Wet Weather!

As predicted, it started raining last Saturday night and continued into Wednesday! Yahoo!!!  Our total rainfall during that time was 1.75"!!!  It was fabulous!  It was mainly scattered showers, but several downpours were torrential!  The petrichor fragrance was heavenly!  Ahhh!  What a miracle!

Rain bejeweled grasses 

The rain also washed the smoke out of the sky, and dampened down the fire!  

It is JUST what we needed!  Sure hope the storms keep coming!

Forested slope near Helgramite Lakes

Before the Smoke

Just before the smoke from the Mosquito Fire engulfed our area, I went on two beautiful hikes in the Lakes Basin.  The fall colors were just starting to come out, the air was clear, and the temperature was in the mid-90's.

Huckleberry Oak - Quercus vaccinifolia

As we hiked along the trail my friend Diane and I kept smelling a lovely floral fragrance everywhere we went.  The only flowers that were blooming were a few asters and buckwheats but they didn't have any fragrance at all.  I finally smelled the leaves of a Huckleberry Oak bush and discovered that they were the source of the fragrance!  What a surprise!  They weren't in bloom, it was the heated leaves that had a scent!  They had a light gardenia-like perfume!  Only the bushes that were in the HOT sun had an aroma. The shaded bushes didn't.  Huckleberry Oak grows everywhere in the Lakes Basin and often forms large, dense thickets.  It has often been our nemesis when trying to bushwhack cross-country!  This is the first time I've ever noticed that they have a scent!  What a pleasant surprise!  

In the wet meadows we came across a few late-blooming wildflowers, most notably Grass of Parnassus!  These beautiful one-inch-wide, white flowers have four fancy fringed staminodes with glistening yellow drops on their tips. Most flowers don't have these infertile staminodes.  Their purpose may be to attract insects.  We examined them with our hand lenses and they were stunning to see!  These flowers always bloom late in the season in wet areas.

Mule Deer - Odocoileus hemionus sp.

One of my favorite areas to explore in the Lakes Basin is up by the Helgramite Lakes.  Two days before the smoke came in I was hiking up there and saw two Mule Deer Bucks, a Doe, and her fawn!  What a surprise!

Mule Deer - Odocoileus hemionus sp.

The fawn still had some of its spots, and looked like it was beginning to shed its summer coat. I only got to see them briefly before they bolted up the forested hillside.

Hairy Woodpecker (male) - Yellow Warbler (male) - Red-breasted Sapsucker (juvenile)

Dryobates villosus - Dendroica petechia - Sphyrapicus ruber

In the same area as the Mule Deer I came across a flock of Yellow Warblers feeding on the Alpine Knotweed seeds!  It was so fun to watch and listen to these little beauties!  What a treat!  They were probably on their way to their winter habitat in Central America or northern South America!

On the same day, in another area, I luckily spotted a juvenile Red-breasted Sapsucker that was making its "mewing" call, and a Hairy Woodpecker that was hammering away on a branch. The Hairy Woodpecker will probably stay in the area over the winter, or drop down to lower elevations in California. The Red-breasted Sapsucker will migrate down to the central valley or coastal areas of Cailfornia for the winter.

Cooper's Hawk - Accipiter cooperii

Later that same day I got a great viewing of a juvenile Cooper's Hawk!  WOW!!! I only see these gorgeous raptors rarely. These hawks are incredible forest hunters. They are relentless pursuers of their prey, which is usually medium size birds such as quail, as well as rabbits, squirrels, mice, and reptiles. With their short wings and rudder-like long tails they can "turn-on-a-dime" and maneuver easily through forests and dense thickets! It's a rare event that a Cooper's Hawk doesn't catch its prey, unless a tree intervenes! Almost one fourth of the Cooper's Hawks that have been examined, have breastbones that have healed fractures! Unlike falcons who kill by biting their prey, Cooper's Hawks squeeze their prey to death with their feet! Wow!!!

Fall color along Long Lake

One day before the smoke came, Diane and I hiked up to Long Lake in the heat to go for a swim.  The water was perfect, and the lake was filled with sparkles.  Along the shore, a bit of fall color was starting to show.  It was heavenly!  It turned out to be our last swim for the season, as the cooler temperatures since then have chilled the lakes! 

Upper Tamarack Lake

In the Rain!

Last Tuesday, I hiked up to the Tamarack Lakes with my friends Nancy and BJ.  It was cold, gray, and cloudy and we LOVED it!  Dark clouds filled the sky as we traveled cross-country to the lakes.  No one else was there and it was quiet and peaceful!  Just  beautiful!  The Fall colors are only just starting to show, but a lot of the bushes were still green. It really felt like Fall! We didn't see any waterfowl on the lakes, but nuthatches were calling from the trees.

