Another Year!

Sierra Buttes - 11/23/19

On December 23, 2016, I published my first North Yuba Naturalist blog!  It has been an incredible three years!  I have learned so much, and as always have so much still to learn! This year I saw many see new species, as well as the wonderfully familiar wild residents of our area!  I am so grateful for seeing and experiencing such incredible beauty, and look forward to this coming year of observation and adventure!

I also enjoy sharing my discoveries and photos with the world! Thanks go to all of you for following my blog, and for sending me your encouraging comments! This year I had 5,308 hits on my blog, from 56 different countries! The top 3 countries were the United States, Ukraine, and Russia!

I saw quite a few new birds this year, including the Hooded Merganser, Green Heron, Northern Harrier, Black-backed Woodpecker, and Red-shouldered Hawk!  I was also delighted to see the tropical migrants return again to our neighborhood, with colors like no others!  Nesting birds were again plentiful, and I loved watching the Red-breasted Sapsuckers and the Bullock's Orioles feed their babies!  It was an incredible year for bird watching!

Minks were an incredible sight to see this year!  I have never seen them before!  I was also very lucky to see a tiny young Gray Fox, and a Lodgepole Chipmunk eating bitter cherries!  I will never tire of seeing our local Gray Foxes, Chickarees, Mule Deer, and Gray Squirrels!  New this year, I didn't see any Black Bears, although I did find lots of their scat!

This year was an incredible year for wildflowers!  The blooming season lasted and lasted, and the flowers were prolific! There were also tons of insects! I saw several new species, such as Bear Grass, Rattlesnake Plantain Orchid, Non-biting Midges, and Annaphila Moths!  Such beauty!!!

As always the beauty of our area was astounding!  

I am so lucky and grateful, to live where I am surrounded by nature's beauty!

I am totally smitten!

Check back next week for latest natural history news from my neighborhood!

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Your questions and comments are greatly appreciated!

Please email me at northyubanaturalist@gmail.com