Amanita muscaria

 

A nicely shaped fly agaric in an urban garden.

I was behind the Cliff House with my bike, standing in the cold wind and admiring the large waves, the daring surf scoters swimming in the churning ocean, the chattering black oystercatchers flying around Seal Rocks, and the hawking Cliff Warbler (still here!), when a ray of sunshine broke through the fog and brushed me with its warmth. Wow, did that feel good -- all the more so because it almost instantly disappeared. 

There hadn't been a bit of sunshine on my earlier walk to the beach, but there was a nice compensation in a flush of Amanita muscaria in the same garden I've found it in before. I anticipated finding the bright red mushrooms with the white spots as I approached the known spot in someone's narrow garden strip. I wonder how they happened to get their soil inoculated with the spores. Did they get a lucky batch of this "winter wildflower" from a garden supply store? Or did they come in by some more natural means? Next time I pass by, I'll collect a specimen to try to inoculate my own garden soil....

The Star of December's Garden

House Pet

I saw a couple of Townsend's warblers on my walk but didn't have my camera ready to take any pictures. Instead I just enjoyed watching them for as long as I could, appreciating their beauty and their ability to survive the storms. Nearing home, I decided to pull out my camera when I saw the guy above near the Rocky Outcrop on 14th Avenue. Unfortunately I got only one (not very sharp) frame off before it flew away.

Rocky Outcrop

Even closer to home I watched this ruby-crowned kinglet stalking its prey in an ice-plant-jungle median strip.

You can just make out its ruby crown feathers....

Numerous trees lay on their sides in Golden Gate Park after the recent windy storm (which knocked our power out for 12 hours), especially around the Bison Paddock. The small woodland between the paddock and Spreckels Lake had a whole wave of trees knocked down. This large eucalyptus was down near the intersection of JFK and Chain of Lakes drives.

I heard Cliff Warbler's sharp cheep several times before I actually saw him.

Yellow-rumped warbler hiding its yellow rump.

You can't see any surf scoters in this picture of Sutro Rock getting whacked by waves, but those amazing little sea-ducks were right at home in that turbulent water.

* * *

Northern Shoveler

 

Northern Shoveler, Blue Heron Lake

I took the bike out for a quick spin around Golden Gate Park to see what the storm might have done. I expected the downed trees (the worst of which appeared to be at South Lake, where a big conifer had fallen in the lake, and two huge eucalyptus trees lay across the parking lot), but I was surprised to see a new duck at Blue Heron Lake.

Just as I pulled over to check out the new ducks, a birder happened by, and he told me they were shovelers. Seeing my camera he said it's hard to photograph them with their beaks out of the water because they spend most of their time "shoveling" for food beneath the lake's surface. He also told me that a male and female will often swim in circles to create a little whirlpool that helps suck food up from the bottom. All of that was good to know as I watched them feed, preen, and even squabble a little bit.

I'd seen the bufflehead recently, but only today did I get a chance to photograph it at fairly close range.

Shoveler Coming Up for Air

Preening its Feathers

Fluffing its Feathers

The shoveler in front seemed to have a beef with one of the others and chased him off.

This was a lucky grab-shot, and I don't even remember if this was the chaser or the chasee.

Shoveler Showing Off Its Feathers

Northern Shoveler (Spatula clypeata)

I take it this is a young male whose feathers still retain a bit more camouflage than the full-grown adults.

Short clip of a male and female feeding (viewing might induce dizziness!).

* * *

Strawberry Hill

 

Photo-bombing Mallards at Blue Heron Lake

The past couple of times I took my camera down to the San Francisco Botanical Garden, the plan was to go in the southeast entrance and work my way around to exit at the northwest entrance, then cross the street to walk around Blue Heron Lake and Strawberry Hill. I never made it. By the time I was ready to leave SFBG, I was ready to head home for lunch. So today I skipped the garden and went straight to the lake, which was quite a hive of activity -- probably more so than any other lake in the park.

Unfortunately, most of the activity was from humans, dogs, and gulls. Sometimes my feathered quarry would flee at the approach of people (with or without dogs), but people actually worked in my favor once. As I turned to head in the opposite direction of a chatty group of walkers, I spotted a coyote that I'd otherwise have missed. The coyote ducked down a small hill to avoid a jogger, then came back up after the jogger passed. 

