Karen Wilkinson photographed a wildflower that grows only in Sonoma and Mendocino Counties - Fringed Corn Lily, Veratrum fimbriatum.
They are rare and special plants, found near wetlands.
Thanks to Karen for allowing me to share her photos with you here.
Sunny and very breezy today!
Sara Bogard spends time each week counting Harbor Seals off the Point Arena Lighthouse bluffs. She sees more than just Harbor Seals! She saw this beautiful Whimbrel. Just look at that curved beak.
And a Common Loon.
Both species of birds are migrating southward now. Yes, the fall migration has already begun. Sara also saw some Jellyfish.
You never know what you might see when you take some time to watch the ocean. We have had Humpback Whales here in recent days, along with a few Gray Whales. Two Blue Whales were seen off the Point Arena Pier, and Harbor Porpoises...and more!
Thanks to Sara for allowing me to share her photos with you here.
One of the two Bald Eagles that make the Gualala River area their home arrived at the beach at Gualala Point Regional Park. Here's the before photo - lots of Brown Pelicans and Gulls, some on the sandbar and some in the river. You can also see a new driftwood sculpture in the shape of a teepee.
Then the bad boy or girl arrives.
Where is everybody? Just one Bald Eagle surveying his/her domain.
Thanks to Eric Zetterholm for allowing me to share his photos with you here.
Stunningly beautiful weather here on the Mendonoma Coast today.
Here are two videos Jack Likins recently took while diving near Arch Rock Road in The Sea Ranch. He entitled one “the good” and the other “the bad.” Jack wrote, “The one clip shows some of the good, almost environmental normal, areas with healthy vegetation and sea life; and the other clip shows the same general area where the Sea Urchins are taking over.” Jack tells me that Sea Urchins have taken over the deeper waters, twenty feet and deeper. Here's a photo taken by Roger Rude of several healthy Abalones.
The Good, a healthy intertidal zone by Jack Likins
And here is the "bad," the ocean floor taken over by purple Sea Urchins.
Jack wrote further, “The remaining Abalone have moved into depths less than 20 feet where there is kelp [food] that the urchins haven't eaten. I don't think the urchins like the shallower water because they can't hang onto the bottom in the rougher shallow and intertidal areas. I'm not seeing much bull kelp but am seeing boa, giant and palm kelps, mostly in the shallower water. I do see some short stalks of bull kelp underwater but it seems to me that the bull kelp is showing itself on the surface later and later each year, so we'll have to wait to see if it gets to the surface before the urchins eat it this year.”
There is some bull kelp to be seen off the north end of Gualala, but it is sparse. We hope the ocean can get back in balance. We know Sea Stars are recovering, so there's good news there.
Thanks to Jack for allowing me to share his videos with you here, and thanks to Roger for allowing me to share his photo with you here.
Sunny and warm at our place in Anchor Bay, though fog covers most of the ocean.
Craig wrote, “This is a Hoverfly called a Margined Calligrapher. It’s feeding on one of those non-native dandelions.”
They are quite beneficial in your garden. The larvae eat aphids and thrips, and the adults feed on a variety of flowers, pollinating them as they go.
Thanks to Craig for allowing me to share his photo with you here. To see much more of Craig's nature photography, here is his website: www.ruffimage.com
Now starts the three-day holiday weekend. It looks like the weather will be stellar. Yesterday, Harbor Porpoises were seen off Fish Rocks and then off the Point Arena Harbor. Brown Pelicans are here in abundance, always a joy to see.