Fall color in the Tamarack Lakes basin 

 

After several hours of exploring the area, it got quite cold and looked like it was going to start raining so we headed back down to our car.  It was only around 3:00 and we were reluctant to leave the Lakes Basin, so we drove over to Salmon Creek Campground and explored the beautiful wet meadows in that area. 

  Sierra Buttes -  9/20/22

There's a lovely view of the Sierra Buttes from the campground.  Lots of the plants had gone to seed, and the meadows were dry and golden, but the aspens and cottonwoods were still green.  We had only been out in the meadows for ten minutes when it started to RAIN!  We hurried back to our car and headed for home in the POURING RAIN!!!  Surprisingly it POURED the whole way home!!!

 My windshield! - 9/20/22

When I got home I sat in the car and enjoyed the sight and sound of the drenching rain!  How lucky we were to get this early rainstorm! I hope more storms arrive soon!

Raindrop ripples on the North Yuba River 

Damp Earth Art

 

The 1.75" of rain that we got this week was a miracle!  Hopefully more will come soon! Please join me in my continuing hope for precipitation! Perhaps our collective efforts may help it happen.

I'm going to keep posting rain inspired writings, art, etc. on my blog at dampearthart.blogspot.com. Any submissions would be greatly appreciated.

This is obviously a volcanic rock formation, 

but I can't say much more about it!

What's happening in our Garden?

Has Fall arrived?

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

Unfortunately, you can no longer sign up to get my blog via email. Just go to northyubanaturalist.blogspot.com directly.

Your questions and comments are greatly appreciated. Please feel free to email me at northyubanaturalist@gmail.com. Thanks!

Too Smoky to Blog!

North Yuba River - 9/13/22

It has been TOO smokey to go outside this past week, let alone hike!  We've been smothered by intense smoke from the Mosquito Fire.  We had a smoke-free summer, so I can't complain.  Hopefully they will get the fire out soon.  RAIN is in the forecast starting Saturday night and into Wednesday!!!  Maybe it will pour and put out the fire!  Fingers crossed!  Check back next week for a new blog with the latest natural history news from my neighborhood!  Thanks!

Pollinators!

Long-horned Bee - Melissodes sp.

I recently watched an amazing PBS video entitled "My Garden of a 1,000 Bees".  It was fabulous!  It was made in a backyard in England, by wildlife photographer Martin Dohrn, during the first two years of the recent pandemic. It was fascinating and beautiful to watch! It was a real reminder to me about the importance of native bees, and inspired me to go out and search for them, and other pollinators, in our garden and neighborhood! 

Long-horned Bees and unknown bee 

Melissodes sp. - unknown sp.

You can buy the DVD or stream the video at the following website, https://www.pbs.org/wnet/nature/my-garden-thousand-bees-about/26263/. It is only an hour long, and I highly recommend it!

Here is how PBS describes the video:

"Taking refuge from the coronavirus pandemic, wildlife filmmaker Martin Dohrn set out to record all the bees he could find in his tiny urban garden in Bristol, England, filming them with one-of-a-kind lenses he forged on his kitchen table.

The documentary follows Dohrn during the COVID-19 lockdown of spring and summer 2020, as he becomes bee obsessed and develops relationships with individual bees. Filming more than 60 species of bees, from Britain’s largest bumblebees to scissor bees, which are the size of a mosquito, Dohrn observes how differences in behavior set different species apart from each other. Eventually, he gets so close to the bees, he can identify individuals just by looking at them.

Viewers will marvel at moments timely captured in My Garden of a Thousand Bees, such as bees laying tiny eggs preparing for the next generation, green-fanged spiders feasting on male flower bees and a female yellow-faced bee attacking a Gasteruption wasp to protect her nest. Other fascinating behavior featured in the program includes two male bees fighting each other over a female, different species of bees competing over territory and one busy bee building a nest with a shell and hundreds of sticks. Intrigued by the intelligence of one particular wood-carving leafcutter bee, Dohrn dubs her “Nicky” and sees life at her level as she leaves a lasting legacy in the garden."

Nevada Bumblebee - Yellow-faced Bumblebee - Hunt's Bumblebee

Bombus nevadensis - Bombus vasnesneski - Bombus huntii

There are approximately 1,600 native bee species in California!  In addition to native bees there are lots of other native pollinators, including wasps, butterflies, moths, flies, ants, beetles, and birds. Once you start looking, you'll be amazed at how many different species are right in your neighborhood!  Here are photos of some of the ones I have encountered locally.

I've written a lot about Pollinators in past blogs.  Just type in "Pollinators" in the "search this blog" bar, on the top right of this page, for more information.

