I came across this sleeping fox a few weeks ago!  It turned out to be that sickly fox I've been photographing!  I hadn't seen him for a while, and was thrilled to watch him sleep!  He must have been very tired to sleep out in the open!  It's not easy for the wildlife to survive out there, especially in the cold and rain!  I watched him for a minute or two, before he got up and trotted off!  I hope I run into him again soon! 

Gray Fox - Urocyon cinereoargenteus

Columbian Black-tailed Deer - Odocoileus hemionus columbianus

I came across these two deer up at the cemetery, where there's lots of grass to eat.  It looks like they're penned in, but they were actually about to scoot through a break in the fence.  I think they might be those same deer that I photographed about a month ago!!!  They look like mother and daughter to me!  I'm glad that they look so healthy!  At this time of year, deer forage on grasses, plant buds, and even some mushrooms!

Quaking Aspen & Willow -  Populus tremuloides & Salix sp. 

Not all of the leaves are gone yet!  Alders and willows still have lots of leaves, but the aspens. locusts, and maples are bare.  More rain is on the way, which will probably knock the rest of the leaves off.  In the meantime it's still lovely!

What's the difference between moss and Lichen?

How many kinds of lichen are there?

Is winter going to be mild or severe?

Can Woolly Bear caterpillars help your decision?

 Are more mushrooms going to pop up?

What about those Spotted Towhees?

Where do the year-round resident birds sleep?

Do the foxes dig underground dens for winter?

Check back next week for the answers 

to these questions and more!
Your comments and questions are greatly appreciated!  

Please email me at northyubanaturalist@gmail.com! 

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