Down in the Garden

Grizzly Peak and Black Locusts in Bloom - Robinia pseudoacacia

Almost every late afternoon, my husband and I go down to our garden to sit and enjoy its beauty for a while!  We have a lovely view of Grizzly Peak and the surrounding ridges, as well as the neighboring forest.  Right now the Black Locust trees are in FULL bloom and filling our neighborhood with fragrance and an overabundance of white flowers!

American Robin (adult) - Northern Flicker (male) - Black Locust

Turdus migratorius - Colaptes auratus - Robinia pseudoacacia

Black Locust trees are native to the Southeastern United States, but have spread throughout North America. They are considered to be an invasive species in our area.  However, I've noticed that Black Locusts are the favorite tree of many of our local birds! It is one of the tallest deciduous trees in my neighborhood, and birds love to perch and nest in them. Three out of the three old Bullock's Oriole nests I've found, have been in Locust Trees.  I also saw the Evening Grosbeaks eating the seeds out of the dried Locust pods, when they first arrived this Spring! Additionally, the nectar from the blossoms is eaten by many insects and birds. I think that even though it is an invasive species, through my observation it appears to be beneficial to the birds! I'm glad that they grow here! So beautiful!

Western Tanager (male)  - Calliope Hummingbird (male)

Piranga ludoviciana - Stellula calliope

There's been a male Western Tanager stopping by our garden lately!  Such incredible coloring in its feathers!  I haven't spotted a female yet, but they are drab olive-green and quite camouflaged.  What a thrill it is to see these tropical migrants returning to our neighborhood!

Hummingbirds have returned to our garden!  The Bleeding Hearts and the Wallflowers  are their flowers of choice right now! I saw this little hummer feeding on the Bleeding Hearts a few years ago, and wanted to share it once more as it is a Calliope Hummingbird.  

The Calliope Hummingbird is uncommon in our area.  These hummingbirds are the smallest bird in the United States, measuring 3.25" in length, and a 4.25" wingspan!! They nest between 4,000' and 11,000' in the Sierras! So I luckily saw him while he was passing through our area! They feed mainly on nectar and tiny insects. The female makes a tiny well-insulated nest, that holds two, tiny, .5"eggs. The incubate their eggs for 15-16 days. The altricial nestlings fledge about 18-21 days after they are born. I would LOVE to see one them! In the winter they migrate to the lower elevations and coastlines, sometimes as far south as Mexico!

Western Fence Lizard - Sceloporus occidentalis

We've been see quite a few lizards scurrying through our garden, and climbing our nearby woodpile.  They are mainly Western Fence Lizards. The following information is from www.californiaherps.org, a great website for information on reptiles and amphibians, and lots of good photos.

"Males have blue markings on the sides of the belly edged in black, and two blue patches on the throat. Females have faint or absent blue markings on the belly. Males establish and defend a territory containing elevated perches where they can observe mates and potential rival males. Males defend their territory and try to attract females with head-bobbing and a push-up display that exposes the blue throat and ventral colors. Territories are ultimately defended by physical combat with other males. Courtship and copulation typically occurs from March to June. Egg laying occurs 2 - 4 weeks after copulation. Females dig small pits in loose damp soil where they lay 1 - 3 clutches of 3 - 17 eggs usually from May to July. Eggs hatch in about 60 days, usually from July to September.

They eat small, mostly terrestrial, invertebrates such as crickets, spiders, ticks, and scorpions, and occasionally eats small lizards including its own species.

In California, western black-legged ticks (deer ticks) are the primary carriers of Lyme disease. Very tiny nymphal deer ticks are more likely to carry the disease than adults. A protein in the blood of Western Fence Lizards kills the bacterium in these nymphal ticks when they attach themselves to a lizard and ingest the lizard's blood. This could explain why Lyme disease is less common in California than it is in some areas such as the Northeastern states, where it is epidemic."

Western Yellow-bellied Racer Snake - Botta's Pocket Gopher

Thamnophis elegans - Thomomys bottae

  

This year we have a Western Yellow-bellied snake in our garden! It moves super fast and is very hard to photograph. The following information about them is from www.californiaherps.org.

"Diurnal, often seen actively foraging in the daytime with head and forward part of the body held up off the ground searching for prey with its acute vision. Climbs vegetation and seeks shelter in burrows, rocks, or woody debris. Very fast-moving and alert, quickly fleeing when threatened, this snake is difficult to get close to.