Black Ichneumonid Wasp - Bee Wolf - Mason Wasps

Therion morio - Philanthus multimaculatus - Euodynerus foraminatus

Common Checkered Skipper - Western Branded Skipper - Confusing Petrophila Moth

Pyrgus communis - Hesperia colorado - Petrophila confusalis

unknown fly - unknown fly - Greater Bee Fly

unknown sp. unknown sp. - Bombylius major

North Yuba River - 9/07/22

River Update

The river has surprisingly cooled off, even though we've had such hot weather lately.  It's probably because of the shorter number of daylight hours, and the cooler night time temperatures we've been having.  It's quite low and the rocks are slippery with algae.  However, the deeper pools are still delightful for swimming!

Common Merganser - Canada Geese

Mergus merganser - Branta canadensis

The Common Mergansers have decreased in number, and the Canada Geese have grouped together!  I counted 6 Canada Geese in one group.  The goslings are now hard to distinguish from the adults as they are just about full size. The mergansers will migrate to lower elevations in the fall, whereas the geese may stay here indefinitely, depending on the weather.

Belted Kingfisher (female) - Megaceryle alcyon 

There are two Belted Kingfishers on the river lately.  Maybe both of them will stay for the winter!

Great Blue Heron (adult) - Osprey (adult)

Ardea herodias - Pandion haliaetus

The Great Blue Heron and the Osprey are both still hunting fish in the river.  The heron will probably stay here all winter, but he Osprey will be leaving in the Fall for lower elevations. The old cottonwood on the river is one of their favorite perches.

Smoke in the Canyon 9/9/22

Damp Earth Art

Unfortunately smoke has just made its way into our area from the Mosquito Fire. This summer has been WAY better than last summer as far as smoky skies.  Hopefully this current heatwave will break soon, especially for the firefighters.  It has been very hot this week, in the 100's, but cooler temps are in the forecast. Please join me in my continuing hope for precipitation! Perhaps our collective efforts may help it happen.

I'm going to keep posting rain inspired writings, art, etc. on my blog at dampearthart.blogspot.com. Any submissions would be greatly appreciated.

What kind of rock formation is this?

What's happening in the Lakes Basin?

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

Unfortunately, you can no longer sign up to get my blog via email. Just go to northyubanaturalist.blogspot.com directly. It looks better than the emailed version!

Your questions and comments are greatly appreciated. Please feel free to email

me at northyubanaturalist@gmail.com. Thanks!

A Little Lakes Basin Geology

Glacial Polish and the Sierra Buttes

Geology isn't something that grabs my interest even though it surrounds me!  I guess I prefer to study living organisms!  However, I often see evidence of glacial polish when I'm hiking in the Lakes Basin. So I did a little research and here's what I learned.

The following information is from the website https://hikemtshasta.com/.

"In a broad perspective, the northern Sierra Nevada can roughly be defined as that part of the Sierra Nevada that begins at Carson Pass, includes the Lake Tahoe Basin and continues north 120 miles to Lake Almanor. Compared to the parts of the Sierra Nevada that lie further to the south, this area is typically more subdued and less wild than the vast wilderness of jagged mountains that is the signature of California’s signature mountain range. While there are some fantastic mountains around Lake Tahoe, the subdued trend becomes more evident the further north you go. Despite this, the Lakes Basin area appears to be an island of craggy, glacially carved terrain. It is surrounded by decidedly less rocky, less rugged mountains in nearly every direction.

Geologically the area is something of an island as well. Most of the exposed rock in the Lakes Basin area is composed of quartz porphyry. This is situated between an extensive area of marine sediment to the west and a large granite pluton to the east. The confused geologic structure of this area is common in the northern Sierra Nevada. Rather than consisting of a single granite pluton like most of the range to the south, the mountains in this region are a seemingly random mixture of a variety of rock types. In spite of this, the composition of the cliffs at the Lake Basin area are distinct, with few other examples of it anywhere nearby. It is the quartz porphyry that gives the cliffs their white to pink range of colors and the area’s visual distinctiveness."

 Mud Lake (foreground) - Long Lake (background)

"Strictly speaking, the Lakes Basin proper lies at the northern end of this glaciated area, focused on the basin containing Long Lake. However, the area is geologically cohesive and glaciation and lakes abound, making the name Lakes Basin appropriate to the whole area. In total, there are 6 primary lakes basins here. From north to south, these are the Jamison, Lakes Basin (proper), Gold Lake, Salmon Lake, Packer Lake and the Sardine Lake basins. Worth noting, the Lakes Basin proper, which is around Long Lake, is the centerpiece of the Lakes Basin Recreation Area."

