Sun Sprites

 

Bushtit Foraging on Twinberry Honeysuckle, Elk Glen Lake

I often wonder how the little wild things like songbirds, and even the big wild things like bobcats, deal with the kind of relentless cold, wind, and rain we experienced yesterday. I assume they are able to find somewhere fairly comfortable to hunker down and just wait it out, but I'm sure they endure whatever comes without an ounce of self-pity. They are the definition of stoic resilience.

As I was walking in the warm sunshine along the Sunset Parkway this morning I encountered a particularly birdy area, where hummingbirds, pygmy nuthatches, yellow-rumped warblers, western bluebirds, and sparrows were all busily feeding, perhaps making up for lost time. 

The male Anna's hummingbird was feeding on some other nearby plants, but I figured he'd get around to these red-flowering currants pretty soon.

Pygmy Nuthatch in Cypress, Sunset Parkway

A yellow-rumped warbler leaps out of a small cypress...

...and lands on a nearby stalk of African cornflag.

Western Bluebird, Sunset Parkway

Jerusalem crickets seem to be common prey lately, although this little western bluebird spent quite a bit of time trying to swallow the giant bug.

The bird eventually flew away with the bug still in its beak, so I can only assume it eventually figured out how to swallow its prize.

A white-crowned sparrow took to song on this sunny winter day.

I could tell this was an Amanita, but it was too old and waterlogged to say which one.

Very near the Amanita were these colorful little Chroogomphus mushrooms (along with a bunch of spooged-out Russulas), along on the Sunset Parkway.

It was muddy and puddly on the trail along the south side of Mallard Lake, but there was surprisingly little bird activity beyond the usual cavorting of mallards. Perhaps it was because the lake itself was still mostly in shade. Just beyond the lake I couldn't resist photographing some nearby cycad plants that were unfurling in the morning sun.

Pied-billed grebe: The boss of Elk Glen Lake.

No more birdwatching off the back of the Cliff House for a while. I'm looking forward to seeing the place fixed up again though.

Although I failed in my attempt to sneak up on a flicker in a nearby tree at South Lake, this little Townsend's warbler came out to console me.

A pair of red-tailed hawks soared above Middle Lake.

Male bufflehead at Blue Heron Lake.

There were maybe three males and three or so female buffleheads. The females were just relaxing on the surface while the males frequently dove for prey.

In addition to the buffleheads, I was surprised to see this lone common goldeneye.

Yosemite High Country This Morning

This Morning at Mt. Shasta

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Rainy Days

 

Dramatic Finish to a Rainy Day, Grandview Park

I've had to stick around the house the last couple of days to await important deliveries, but I've been reluctant to get out in the rain anyway. Naturally, UPS chose the 45 minutes we spent at the grocery store to show up on Saturday, when no one could sign for the delivery (now set for Monday).

Cabin fever finally set in this afternoon despite the weather, and when I eventually tried to get rained on in the hope of seeing a great rainbow in its aftermath, the rain refused to cooperate, scudding past and leaving me high and dry. Huge, beautiful squalls dumped over the ocean but vectored to the south while others bored in on Mt. Tam and Pt. Reyes to the north.

I biked home and returned a little later in the car with my wife to check out the sunset. We arrived just in time to catch the final drop.

Something swooped past me as I was locking my bike at the bottom of the stairs at Grandview Park. I'm not sure how I missed seeing the red-tailed hawk before it took off. It must have been on a nearby tree stump. It passed surprisingly close to me, then landed on this street light. However, as soon as I pointed my camera his way, he absconded, stage right.

The Transamerica Building always stands out.

This white-crowned sparrow popped out of hiding to nibble on silvery lupine leaves.

The hawk was back on its perch when I returned to my bike to head home, and this time he endured my attention without distress.

These are some Saturday screen captures from web cams.

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Return of the Flickers

 

Norther Flicker in the Oak Woodlands, Golden Gate Park

I won't call it a "resolution," but I've been thinking about uploading more San Francisco species to iNaturalist this year, so I started today since I had such a diverse haul of photos, most of which came out of the Oak Woodlands near the Horseshoe Courts. (I'll occasionally see lawn bowlers in the park, but I have yet to see anyone playing at the horseshoe courts.) 

Another non-resolution is to do more photography outside the city. I renewed my annual CDFW Lands Pass this morning, and the plan is to use it more often than I have the last few years. I also hope to use my National Parks Pass more often, and I'd like to discover some new and interesting natural areas to explore around the state.

The fact that we're getting a decent rain year so far is good encouragement for doing these things. I started the Mt. Tam blog back in 2013 during a long period of drought, which put a crimp on the available biodiversity to explore. If you've been thinking about photographing someplace special in a deep way, this year is shaping up to be a great time to get started.

I saw a pretty sunrise in the making this morning and biked over to Grandview Park to get an unobstructed view of it.

Agaricus californicus in the Oak Woodlands.

Leucopaxillus albissimus

This little troop of Mycenas (possibly Mycena haematopus) was growing in a log just up the trail from the solo mycena I recently photographed.

I can only recall finding a bolete in the park once before. This might be Xerocomus subtomentosus.

I started photographing flickers in the Oak Woodlands in mid-December last year and have been waiting expectantly to see them this year. Today was finally the day.

I cropped the heck out of this shot to show the Jerusalem cricket in the flicker's beak.

And down the hatch.

I don't know if the males were more skittish or just fewer in number, but this was the only one I was able to photograph.

I keep forgetting about Hutton's vireos. I'd assumed this was a ruby-crowned kinglet until iNaturalist suggested (correctly, I believe) otherwise. 

Brown Creeper on Lichen-tassled Oak

Townsend's Warbler on Oak Branch

Grooming Squirrel, Oak Woodland

Miner's Lettuce on the Edge of the Fuchsia Dell.

There was quite a lot of this cup fungus, Peziza repanda, growing in the cycad area near Lily Lake.

And if you find the cup fungus, the bear is very nearby.

This was one of several male and female ring-necked ducks diving inside a circle surrounded by duckweed at Lily Lake. The ducks themselves likely created the clearing with their constant activity.

Yellow-rumped warbler in eucalyptus, Inner Sunset just off Irving Street.

An Anna's hummingbird was feeding on a different tree across the street.

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