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| Wandering Tattler Below the Cliff House |
Ever since the
recent flash mob of whimbrels, I've been thinking it's been a long time since I've seen any surfbirds [UPDATE: I've been seeing wandering tattlers, not surfbirds!] or black turnstones foraging on the rocks down by Sutro Baths. Today I saw both. The one-and-only turnstone shot away like a bullet toward Seal Rocks as soon as it saw me, so it's safe to say they are not yet acclimated to human proximity. After the turnstone fiasco I was more careful with the wandering tattler and managed not to frighten it away.
I began my walk today in ridiculously windy, foggy, and chilly conditions. What makes it especially weird is knowing that Yosemite Valley is forecast to reach 101 degrees today. Meanwhile it's 58 degrees outside my door this afternoon, and that's without the chilling wind.
After seeing the photography gear being used by many of the other birders looking for the slate-throated redstart the other day (apparently seen for the first time ever in California), my gear envy kicked in. When I got home I window-shopped a whole new mirrorless system to replace my DSLR. I'm still on the fence about actually making the switch, though, and will have to think about it some more. Meanwhile, I recall the wise words of an old friend who used to say that the "best" camera was the one you have with you. And for now, the little FZ80 is the one I can have with me pretty much all the time.
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| I keep forgetting what this plant is called. It's native to the eastern United States, and I first identified it (with an app) in Chicago, where it's common. It's called pokeweed, a name likely derived from the Algonquin puccoon. The berries are apparently good for making ink, but bad for eating, at least for humans. [UPDATE on pokeweed-pickin' below.] |
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| Collecting pokeweed to make ink. |
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| Drawing made with pokeweed ink. |
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| Rooftops in the Fog |
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Waymos at Rest
(I'm not sure why autonomous electric vehicles need to rest, but I often see them doing so in and around the neighborhood. They are not charging. They're just occupying curbside parking spaces for their own inscrutable reasons.) |
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| It's pretty rare to see a mouse out in the open like this. The poor guy was on the sidewalk, trying to get out of the way as I approached.... |
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| The cute little fella had apparently been poisoned, or at least that's how it looked to me as it wobbled and practically tipped over while trying to take a few steps. It practically fell off the curb in order to take refuge under a parked car. I didn't see any hawks around, and hopefully the mouse, assuming it has been poisoned, will not be eaten by one. |
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| Unliked poisonous pokeweed and a poisoned mouse, these little apples look good enough to eat. |
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| These pink amaryllis flowers (Amaryllis belladonna), aka Jersey Lilies (not to be confused with Lillie Langtry), remind me of late summer, when the grasses have all turned brown and the heavy fog comes in. I usually first notice them along Panoramic Highway on my way to Mt. Tamalpais, but this time I noticed them in the neighborhood. It's native to South Africa, but I always appreciate its exotic exuberance when most other flowers have finished blooming. |
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| The bison were out and about today, along with a surprising number of people enjoying Golden Gate Park despite the chilly weather. |
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| Peaceful Beast |
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| Wandering Tattler on the Hunt |
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| Tattler Above the Surf |
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| There were lots of pelicans and cormorants winging it along the coast this morning. |
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| The surface of the water just offshore was unusually choppy and chaotic. There must have been some interesting cross-currents going on to make it toss about in such a strange way. The channel of the Golden Gate was placid in comparison. |
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