Sightings

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Such a beautiful hawk! Paul Brewer spotted this young Red-shouldered Hawk in late August.

Paul said the fledgling had been trying to hunt, but wasn't very good at it. I'm sure hunger improved this hawk's hunting ability.

Paul got another look recently at what we presume is the same young Red-shouldered Hawk. The first photo below had me laughing. It's not often you see a bird with its head tilted back, looking behind its body!

Red-shouldered Hawk are year-round residents of the Mendonoma coast. Thanks to Paul for allowing me to share his photos with you here. To see much more of Paul's nature photography, here is the link to his website: http://www.capturingnatureswonders.com/

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It's exciting to see Bottlenose Dolphins off the Mendonoma coast! They have been expanding their territory northward over the past few years. Karen Wilkinson found a pod of these dolphins quite close in at Smuggler's Cove off The Sea Ranch in mid-August. She took many,  many photos, which were shared with Bill Keener of Golden Gate Cetacean Research.

Bill wrote, “I was positively able to ID three individuals. First, I was able to confirm that the female we call Sakura has a new calf. She had calves before in Monterey Bay, then about five years ago she had a calf off San Francisco, and now this is her new calf.

“You can tell that the calf is about a month old because of the vertical pale stripes on its body – those are called ‘fetal folds’ which are stretch marks due to the curled-up position the calf had while in the uterus.” Bill said the marks last a couple of months before they fade away.

Bill was pleased to see Karen had photographed Bliss, an older female. Bill wrote, “Bliss is one of the oldest dolphins in [our records.] She was first seen in San Diego in 1982! She is likely in her mid-40s or 50 years old now. Glad she is still going strong!”

The other Bottlenose Dolphin Bill was able to ID was a male named Shiloh. Neither Sakura or Shiloh had been spotted further north than Bodega Bay until now. They were seen years ago in Monterey Bay, but the past six or seven years they have been seen in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Karen also photographed an unknown adult Bottlenose Dolphin and she has a calf with her, which you can see in the photo above. Bill wrote, “As for the unidentified dolphin, now begins a longer process of trying to figure out if it has been seen before in another part of California. It’s fairly uncommon for us to see a totally brand-new adult animal before. But it can happen.”

Here are a few more photos Karen took that day.

And here is a map Karen drew of her sighting at Smuggler's Cove.

Thanks to Karen for allowing me to share her photos with you here.

We are having an oh-so-lovely day this Sunday. It would be a good day to spot...bottlenose dolphins!

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A group of subadult Gray Whales that didn't migrate to the Bering Sea has been seen off of the Mendonoma coast regularly this summer. Paul Brewer photographed a few off his home in Gualala.

You see a tail, a flipper, and the head and back with the remnants of the blow.

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

We are having autumn-like weather, with lots of clouds scurrying across the sky. It's quite lovely.

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Put clouds together with a sunset or sunrise and you have the perfect prescription for beauty in the sky. Last night's sunset was breathtaking. I took this from our deck - you can see the sun just setting on the right. No green flash, as there were clouds on the horizon.

Once the sun had set, here's a look at those beautiful clouds.

This morning didn't disappoint either. While the colors of sunrises are fleeting, they can be just as lovely in their own way.

This afternoon clouds have poured in, along with strong breezes. It feels like Autumn here on the Mendonoma coast!

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The small green (usually green) treefrog we see on the Mendonoma coast is called a Sierran Treefrog. Dan Lewis had one hiding out in his BBQ and it looks like the treefrog was in the process of changing from green to a rusty red.

Dan wrote, “This little guy loves to hide under our BBQ cover on our back deck at Enchanted Meadows. The deck is over six feet off the ground. I have placed the frog into the garden or in the bushes five times now, and he keeps coming back. I have to make sure it’s not in the BBQ before I light it up.”

Sierran Treefrogs are excellent climbers. They have suction-like cups on the ends of their fingers and toes. Here's a photo John Shiu took of a treefrog showing its fingers.

Peggy Berryhill got a surprise while at Gualala Point Regional Park recently. She reached out to get a bag for her dog's waste. When she pulled the bag out, she found a little treefrog.

Thanks to Dan, John and Peggy for allowing me to share their photos with you here.