Author Archives: Jeanne Jackson

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I often hear the unique call of a Pileated Woodpecker as they travel through the forest. Yesterday two of these distinctive birds landed on a tree in front of our house. Darla Buechner had one land just off her deck and she got some great photos.

Pileated Woodpeckers eat ants and other insects, drilling away in dead wood. They make rectangular holes, which is unique to them.

You can see pieces of wood to the right of the photo above. This is indicative of a Pileated hard at work.

In the photo above the Pileated is on a granary tree, a snag that Acorn Woodpeckers are using to store acorns in the round holes. Darla thought the Pileated might be stealing the acorns and I guess that could be true. But I think it more likely this bird was snacking on bugs attracted to the acorns.

Thanks to Darla for allowing me to share her photos with you here. To hear the sounds of a Pileated Woodpecker, here is the link to the Cornell Lab of Ornithology: http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/pileated_woodpecker/sounds

And to see a cavity nest with two juvenile Pileateds taken by Nan Brichetto, here is the link: http://www.mendonomasightings.com/2011/05/31/pileated-woodpecker-feeding-two-babies-a-fantastic-photo-taken-over-the-weekend/

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Salmon fishing hasn't been this good in well over thirty years. Salmon - big ones - seem to be there for the taking. Commercial fishers and recreational fishers are having the best luck lately. It's heartening to know these fish are back in such abundance.

Jack Likins went out from Point Arena with two friends. Here's what he had to say: 
"Ken Bailey, Pat Killen and I went out salmon fishing yesterday.  We arrived at the Point Arena Pier at 7 am and were 8th in line for launching our boat.  By the time we got our boat in the water at 8 am there were already people returning with their limits of salmon.  We had our limit (2 fish per person) by about noon.  It seemed like almost all the returning boats were limiting out with big fish."
Here's a photo of Pat holding a 22 pound Salmon. What a beauty!
 
Thanks to Jack for allowing me to share his photo with you here.

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Richard Kuehn recently photographed the white fawn with its normal colored sibling. Despite its lack of camouflage, it has survived and grown bigger. You can see it is coloring up just a bit.

The fawn can often be seen by the 8th and 9th holes of The Sea Ranch Golf Links. It does look like a magical being.

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

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On Saturday Rick and I finally kayaked the Gualala River, courtesy of Adventure Rents. They donated this trip to a popular fundraiser for Gualala Arts, called Art off the Wall. Along with art, there are various adventures. I chose this for my prize. Gualala Supermarket donated four delicious box lunches.

I am in the double kayak, awaiting my adventure, excited but just a little nervous.

We went with George and Rozann Grunig; they are in the yellow kayak. We are exploring the lagoon before heading up river, as advised by Wayne Harris of Adventure Rents. In summer months this river is closed to the ocean by a big sandbar, making kayaking very safe.

We found this group of Common Mergansers sunning themselves on a log.

We saw two River Otters. Rozann got a great photo, which I'll share another day. Can you spot the River Otter looking at me on the muddy riverbank?

Any nervousness is now gone and Rick & I are enjoying our first kayak ride.

 Passing under the Gualala River Bridge unveiled over a hundred Swallow nests.

 George and Rozann, more experienced than us, led the way. In two places we did have to get out and walk, as the river is low in spots. We had a dry winter/spring, which accounts for the lower levels. Jan Harris, of Adventure Rents, said, "Embrace your inner child" on the portages. We did and had fun doing it.

 And here Rick and I are, four hours later, happy with our day on the beautiful Gualala River.

Thanks to Rozann for allowing me to share her photos with you here, along with several I took.

To learn more about the river, visit Friends of the Gualala River at: http://gualalariver.org/

To see many beautiful photos of the river and to learn about kayaking, here's the website for Adventure Rents: http://www.adventurerents.com/

Also, I highly recommend the box lunches Surf Super is putting together. You can order your own custom design at http://surfsuper.com/Home.html

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Neotamias ochrogenys, Yellow-cheeked Chipmunks, are only found near the Coast in Northern California. Peter has recently been able to photograph them.


Peter says they are very elusive. Members of the squirrel family, they are associated with redwood trees. I have never seen one, but I will be looking for them now that I know what they look like.

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