Author Archives: Jeanne Jackson

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Ron LeValley photographed this beautiful sight recently - the Mendocino Headlands.

Mendocino Headlands by Ron LeValleyToday the coast is shrouded in fog. Sometimes it pulls back, as it did for the 4th of July parade in Point Arena this afternoon. It was a fun parade, with hundreds of little children watching from the sidewalks. I marched with our golden retriever, Sunny, with the Paws for the Library entry. The Point Arena Library is raising money for a seismic retrofit, a costly proposition! If you'd like to contribute, here is their website: http://coastcommunitylibrary.org/

Thanks to Ron for allowing me to share his photo with you here. To see much more of Ron's nature photography, here is the link to his website: http://levalleyphoto.com/home/

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Ken Fischer saw this fire rainbow several weeks ago. He said it only lasted about two minutes.

Horizontal rainbow by Ken FischerFire rainbows are also called circumhorizontal arcs. These rainbows are caused by the refraction of the sun in ice crystals suspended in the atmosphere.

Here's a larger one, which was taken by last year by Connie King.

A Circumhorizontal Arc, aka a Fire Rainbow by Connie KingA beautiful phenomenon to behold!

Thanks to Ken and Connie for allowing me to share their photos with you here.

No rainbows today - there is nothing but oh-so-blue sky here on the coast. It already feels like the holiday has begun!

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How wonderful would it be to look over at your house and see a complete rainbow over it? That's what Davina Allen saw two weeks ago.

Full rainbow over the Allen's house by Davina AallenSurely this means good luck is to be had for the Allen family!

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

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One of the birds that migrates into our area in the spring is the Wilson's Warbler. Craig Tooley recently photographed one.

Wilson's Warbler perches by Craig TooleyIt looks like it is wearing a black toupee! This warbler often raises its tail and flips it from side to side. You can hear its whistling call at this link: https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Wilsons_Warbler/sounds

This small songbird eats insects and berries.

Wilson's Warbler by Craig Tooley

Thanks to Craig for allowing me to share his photos with you here. To see much more of Craig's nature photography, here is his website: www.ruffimage.com

Craig is going to be at the Four-eyed Frog Bookstore in Gualala this coming Saturday at 2 pm. He will show tips on how to take wonderful nature photos, especially the ones that are in the book we did together, Mendonoma Sightings Throughout the Year.

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Laura Baker found this rare beauty, a Phantom Orchid, Cephalantheru austinae. If you look closely, there is a Click beetle on top.

Phantom Orchid, Cephalanthera austinae, with a click beetle by Laura BakerHere's what Laura said about this flower:

"The Phantom orchid is well-named since it is pure white except for some yellow in the flower parts. It has an interesting and complex relationship in the forest ecosystem as a mycotroph. The orchid gets its nutrition from a fungus which, in turn, must get its food in the form of sugars from green plants. In this case, most likely the Douglas fir tree under which this orchid bloomed.”

A treasure in the forest! Thanks to Laura for allowing me to share her photo with you here.