O Frabjous Day!

I've always pretended that I understood Lewis Carroll's "Jabberwocky." Sometimes when I am looking at small creatures hiding among the wildflowers and shrubs I imagine they are "slithy toves" gyring and gimbling in the wabe." While I try to stay alert to possible encounters with bears, mountain lions, and rattlesnakes, I am probably more nervous about running into a "frumious Bandersnatch." So, on this frabjous day, I am not celebrating the slaying of anything in the woods but rather the sighting of some of my favorite plants and creatures. Beside my driveway are some attractive Black Oaks for which this blog is named, and I am now checking daily for the arrival of the Oak Treehoppers. They usually arrive just before the leaves start turning orange, so I might still have a few weeks to wait. Meanwhile, the Black Oak hosts such a variety of mosses, lichens, and invertebrates, that I can count on finding something interesting, such as the tiny spider pictured above, every time I investigate. Punctuating the beautiful statement of our oaks are some patches of colorful Oregon Grape, Elderberry, and Thimbleberry (the latter pictured above). O Frabjous Day!
My last day at summer camp was last Saturday. Now I am preparing in earnest for Fall as a naturalist. Preparing several day packs is always fun: one for art supplies and journals, one for keeping track of household chores, one for organizing my son's school work - he's being home schooled, and possibly one for day hikes on which I simply walk, look and think, eat and drink, and don't plan to write or take pictures. That latter type of venture, if done properly, would be called sauntering by Mr. Thoreau. I hope to do more sauntering this year.

Last Day of Camp; Great Sights

The milkweed patch was great yesterday. All five local species were plentiful and the Narrow-leaf Milkweed played host to many interesting bugs. The highlight of our walk was a patch where the Monarch Butterflies were present in all stages of their life cycle. My favorite photo is on top. A Monarch caterpillar appeared to be investigating a chrysalis that was nearly ready to open. You can see the orange and black pattern of the butterfly through the translucent skin. The adult butterflies were too skittish to photograph. I couldn't get close, but I enjoyed their courtship flights and their quick landings and take-offs all around me. The only one I got close to was newly "born" and was in the process of pumping up its wings for the first time. On the many milkweeds in the area we saw grasshoppers, bees, beetles, and spiders. The purple milkweeds already had seedpods, many of which were almost dry enough to burst open. The showy milkweeds that bloomed profusely a couple of weeks ago had been grazed. Virtually all of their flower clusters had been eaten so there won't be many seed pods from this patch this year. The two local species of Apocynum were making seeds. No bugs this time.
Besides the milkweed show, there were lots of Western Fence Lizards and Sagebrush Lizards scurrying about, and the usual array of late summer flowers that I've featured here before: Chicory, Arnica, Brewer's Angelica, and Pennyroyal. The dense patches of Pennyroyal have been blooming for several weeks and I've been anticipating the arrival of the Red-shouldered Ctenucha Moths. So far, I've seen two fly by, but no dense gatherings like I saw last summer. In a wet area by Gilson Creek I saw Brooklime, Veronica americana (Next to last photo). Last, I found the gathering of yellow aphids on the milkweeds quite beautiful, even though they are the nemesis of gardeners. The ones on Narrow-leaf Milkweed didn't seem to be doing any damage. Later today I'll have a few more photos from this last nature hike of the season - that is, at Oakland Feather River Camp. There will be others in store if you sign up for my Adventures in Nature Journaling at FRC. It begins Saturday, September 10. E.mail me or contact Lisa Kelly at the college for details.

On the way up Babbitt Peak

Here's a collection of wildflowers seen on our drive up to the Babbitt Peak lookout last Wednesday. A few miles out of Loyalton we pass through an open stretch known as Jones Valley. There were lots of blooming Checker Mallow and Wandering Daisy near the electric fence bordering the meadow. This looked like it would be a spectacular area in spring and I aim to find out next year. Upon leaving the meadow we entered a great forest of large Quaking Aspen. Lining the creeks flowing through this forest we found lots of White Brodiaea, a flower that bloomed at the Quincy elevation a couple of months ago. This was like returning to spring!
The remaining flowers pictured here were found near the summit in meadows surrounding the lookout. Most of these bloomed and wilted at the Quincy elevation in late spring or early summer. Besides the exhilaration of a return to spring, there were great views such as the one here looking west toward the Sierra Buttes. We could also see Heavenly Valley at the south end of Lake Tahoe and Lassen Peak to the north. The view of the lookout at the top of this post shows what a beautiful area it's in. Wildflower meadows, great stands of Mountain Mahogany and Western White Pine and clean air. A somewhat rough drive, but worth the trouble of eating a lot of dust.

Roadside Attractions on the Way to Work

Amost 9,000 Feet!

For years I've marveled at Peavine Peak near Reno as I looked up at it while passing by Bordertown. Because of its location, I've always thought the views from the top would be great. Well, yesterday I got a chance to visit another peak, Babbitt Peak, and look down on Peavine!
The fly above was photographed inside the lookout. It wasn't exactly the most memorable sight of my trip, but will serve to reserve this space for more photos and text that I'll try to post tomorrow. Today was just too busy with leading nature hikes and attending the county fair and my writers group. The flies living at nearly 9,000 feet are kind of scary looking.
Fri., Aug. 12: As we left Quincy Wed. afternoon for Babbitt Peak, I realized I hadn't headed eastward out of Quincy for a couple of months. As we passed the Massack rest area, I saw lots of Blazing Star on the road cut, but the blossoms had closed for the afternoon. I vowed to come back the next morning to photograph them while open. When we gained another 1,000 feet or so and were in the vicinity of Mt. Tomba, we found another patch, but they were still open! (See the 2nd and 3rd photos from the top.) A beautiful flower - I'll probably put it on one of my greeting cards. In the same spot we found some great examples of Snowy Thistle and Purple Milkweed (Photos 4 and 5). I realized I'd better not make any more tops or we'd never get to the lookout before it closed for the evening. That plan was dashed as we crossed Sierra Valley on Harriet Lane. Some of the wet areas near Loyalton were loaded with waterfowl such as the White-faced Ibis, Avocets, Killdeer, and various ducks. I've finished this series with a photo of the Babbitt Peak lookout, to prove we got there. Great views! Tomorrow I'll post a few photos of the wildflowers we saw on the way up the mountain, especially in the area known as Jones Valley.

Actual size, 3/4 inch

A nice piece of animal architecture on my carpet this morning. Guess what it is.

My Last Chance?

The Showy Milkweeds blossoms have wilted for the most part and seed pods are plentiful and green. In another couple of weeks, we'll see them turn brown and burst open, releasing seeds for next year's crop. Today I saw what might have been my last Red Milkweed Beetle of the season perched on the tip of a leaf where it had apparently just finished laying eggs. I tipped it into the palm of my hand for another photo and it didn't move. I pushed it around a bit and decided it was quite dead. I assumed it had died recently while clinging to the leaf.
Lots of beetles will "play possum" when you put them in your hand, but they'll re-activate fairly soon afterwards and try to crawl away. Not this time. R. I. P.