Winter Weather

No Yuba River - 12/8/22

Luckily it's been rainy and cold this week, and more is expected in the near future!  Our total precipitation for the past week is 5.75", for a water year total (since Oct. 1) of 12.12".  The river rose 2 feet, and went up to 800 CFS (Cubic Feet per Second) last Sunday!  It has since dropped 2 feet and decreased to 200 CFS.  More weather is in the forecast for today, tomorrow, and the week ahead!  In fact it's pouring right now, on Saturday morning!  Yahoo!  I hope the storms keep coming and wash this drought away.  Fingers crossed!  

American Kestrel (male) - Red-tailed Hawk (adult)

Falco sparverius - Buteo jamaicensis

North Yuba River News

New this week, the Common Goldeneyes have arrived, as well as an American Kestrel!!!  The Red-tailed Hawk is still hunting on the river corridor, some of the Common Mergansers are still here, and our year-round river residents are doing just fine!

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I was so surprised to see an American Kestrel in our neighborhood this week! In the past there has been a kestrel perching in the Open Slope, but the earliest I've seen one there is in January! I have no idea if this is the same one, or if it will be sticking around. I walked down to the Open Slope right after I saw it, but it wasn't there. I'll keep checking.

American Kelstrels are the smallest falcon in North America, measuring 9" in length, with a wingspan of 22", and a weight of 4.1oz. 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! Right now there aren't many insects around, so it was probably hunting for rodents in the field.

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We've seen the Red-tailed Hawk several times along the river corridor this week.  It must be finding enough to eat!  Red-tails are medium sized hawks, measuring 19" in length, with a wingspan of 49", and a weight of 2.4 lb. They are one of the most commonly seen raptors in North America, and are found from coast to coast in the U.S. and as far south as Venezuela. If the winter is snow-free, they will live year-round in our neighborhood. They like to perch in trees, or posts on the edges of clearings or meadows, and watch for prey. Ground squirrels, gophers, rabbits, mice, snakes, lizards, kestrels, and meadowlarks are their main prey. They use the perch-and-wait method of hunting. Once prey is sighted they will drop from their perch, flap-and-glide downward, thrust their legs forward when about 3 m from prey, and grab prey with their feet.

Common Goldeneyes (female - males) - Bucephala clangula

Just this week the Common Goldeneye ducks arrived on the river! I've been expecting them! They always arrive around the 2nd or 3rd week in December, and spend the winter here. 

In California, Common Goldeneyes are the only ducks that regularly spend the winter on rivers and lakes above the foothills of the western Sierra. They are diving ducks and eat fish, aquatic vertebrates, seeds, and tubers. When diving, they keep their wings pressed to their sides underwater, and swim with their webbed feet! They are amazing to watch when they're underwater! This species can fly up to 40 mph, and the wind "whistles" through their wing feathers!

Right now the males are in their black and white mating colors, and the females have a yellow tip to their bill. Pair formation is just starting! They will migrate to their northern breeding grounds in the boreal forests of northern Canada and Alaska in the Spring. I am so thrilled that they have once again returned to our neighborhood for the winter!

Common Mergansers (females) - Mergus merganser

I saw a few of the Common Mergansers earlier this week. They will probably migrate down to the foothills and central valley as the winter weather continues.

Great Blue Heron - Ardea herodias 

The lone Great Blue Heron that I see year-round along our section of the river, is usually perched in a tree or in the river itself. 

Wednesday was sunny, so my friends Nancy, Diane, Bev and I went for a hike down in the foothills, at the South Yuba River State Park. It was a beautiful day with big puffy clouds in a brilliant blue sky. The park is a beautiful oak woodlands with the South Yuba River on one side and the combined forks of the North and Middle Yuba Rivers on the other.  It is at a much lower elevation (567') than where I live (2,674').  It is one of my favorite places to go in the winter,  because it is snow-free, populated with birds, and quite a bit warmer than my neighborhood!

We hiked  the loop trail to Point Defiance, and then we hiked along an old road to the upper arm of Englebright Lake, where the combined North and Middle Forks of the Yuba River merge with the lake. It was a little wintery but not cold, and some green grass was popping up in the dry grasses from the recent rains!

Pacific Madrone - Arbutus menziesii

This year the Madrone Trees were LOADED with berries! Many mammal and bird species feed off the berries, including American Robins, Cedar Waxwings, Band-tailed Pigeons, Varied Thrushes, Quail, Mule Deer, Raccoons, Ring-tailed Cats, and Black Bears. These trees can grow up to 130' in height and 3' in daimeter.  They can also live for 400 to 500 years!

Band-tailed Pigeons - Columba fasciata

We saw several large flocks of Band-tailed Pigeons 

feasting on the Madrone Berries!

Toyon Berries - Heteromeles arbutifolia 

As we drove down to the park, we drove past 100's of Toyon bushes loaded with berries! Toyon berries form in June or July, but don't ripen until December. When they are green they contain cyano-glucosides in their pulp. When a bird tries to eat a green berry, cyanide gas is released and deters the bird! The unripened berries are also full of bitter tannins that discourage foragers! Over time the cyanide compounds gradually move into the seeds and the tannins diminish. In December, when the berries are bright red, they aren't bitter and the pulp no longer contains cyanide compounds! Approximately 20+ species of birds eat Toyon berries during winter including Western Bluebirds, Band-tailed Pigeons, Cedar Waxwings, Hermit Thrushes, and Varied Thrushes. Foxes, Brush Rabbits, Black Bears, and Coyotes also feed on the ripened berries!

Black Bear scat containing berries

We came across this Black Bear scat full of Toyon berries, on the trail!  It certainly looked like they had eaten LOTS of them!

Willows along Englebright Lake showing the last of the fall color

When we got back to our car, the last of the afternoon light was on the river-edge willows. Such beauty!  Hopefully, we'll revisit this park in the near future, and walk along the Buttermilk Bar Trail with its stunning views of the South Yuba River.

Damp Earth Art

Winter storms have brought almost 6" of rain to our neighborhood this week, what a miracle!  Hopefully more storms are coming our way!

I'm going to keep posting rain inspired writings, art, etc. on my blog at dampearthart.blogspot.com. Any submissions would be greatly appreciated. Please join me in my continuing hope for precipitation! Perhaps our collective efforts may help it happen.

What's happening on the river?

Is the Fall color all gone?

How are the year-round avian residents doing?

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

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