There are approximately 50 lakes in the Lakes Basin, and I've hiked to 46 of them!  They range from clear, rock-bound lakes, to murky pond-like lakes. Each one is unique and beautiful!  Not all of them are named, so we sometimes create our own names for them!  One lake was bone-dry when we first encountered it, so we named it "Not a Drop Lake". We've been back to that lake, and even swam in it, since then!  Unfortunately, I can't show you a photo of it as my new computer doesn't have a CD reader.  RATS!  Here's a collection of photos of some of the Lakes Basin lakes I've visited this past summer!

 Big Bear Lake

Long Lake

Round Lake

Veronica Lake

Upper Tamarack Lake

Un-named Lake

Eye Gnat - Liohippelates pusio

(photo from www.fliesonly.com)

It's HOT out there!

This week the temperatures have been in the high 90's and low 100's!  TOO HOT!  Clouds have been extremely rare.  Occasionally we've had breezy days which help with the heat, but not the dry conditions. No rain is in the forecast.  We try to go for our neighborhood walk in the morning, but gnats have been flocking to our noses, mouths, eyes, and ears! 

 The type of gnats that are currently plaguing us are female Eye Gnats (Liohippelates pusio). They are very small, true flies, and are non-biting. They need the proteins found in human and animal secretions to produce their eggs. They do not pierce the skin of the host to obtain this material, but rather scrape up a pool of mucous with their hind legs and suck it up with their spongy mouth parts! These female gnats can be active anytime the temperature is over 70 degrees, with the most activity occurring when temperatures reach into the 90's. Unfortunately that is happening right now!  

Male Eye Gnats are rare, and do not feed on secretions. Females will lay their eggs in loose soil. It can take 11-30 days for the larvae to become adults. Larvae feed on plant material, not secretions. Multiple generations can occur each year. Our only hope is rain and cold temperatures, which will get rid of these gnats. However, our forecast is for HOT temperatures and no rain, so the gnats are here to stay for awhile!

View north from the Steel Bridge - 9/1/22

Sierra Valley in Late August

Some dear friends of mine were visiting last week, and since one of them was laid up with a foot problem we decided to drive over to Sierra Valley.  It was very DRY and HOT over there, but a breeze kept us from boiling.  All the canals were dried out, and the small ponds were reduced to puddles.  Nevertheless there were still some birds to watch and scenery to enjoy!

American Kestrel (male) - Northern Harrier (female) 

Falco sparverius - Circus hudsonius

Interestingly we saw a few raptors while we were there. On most of my previous trips to the valley, raptors were conspicuously absent!  We saw several American Kestrels, and one Northern Harrier!  Such beauty!

American Kestrels are the smallest falcon in North America, measuring 9" in length, with a wingspan of 22", and a weight of 4.1oz. They prefer to hunt in wide open, grassy fields. Their diet consists primarily of insects and small rodents such as: grasshoppers, beetles, dragonflies, scorpions, spiders, butterflies, moths, voles, mice, shrews, bats, snakes, lizards, frogs, and small songbirds! These beautiful little falcons can be seen in Sierra Valley year-round.

Northern Harrier (female) - Circus hudsonius

We were thrilled to watch a Northern Harrier hunting nearby! After flying over the grass for awhile, it dropped down into the grass with its legs outstretched and ready to grab some prey. It was probably successful in its hunt, as we didn't see it fly up out of the grass!  Northern Harriers typically fly low, skimming over the grasses, tules, and sagebrush while hunting for prey. They are a medium size raptor, measuring 18" in length, with a wingspan of 43", and a weight of 15 oz. They eat medium to small birds and mammals, as well as reptiles and frogs. Unlike other raptors, they rely on auditory clues from their owl-like facial disc of feathers, which helps them locate prey acoustically! They can be found in Sierra Valley year-round.

Sandhill Cranes (adults) - Antigone canadensis

Over the course of the day we saw about 6 Sandhill Cranes! They must have raised their young in Sierra Valley this year, which is the southernmost area that Sandhill Cranes are known to nest. Most of the Sandhill Cranes that overwinter in California breed farther north in Idaho, Oregon, and Washington. They will be leaving for California's Central Valley in the Fall. I love seeing these beautiful large birds, that are 4' tall and have a wingspan of 7' 7".

View north from the Marble Hot Springs Road

Damp Earth Art

Once again, more HOT weather has come in this week with no rain in sight. Please join me in my continuing hope for precipitation! Perhaps our collective efforts may help it happen.

I'm going to keep posting rain inspired writings, art, etc. on my blog at dampearthart.blogspot.com. Any submissions would be greatly appreciated.

What kind of rock formation is this?

What's happening on the River?

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

Unfortunately, you can no longer sign up to get my blog via email. Just go to northyubanaturalist.blogspot.com directly. It looks better than the emailed version!

Your questions and comments are greatly appreciated. Please feel free to email

me at northyubanaturalist@gmail.com. Thanks!