It's so beautiful to see the Moon set "into" the Pacific Ocean. Rozanne Rapozo photographed this from The Sea Ranch. Notice the reflected light from the Moon in the ocean - some call this the Stairway to Heaven.
Thanks to Rozanne for allowing me to share her photo with you here.
Rain early this morning! Not a lot - a tenth of an inch - but it is always welcome. Maybe more tomorrow.
The beginning of the northward migration back to the Arctic has begun. The first Grays to head north are the newly pregnant females. They are swimming hard and fast for their feeding grounds. Shari Goforth saw several Gray Whales the other day off the bluffs of the Point Arena Lighthouse. Despite the distance, Shari got several great photos. Here is the tail of one of the Grays she saw.
And here is a collage of the two Gray Whales she saw.
Thanks to Shari for allowing me to share her photos with you here. To read her blog posts, here is the link: https://mendonomagraywhale.com/migraytions-blog-home?blog=y
We had sprinkles late yesterday, nice to get a little wet on an afternoon walk with friends. Today is sunny and warm, in the low sixties. There is no wind and the ocean is glistening like a million diamonds in the afternoon sun.
Shooting stars is one of the common names for the native wildflower Primula hendersonii. They, like quite a few other wildflowers, have bloomed early due to our warm, dry False Spring. They are quite lovely to see.
Thanks to Peter for allowing me to share his photo with you here.
It's cloudy and chilly on the Mendonoma Coast today. Hoping for rain, and it is in the forecast for early next week.
I love these little birds! They travel around in groups, talking up a storm. Craig Tooley recently photographed one. You can see this bird caught a spider.
And here the Chickadee takes flight.
I can hear a flock approaching amongst the trees as they make their distinctive "chick-a-dee-dee" calls and their chittering. Often nuthatches are mixed in the group - quite sociable these chickadees! You can hear their calls at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology's website at this link: https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Chestnut-backed_Chickadee/sounds
Thanks to Craig for allowing me to share his photos with you here. To see much more of Craig's nature photography, here is the link to his website: http://www.ruffimage.com
ooo, it was COLD early this morning, 37 degrees. That is cold for the coast, for sure! Today is sunny and chilly, with breezes.
I love these elegant birds. We often see Great Blue Herons near rivers and wetlands. Recently Mike Reinhart found this Great Blue Heron preening near the Gualala River.
Can you stand on one leg and preen your feathers? I thought not!
Thanks to Mike for allowing me to share his photo with you here.
It's much cooler today. It's also windy with lots of clouds - it *feels* like we could get rain soon. Hope so! It's been well over a month since we got any meaningful rain.