Rainy Weather!

North Yuba River - 5/12/20 

It's been rainy, misty, and cool this week. Right now it's pouring! Another 1.72" of rain fell in the past 7 days, which brings our water-year total to 35.66". The river is up due to the rain and melting snow, and is running at 1,140 cfs. It's a bit muddy from the added sediments, and not the clear glass-green of winter. Nature's camphor has been released from the damp earth, and the fragrance is heavenly! We are so grateful for this additional rain, which will help to keep forest fires at bay! This will also prolong the blooming of the local wildflowers, and replenish the ground water. It's lush and green and beautiful right now! The forecast for this week is for even more rain! Yahoo!

South Yuba River - 5/1/20

South Yuba River State Park

Two weeks ago I went hiking down in the South Yuba River State Park.  It was gorgeous!  The river was a beautiful, clear, glass green!  Wildflowers and birds were abundant and flourishing!   

Western Scrub-jay - Oak Titmouse - Cedar Waxwing

Aphelocoma californica - Baeolophus inornatus - Bombycilla cedrorum 

This foothill park is located in an oak woodland, about 2,000' lower in elevation than my neighborhood.  Most of the birds that live there are never seen in our neighborhood, but some are seen occasionally.  A few years ago a Western Scrub-jay spent a few weeks down by our garden, but didn't stick around.  They eat insects, fruits, nuts (including acorns), and seeds. I've never seen an Oak Titmouse in our neighborhood.  Apparently they live year-round in California's coast, central valley, and foothills.  They consume seeds, berries, fruits and insects.  Cedar Waxwings visit our area at different times during the year, when berries or fruits are in season. They are primarily fruitivores, but will also eat flowers and buds!  

Ramm's Madia & unknown beetles 

Jensia rammii - species unknown

I've posted photos of the wildflowers at the South Yuba River State Park in previous blogs (4/15/18 & 4/05/19).  What caught my eye this year were all the insects on the wildflowers.  Insects, birds, bats, and wind are the main movers of pollen.  I noticed a lot of beetles on the flowers so I did some research on them.  Here's some interesting facts about pollen beetles from the USDA Forest Service at https://ucanr.edu/sites/PollenNation/Meet_The_Pollinators.

"Beetles make up the largest group of pollinating animals because there are so many of them! They are responsible for pollinating 88% of the 240,000 flowering plants around the world!

They were some of the first insects to visit flowers and they remain essential pollinators today. Fossil records show that beetles were abundant during the Mesozoic (about 200 million years ago) and they were flower visitors of the earliest angiosperms.

Some beetles will eat their way through petals and other floral parts and can often become garden and agricultural pests. They even defecate within flowers, earning them the nickname “mess and soil” pollinators.

Research has shown that beetles are capable of seeing color, but they mainly rely on their sense of smell for feeding and finding a place to lay their eggs.

Ladybugs are natural enemies of many insects that we consider pests. A single ladybug can eat as many as 5,000 aphids in its lifetime!

Beetles are attracted to spicy, fruity or rancid flesh-like odors.

Most beetles need a wide opening to get into the flower because they are clumsy fliers.

Many beetle species eat pollen, so the plants they visit must produce a lot of pollen to make sure that there is enough left to pollinate the flower after the beetles are done eating!

Ornate Checkered Clerid - Trichodes sp.

Yellow-breasted Chat (male) - Icteria virens

New Arrival!

Once again the Yellow-breasted Chats have arrived in our neighborhood!  The males have the LOUDEST bird call I've ever heard, and so comical to listen to!  The following quote from Birds of the Sierra Nevada by Beedy & Pandolfino describes their calls perfectly!

"It is impossible to suppress a smile when listening to a Yellow-breasted Chat's bizarre series of churs, buzzes, whistles, and chatters coming from a patch of dense riparian habitat.  Chat's offer songs as variable (but not so repetitive) as mockingbirds.   Like mockers, they will incorporate sounds of other birds into their repertoire, but they are satisfied with delivering each phrase once and moving on to the next after a short pause for effect."

These lovely, medium-sized (L=7.5", WS=9.5") birds are very uncommon in our area, but year after year they return to the same riverside thicket of blackberries, willows, alders, cherry trees, maples, and firs.  The male and female are almost identical, but the male is the only one that calls.  The female builds the near ground-level nest, and incubates the 3-5 eggs.  Both parents will feed the nestlings/fledglings.  I think I've seen two males in the area this year!  In previous years I've only seen one male!  In July-August they will begin their migration back down to their wintering grounds in southern Mexico, Panama, and Costa Rica, a distance of approximately 3,500 miles!!!

We are so lucky to see and hear these unique, brilliantly-colored Chats in our neighborhood!   

Yellow-breasted Chat (male) - Icteria virens

Sierra Buttes - 5/15/20

What's happening in the Lakes Basin?

What's happening in Sierra Valley?

Where are the Bears?

Check back next week for the answers to these questions and more!

During these days of Covid-19 and uncertainty, I hope you are all healthy and coping with this unusual stress. Get out in nature while you have the time! It can be so healing!

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Please email me at northyubanaturalist@gmail.com