Today's Flowers Near Quincy

The recent rains followed by warmth has resulted in lots of new blooms.  On a brief trip through Oakland Camp today I found over a dozen species blooming for the first time this year - in this area at least.  There is definitely not the abundance of wildflowers that I saw at this time last year, but there were definitely enough to fascinate, especially the ones that were already hosting visitors from the insect world.  The top photo is of a flower that seems to glow in an otherwise plain brown and green landscape.  The Scarlet Gilia, Ipomopsis aggregata, is in the Family Polemoniaceae, the same family as the Phlox.  A fairly small flower, it somehow gets my attention even when it's 50 feet or more into the woods from the back roads I'm driving on.  I found around 5 plants blooming about a half mile beyond Oakland Camp on the dirt road that leads toward Gilson Creek.  Next is the Crimson Columbine, Aquilegia formosa, in the buttercup family, Ranunculaceae.  I saw my first bloom of it this season about a week ago, and now the same plant has about 20 blossoms.  It's probably blooming in many wet shady areas by now, but the patch I found was on the paved road about a half mile shy of the camp entrance.  Next, the Yerba Santa, Eriodictyon californicum, was blooming in the lower Feather River Canyon a couple of months ago.  It is finally blooming around Quincy.  This one is being visited by a Swallowtail Butterfly.  Yarrow, Achillea millefolium, is a composite, Family Asteraceae.  Each "flower" here is actually several dozen flowers - disc and ray - as we find in daisies and sunflowers, among many other species.  Yarrow is one of my favorite "bug magnets," this one playing host to a Checkered Clerid Beetle.  Next, hiding in plain sight, is a patch of Monument Plant, Swertia radiata, in the Gentian family.  These were growing on a bluff overlooking the railroad track just east of the camp.  Next, a favorite group for attracting a variety of insects and spiders, the recently combined Dogbanes and Milkweeds. First, the Spreading Dogbane, Apocynum androsaemifolium, then the Indian Hemp, Apocynum cannabinum, members of the Apocynaceae.  The three species of milkweeds we find around Quincy were once in their own family, the Asclepiadaeae, but the two families have been combined into the Apocynaceae.  They all have a milky sap that leaks when a leaf or stem is broken, and some species, like the Showy Milkweed, have incredible fragrances.  They also attract many kinds of butterflies and spiders.  Today I saw several Monarch Butterflies cruising around looking for suitable milkweeds on/in which to start a family.  They are a bit early.  Among the milkweeds, only the Purple Milkweed is now blooming. 
The Interior Rose, Rosa woodsii, is blooming abundantly and produces new blossoms throughout the summer.  While photographing some sedges in a ditch along the paved road into camp, I spotted some young White Alders covered with the white fuzz that protects colonies of mealy bugs.  On closer inspection, I found one was hosting a nice yellow phase Goldenrod Crab Spider.  She tried to hide when I approached, so I twisted the branch around to get a good view for a photo.  I was startled by how it resembled a little yellow octopus.  Click on the photo for a closer view.  Last, I found a patch of Showy Penstemon, Penstemon speciosa.  These are less than a foot tall and are surrounded by much taller grasses so are difficult to spot.  They are half way between camp and Gilson Creek in the same area where I photographed the Gilia.  Don't expect to spot them while driving.