Two Wildlife Refuges

The Sutter Buttes from the Spenceville Wildlife Refuge

These past two weeks have been sunny and warmish so we traveled to the lower elevations to see what was going on down there. This week I went to the Spenceville Wildlife Refuge, about a two hour drive to the west from our neighborhood. It is a beautiful rolling oak woodlands that I love visiting. The morning we arrived it was fresh and cool and LOTS of songbirds were singing! Just heavenly! My friend Hank and I hiked there for several hours enjoying the big sky vistas, the green lushness, and the filigree of the bare-branched Blue Oaks. Unfortunately I don't have time to write about all that we saw that day, but I plan to go back again within a month and I'll write more then. In the meantime, enjoy these photos!  

Meadowlarks - California Quail 

Sternella neglecta /Callipepla californica

Although the trees hadn't leafed out yet, the grasses created a rich yellow-green carpet throughout the reserve! Such beauty!

We passed by 6 manmade ponds that were filled with the chorus of frogs!

Here's a recording of that chorus!

I love how the reflection looks like the trees are straight and not branched!

Bedrock Mortar Site

I was privileged to be lead to two bedrock mortar sites within the preserve, by local writer, historian, and friend, Hank Meals! He has hiked in the Spenceville Wildlife Refuge countless times and has discovered mortar holes throughout the area. The following information about the local Nisenan People, who created these mortar holes, is from Hank's blog at https://yubatreadhead.blogspot.com/2018/12/the-spenceville-wildlife-area-rolling.html. 

We left in the late afternoon, with plans to be back again soon, 

when the oaks start to leaf out!

Red-tailed Hawk at the Gray Lodge Wildlife Refuge

Last week, my husband and I revisited the Gray Lodge Wildlife Refuge. To our completed delight the Snow Geese were there in the thousands! They hadn't been in the wetlands when we visited a month ago. The sight and sound of them are so much a part of Gray Lodge, that I really missed them on our previous visit. This visit they filled us with beauty once again! Yay!!!

Snow Geese Landing in the wetlands - Anser caerulescens

Here's a video of them landing and calling!

(Oops! Looks like you get to see the same video twice! I'll fix it soon!)

Some areas were just packed with Snow Geese!

Snow Geese - Greater White-fronted Geese - Northern Pintails

Anser caerulescens - Anser albifrons - Anas acuta

Double-crested Cormorants (adult/juveniles) - Nannopterum auritum

Northern Pintails (males/females) - Anas acuta

Gadwalls (female/male) - Mareca strepera

Green Heron with a tadpole (adult) - Butorides virescens

Green Heron swallowing a tadpole (adult) - Butorides virescens

Red-tailed Hawk (adult back & front) - Buteo jamaicensis

California Towhee (adult) - Bushtit (adult) 

 Melozone crissalis - Psaltriparus minimus

When we were leaving Gray Lodge the sun had come out and the water was filled with a myriad of glistening sparkles! How lucky we were to engage with such beauty!

Neighborhood News!

To my absolute delight I spotted another Pygmy Owl this week in my neighborhood! It was in the same vicinity of the one I saw a few weeks ago, so it is probably the same one. WOW!!!

Check back in two weeks, on February 14th, for the latest Natural History News from my neighborhood!

Your comments and questions are greatly appreciated. Please email me at northyubanaturalist@gmail.com