Eats lizards, small rodents, small birds, frogs, salamanders, small snakes. Lays eggs in late spring or early summer which hatch in two to three months."

One morning this week, one of the Iceland Poppy plants was jiggling away!  Unfortunately, it was a gopher that made it jiggle. It had cut off the poppies roots!!! RATS! I stomped the gopher tunnel flat right away, but I know that won't deter the gopher. Maybe the Yellow-bellied Racer will eat it!  Fingers crossed!  Gophers dig tunnels underground while looking for roots and bulbs to eat, as well as to make sleeping/nesting chambers. Their large front teeth are located in front of their "lips", which can close and keep dirt out of their throat! They are called "pocket" gophers, because they have external cheek pouches in which they carry food or dirt.

Carpenter Bees - Bumblebee (inset photo)

 Xylocopa sp. - Bombus sp.

The onions in our garden are now blooming and attracting a variety of pollinators!  Carpenter Bees have been there for days, drinking the nectar from the flowers!  Many other kinds of pollinators are also busy getting the nectar and pollen, including Bumblebees!

Adult male and female Carpenter Bees hibernate in separate tunnels, in winter. In the Spring, they mate and then clean out an old tunnel, or create a new one, for their larvae. The female lays 6 to 8 eggs. Each egg is placed in a separate chamber, along with some "bee bread" (a ball of nectar and pollen). The chamber is then sealed off with wood particles. When the egg hatches, the larva eats the bee bread, pupates, and emerges out of its chamber as an adult. This complete metamorphosis takes several months! Meanwhile, the adult males and females can be seen feeding on nectar throughout the Summer. They do not eat wood. Male Carpenter Bees don't sting, as they have no stinger. Females do have a stinger, but rarely sting!

Pale Swallowtail Butterfly - Papilio eurymedon

Butterflies!

Two types of Swallowtail Butterflies have been feeding on the garden flowers and local lilacs for a few weeks now, the Pale Swallowtail and the Tiger Swallowtail.  Pale Swallowtail Butterflies are common throughout the western U.S., where they live year-round. They overwinter as a chrysalis. As adults they feed on a wide variety of flowering trees, shrubs, and flowers.  

Variable Checkerspot Butterfly- Propertius Duskywing Skipper

Euphydryas chalcedona - Erynnis propertius

There are 165,000 known species of butterflies found on every continent except Antarctica.  Each species of caterpillar feeds on a specific species of plant.  Their eyes are made of 6,000 lenses and can see ultraviolet light.  A butterfly's antennae, palps, legs and many other parts of the body are studded with sense receptors that are used to smell. The sense of smell is used for finding food (usually flower nectar), and for finding mates (the female smelling the male's pheromones).

A butterfly's feet have sense organs that can taste the sugar in nectar, letting the butterfly know if something is good to eat or not. Some females also taste host plants (using organs on their legs) in order to find appropriate places to lay their eggs. These receptors (called chemoreceptors) are nerve cells on the body's surface which react to certain chemicals.

American Lady Butterfly - Vanessa virginiensis

This past week there have been a few American Lady Butterflies flying around our neighborhood!  It turns out that they haven't just hatched out, they have migrated here! They are winter residents of the southern United States, Mexico, and Central America south to Colombia. In the Spring they migrate to, and temporarily colonize, the northern United States, southern Canada, the West Indies, and Europe. Wow! 

Morels - Morchella sp.

About two weeks ago, some Morel mushrooms popped up in a shady, damp area right near our garden!  The spores are found on the walls of the honey-combed exterior.  Morels are hard to see in the forest, because they are so camouflaged in the decaying leaf litter. When you finally see one, you will probably see a lot more that you hadn't noticed before! This year I only saw five morels.  In the past I've seen as many as 13 of them.  It's always fun to hunt for them, and get reunited every year!

Sardine Lake - 5/19/23

Lakes Basin Update!

We drove up to Sardine Lake and Sand Pond last week.  Both of them are totally melted out, and the trail to Upper Sardine is mostly snow free. I hope to get up to Upper Sardine Lake soon!

Salmon Lake - 5/19/23

We hiked back up to Salmon Lake on four feet of snow a week ago.  To our surprise it was STILL mostly frozen!  I didn't get up there this week, but my friend Diane skied to Gold Lake, and the Gold Lake Road had only been plowed as far as the turn off for Salmon Lake! Things are moving slowly up in the Lakes Basin!

What's happening on the river?

What's blooming in my neighborhood?

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

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