But then the jogger, apparently absorbed in changing the musical selection on his phone, turned around and spooked the coyote again -- but this time it crossed to my side of the Camelot Bridge. Then the jogger also crossed the bridge, still absorbed in his phone. At first I thought he was pursuing the coyote, but in fact he never noticed it. I managed to fire off a couple of frames before someone coming the other way spooked the coyote up Strawberry Hill, never to be seen again.

When a guy got out of his car to feed the ducks, which attracted not just the mallards, the coots, the ruddies, and the ring-necks, but also the geese, the gulls, and even several ravens, the great blue heron flew off to find a quieter hunting ground.

One of several ravens trying to cash in on the bounty of bread.

It's not often I get to photograph a California towhee perched in some tree branches instead of foraging on the ground.

Lots of honey mushrooms all over.

Great egret nabs a fish.

I finally found where the hooded mergansers like to hang out at Blue Heron Lake.

The coyote was adept at moving around the landscape without attracting much attention, then instantly disappearing into cover to avoid an encounter on the trail.

What's up with all these ruby-crowned kinglets without ruby crowns?

Female Hairy Woodpecker

Until today, I hadn't seen a Townsend's warbler in days, if not weeks, and wondered if they'd left the area.

This one nabbed a caterpillar and appeared to use its tongue to scoop it into its mouth.

Male Hairy Woodpecker

* * *

Flicker

 

Northern Flicker, Oak Woodland in Golden Gate Park

I was just on the edge of the Oak Woodland and about to cross over to the Fuchsia Dell when a large bird flew up from the ground beneath some oaks into a nearby pine tree. Then I heard the sharp call of a flicker from over in the Dell and got my camera ready, thinking the bird in the nearby tree was probably a flicker as well. But then I saw the one above, the brave one who kept digging despite my presence.

Although it was great to hear the rain falling last night, I was glad to have a fairly sunny morning to do my walk and bike ride. Encountering the flicker was a special gift, but really every day is like Christmas. I know there are lots of people in the city who never go anywhere that doesn't involve getting into a car, who have never even walked around the block they live on, much less explored their own and adjacent neighborhoods. Maybe each of their days is like Christmas in some other way, but I find presents every day on my walks and rides. Then again, I'm pretty easy to please.

A neighbor told me just today that he encountered four coyotes hanging out together -- one of them just lying down in the street -- when he walked home from the Forest Hill Muni station the other night. I envied his encounter and couldn't help thinking I might need to go out in the evenings too, not just the mornings....

A nearby squirrel started chirping an alarm call, which got the flicker's attention, but only briefly.

The flicker was digging for something but would often interrupt its pecking to quickly raise its head to steal a glance at its surroundings, giving me a chance to quickly fire off a shot that would show its cheek colors and get a catchlight in its eye.

After the flicker flew away I noticed this pot of golden honey mushrooms nearby...

...and this smaller, more youthful, clump down by my feet...

...along the stone steps of the Oak Woodland.

Lots of golden ginkgo around the city these days.

* * *

South Lake

 

Hooded Merganser at South Lake

It was cold and windy and about time for lunch, so I wasn't going to stop, but when I glanced over at South Lake as I was riding past it I spotted a female hooded merganser and couldn't resist checking her out. No male ever showed up, and the female kept quite busy diving for food and catching at least one fish while I was there.

At one point I was watching the merganser through my zoom lens when I must have somehow spotted movement with my peripheral vision. I turned to look, and four raccoons were checking out some disturbed ground where a heavy motor vehicle of some kind had dug it up. For a split second I thought they were pigs rooting up the earth. Finding nothing of interest, they tried to cross MLK Drive but were stymied by a concrete lane divider which they could not climb over, but they soon figured out how to go around it. 

I got another chance to photograph a common yellowthroat, but I still haven't gotten a clean shot, so I guess I'll be stopping by there again soon to keep trying.

A great blue heron joins a black-crowned night heron in the same tree at North Lake.

Composite of a kingfisher perching and diving toward the lake.

The South Lake environment provided some excellent water reflections.

This lady didn't seem to react at all to a family of raccoons crossing her path.

They finally got across MLK Drive and headed into the brush between MLK and Lincoln Way. I was hoping they were going to bed down in the brush and not attempt to cross four busy lanes of traffic on Lincoln.

She caught this small fish at one point and made several attempts to position it just right before she could swallow it.

Still trying to get a clean shot....

Several yellow-rumped warblers were hawking from tree branches around the lake.

The yellowthroat, quite far away and heavily cropped.

* * *