Author Archives: Jeanne Jackson

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Mike Reinhart and his wife were taking a walk on The Sea Ranch when they came across two Gray Foxes lounging in the sun. One fox took off but this one stayed for his closeup. Or her closeup.

It's fun to see the beautiful markings on this healthy-looking Gray Fox. He/she must be living lightly on the land!

Thanks to Mike for allowing me to share his photos with you here.

It was sunny this morning but clouds are pouring in, with a chance of some showers. Then we have what looks to be a dry spell for about a week.

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Ron Bolander found these interesting-looking ducks in the lagoon of the Gualala River several weeks ago. Bird experts identified the bird on the left as a Northern Shoveler, the one in the middle as a probably Northern Shoveler, and the bird on the right as a Northern Pintail. Yes, birding is NOT for sissies!

Northern Shovelers have that distinctive spoon-shaped bill. They are dabbling ducks and we see the non-breeders here. Their bills have comb-like projections that filter out small crustaceans and seeds in the water for their meals.

Northern Pintails are ducks with long, elegant necks. Once again, we see the non-breeders here.

Thanks to Ron for allowing me to share his photo with you here.

Sunny and chilly - well, chilly for Northern California on the coast! In the 50's today and early this morning it was 41 degrees. Brrr!

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Yesterday, Jeff Goll wrote, "The day after rainy weather is usually pleasant and today was no exception.  I went out to Greenwood Creek Beach in Elk and found the waves were still coming in.  The photo attachment is of an Ocean wave rolling into Greenwood Creek which is completely open.  Yes, the Northern California Coast is wonderous and I'm always able to capture an aspect with the camera."

Yes, the waves continue to come in, and may it ever be so!

Thanks to Jeff for allowing me to share his photo with you here.

It's a lovely, sunny day with some high clouds streaming in this afternoon. There might be a little rain tomorrow, Friday and Saturday.

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Gloria Wood caught the moment Saturday night's sunset turned purple.

We've had several storms, but Monday night's was a pretty big one - 1.7 inches in our gauge in Anchor Bay. This afternoon it is chilly, temps in the high 40's, which is cold for us. Beautiful clouds and showers are highlighting the beauty of the day. I took this around 2:30 this afternoon from our deck.

The Mendonoma Coast can take your breath away!

Thanks to Gloria for allowing me to share her photo with you here.

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Autumn is the time of year that female Dragonflies and Damselflies lay their eggs, usually on aquatic plants or directly on still water. The eggs will hatch in a few days to a few weeks, and the nymphs will begin the underwater portion of their life cycle. Craig Tooley witnessed something different. Craig wrote, “This Dragonfly seem to be laying eggs in this log. It would fly and then bend the tail down just like the ones that were laying eggs in the water. I'm not sure what kind of dragonfly this is. Something interesting last night - I thought the bogeyman was scratching at the window and it turned out it was a Dragonfly attracted by the light of the TV. He particularly seem to like the TV more than just having the lights on in the room. I experimented a little bit and the TV light seem to be what was drawing it in.”

I sent Craig’s photo and sighting to Kathy Biggs, author of “Common Dragonflies of California,” asking if she had seen this before. She wrote back, “Oh yes! This is very common behavior for a Shadow Darner (Aeshna umbrosa) female, and Variable Darner (A. interrupta) females do it too. They use wet wood in the fall. The assumption is that the water level will eventually rise and the wood is a safe place for the egg. Only one egg laid per placement. Interesting about the TV light. I know that sleeping dragonflies sometimes get woken up at night by nearby lights.... but a TV! Wow!!”

Interesting! Thanks to Craig for allowing me to share his photo and to Kathy for her expertise. To see much more of Craig's nature photography, here is his website: http://www.ruffimage.com

You can get Kathy's great reference booklet at the Four-Eyed Frog Bookstore - https://www.foureyedfrog.com/

ooo, it's raining and there is already over .60 inches in my gauge.