Male Willow Catkins - Salix sp.
The weather these past 10 days has been sunny with daytime temperatures in the 50's and 60's. This sudden warmth has triggered the blooming of plants as well as the activity of insects, birds, and amphibians! Spring is on the way!
After
many months of having colorful but bare branches, the local willows have burst
into bloom! Willows are dioecious, and have separate male and
female plants! Right now both male and female plants are just past their
"Pussy Willow" stage. Their soft silvery hairs kept the
developing reproductive parts of the plant warm! Unlike most
"non-attractive" (not bright in color) flowers, willows are insect
pollinated. The female flowers produce a large amount of strongly scented nectar, and the male flowers produce a ton of pollen! Each male pussy willow has approximately 270 flowers with two stamens each!
Male Alder Catkins & tiny Female Cones
Mountain Alder - Alnus incana ssp. tenuifolia
Alders are monoecious, and have both male and female parts on the same tree. The long dangling catkins, are the male flowers. The tiny cones above the catkins are the female "flowers". Unlike the willows, alders are wind pollinated, and do not depend upon insects for their pollination! Alders live in a symbiotic relationship with the bacteria Frankia alni. This bacterium lives underground, in the root nodules of the alder. The bacterium absorbs nitrogen from the air and makes it available to the alder! In turn, the alder provides sugars to the bacterium, which it produces through photosynthesis!
White-leaf Manzanita - Arctostaphylos viscida
There's a picnic area on the North Yuba River, called Convict Flat, that's down near Indian Valley. I like to go there at this time of year to see the blooming White-leaf Manzanitas! These Manzanitas are 4'-12' tall and bloom in late winter! Last year there were bumblebees and robber flies on the blossoms. This week I saw a few bumblebees and a female hummingbird feeding on the blossoms!!!
Manzanita blossoms hold on tightly to their pollen. This is to keep the pollen from washing away in the winter rains. When a bee buzzes a "middle C" buzz inside a flower, the pollen explodes off the anthers and sticks to the bee's belly! This is called buzz pollination or "sonification". Wow!!!
Anna's Hummingbird(?) (female) - Calypte anna
This is probably an Anna's Hummingbird, but I'm not sure. They live year-round in the Sierra. They do not migrate to the tropics like most hummers. In the winter, they move down to the foothills, where they can find tiny insects and spiders to eat. They come back up to our area when winter blooming plants are in flower! In the foothills they begin nesting in December! They will start nesting in our area, when enough food is available.
Sandhill Cranes - Antigone canadensis
Every year at this time the Sandhill Cranes fly over our neighborhood! I just love hearing their loud calls, while watching them head north to their breeding grounds in northern California, Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Canada and Alaska! This western population of Sandhill Cranes spends the winter in the Sacramento and San Joaquin Valleys of California, where they number in the tens of thousands!
Sandhill Cranes are one of North America's largest birds. They are approximately 4 feet tall, weigh 10 lbs., and have a wingspan of up to 7 feet! They are mainly herbivores, but will also consume small mammals, insects, snails, reptiles and amphibians. They do not hunt in marshes or lagoons, but can be found on dry land near wetlands. They will however lay their eggs, and nest on small "islands" in bogs and marshes. Their young are born precocial (covered in down and with their eyes open) and can leave the nest within one day! However, they usually stay together as a family group for 9-10 months.
Frog eggs coated with algae
I've been looking for frog eggs in the roadside ditch that I walk past almost every day, and finally found some two weeks ago. Now that it's warmed up, their development is progressing rapidly!
Frog egg development over the past two weeks
Possible Pacific Chorus Frog (treefrog) eggs - Pseudacris regilla
In Pacific Tree Frogs breeding takes place from January to May. The female lays an egg mass containing 10-70 eggs. This eggs mass is laid in a temporary pond, where it floats, attached to pond vegetation, about 3-4 weeks before hatching. The colder the water is, the longer it takes for the eggs to hatch. This is the embryonic stage of a frog. Once they hatch, they will remain tadpoles for approximately 3 months before they are fully formed adults!!
Combed-mouth Mayfly (male adult) - Orbweaver Web
Ameletus sp. - unknown orbweaver spider
With the warm weather, tons of insects have become active! I was super surprised to find an adult mayfly on the river rocks! It seemed a bit early for it to be out of the river. I only saw one of these adults, but maybe more were nearby. As nymphs, mayflies live underwater for 1 to 2 years, depending on the species. They scrape and eat algae and other micro-organisms off of underwater rocks. When their nymphal stages end, the nymphs will crawl out of the water onto rocks or plants, their exoskeletons will dry out and crack open, the adult will pull itself out of the exoskeleton, pump up its wings, dry out, and fly away! As adults, Mayflies do not eat, and live for less than 24 hours! Just long enough to mate and lay eggs for the next generation!
----------------------------------
Even though the nights have been cold, spiders are back in action! The spider eggs were laid in the fall, with up to several hundred eggs in one sac! Now, because of the warm daytime temperatures, they have hatched. Female spiders are the ones that weave the webs, usually at night. Males do not spin webs and are not commonly seen. They are smaller than the females, and are constantly on the move looking for a mate!
The female will use the web to trap insects. Once they're stuck, the female will bite the insect, wrap it in silk and wait for it to die. Once it dies, the female vomits digestive fluid over the wrapped dead insect, to soften it, then eats it by chewing and sucking! The female spider doesn't get stuck in her own web because she mainly travels on the non-sticky structural lines. Sometimes she has to walk on the sticky spiral lines, but her hairy legs have an oil that keeps them from sticking!!!
Female spiders can spin up to 7 different kinds of silk, depending upon their needs! All seven kinds of spider silk have high tensile strength and are extremely stretchy! The silk itself is made up of protein fibers. Dragline silk is used for the outer rim and spokes of the orb, and is weight-for-weight stronger than steel!!! Capture-spiral silk is used for the capturing lines of the web. It's sticky and extremely stretchy and tough. Aciniform silk is used to wrap captured prey, and is two to three times tougher than the other silks! Wow!
View of the Sutter Buttes from the trailhead
Bobelaine Audubon Sanctuary
Last week we drove down to the Bobelaine Audubon Sanctuary south of Yuba City. We had never been there before so it was an adventure for us! On the way there we passed lots of orchards filled with flowering wild mustard and oxalis! Just gorgeous!
In 1975, Bob and Elaine Crandall gave this sanctuary, 430 acres, to the National Audubon Society. They wanted it to be preserved and protected as one of the last riparian forests in California's Great Valley. Currently less than 2% of the original river forests remain in California. There are over five miles of hiking trails that loop through the sanctuary. We took the Center Trail that wound through a mature Valley Oak/Sycamore forest, past meadows, and on to a view of the Feather River.
Lake Crandall - Double-crested Cormorant (inset)
Phalacrocorax auritus
The first thing we saw was Lake Crandall. There were two great egrets that flew off as we approached, but we managed to watch a Double-crested cormorant for a while. These fish-eating birds are probably year-round residents in the Central Valley.
Red-eared Sliders and two possible Western Pond Turtles
Trachemys scripta elegans - Actinemys marmorata
Unfortunately Lake Crandall is a home for 100's of Red-eared Slider Turtles. (I'm not sure if the two smaller turtles in the above photo are Western Pond Turtles or young Red-eared Sliders.) Although Red-eared Turtles are native to some areas in the southern United States, they are NOT native to California and have become a destructive invasive species in the sluggish waters of local ponds and lakes. They are a worldwide problem, and are considered one of the top 100 invasive species in the world!
Wikipedia states: "Invasive red-eared sliders cause negative impacts in the ecosystems they occupy because they have certain advantages over the native populations, such as a lower age at maturity, higher fecundity rates, and larger body size, which gives them a competitive advantage at basking and nesting sites, as well as when exploiting food resources. They also transmit diseases and displace the other turtle species with which they compete for food and breeding space."
Californiaherps.com states: "The introduction of non-native turtles into Western Pond Turtle habitat, especially the two most successful invasive turtle species, the Red-eared Slider and the Painted Turtle, has been another cause of the decline of the Western Pond Turtle. Both species are common in the pet trade and feral turtles now found in California were most likely released by their owners. Since the Western Pond Turtle is the only native freshwater turtle in its historic range, it did not develop the ability to successfully compete for resources with other species of turtles, and both the Red-eared Slider and the Painted Turtle produce nearly twice as many offspring as the pond turtle which allows them to overwhelm and out-compete the pond turtle population."
Western Sycamore - Valley Oak - Domestic Plum (?)
Platanus racemosa - Quercus lobata - Prunus sp (?)
All of the trees still had bare branches, which created a beautiful lacy tangle of limbs. It was shaded and hushed in the thicket-filled Western Sycamore/Valley Oak forest. At one point three Mule Deer silently crossed the trail in front of us and disappeared quickly (too quick for a photo!) into the bushes!
Domestic Plum - Prunus sp (?)
Interspersed throughout the sanctuary some kind of fruit tree was in full bloom, perhaps a type of plum. The striking white blossoms contrasted beautifully with the dark bare-limbed trees.
Feather River
After hiking a mile and a half through the forest we came out to a view of the Feather River! It was sparkly and gorgeous and a great place to have our lunch! Several Seagulls passed by while we were enjoying the view, and a few Canada Geese were on the shoreline. The sun felt great after the shady forest!
Hermit Thrush - Northern Mockingbird - Oak Titmouse
Cathatrus guttatus - Mimus polyglottos - Baeolophus inornatus
After a while we headed back into the river-forest and looked for songbirds. Several Hermit Thrushes appeared along the trail, as well as Mockingbirds, and an Oak Titmouse! We also saw Spotted Towhees, Western Bluebirds, and White-crowned Sparrows. It was SUPER windy, so there weren't many raptors around, except for an American Kestrel and several Turkey Vultures.
After several hours of hiking we headed home, passing a flower filled orchard on the way. It was a lovely day, in a brand new area. We'll definitely come back again!
Oxalis - Red Maids
Oxalis Valdiviensis - Calandrinia menziesii
"Spring Rain" ©KoK 2001
Since the local rainfall total at this point is way below our normal amount, around 25", I am once again sending out a "Call for Art" in celebration of rain. My intention is to focus on the need for rain, and through collective positive energy invoke rain to fall. It is just a wish, a thought, and a hope. If you would like to submit some art, or writing, or a photo please email me at northyubanaturalist@gmail.com. Check out what's already been submitted at dampearthart.blogspot.com
You can view what was submitted last year at dampearth.blogspot.com.
I will be posting new art weekly. Check it out and pray for rain.
Sierra Buttes - 3/1/21
What's happening in the Lakes Basin?
What's happening on the river?
What bugs are out and about?
Check back next week for the answers to these questions and more!
Unfortunately you can no longer sign up to get my blog emailed to you.
Something changed at Blogspot.com. Oh well... However, my blog looks better if you just go to northyubanaturalist.blogspot.com, rather than get the emailed version. I suggest that you just bookmark my blog and visit it every Sunday afternoon!
Your questions and comments are greatly appreciated! Please feel free to email me at northyubanaturalist@gmail.com. Thanks!
No comments:
Post a Comment