Tag Archives: Craig Tooley

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Every winter Rick and I look for the first tiny Slink Pod flowers. They come up in coastal forests. They were late this year, but they are up. Craig Tooley wove together three photos of one just about to bloom, a close-up of the exquisite bloom, and the continuing bloom.

 

Slink Pods have multiple blooms, but each one doesn't last very long. The flower quickly forms a pod, which falls onto the ground, hence its common name Slink Pod. They are also called Fetid Adder's Tongue because they supposedly don't smell good, but I've never noticed a bad odor coming from them. I want a new common name for these beautiful flowers!

Later in the spring, the long, mottled leaves will be quite noticeable. If you note their spots, then you can look for the flowers in the winter months. Here's what the leaves look like, photographed by Craig in a previous year.

Scoliopus bigelovii is a member of the Lily family. They are a joy to find.

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

The rain has moved on, and we are blessed with a sunny, breezy, clear day today with temperatures in the high 60s! Our daffodils are beginning to bloom, as is their wont here on the beautiful Mendonoma Coast.

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It's amazing how a sunset evolves, changing color and shape. I never get tired of watching them. Craig Tooley photographed last Thursday's sunset at The Sea Ranch.

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And Janet Kukulinsky photographed the same sunset, a little earlier in the process.

Thanks to Craig and Janet for allowing me to share their photos with you here.

We have rain coming in for tomorrow, but we just had a shower today, Tuesday. Rain is always welcome here! Boletus edulis are popping now, and Oyster mushrooms too. Mushroom foragers have happy grins on their faces.

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Craig Tooley recently trained his camera on a beautiful bird, which is called a Western Meadowlark.

They can be found in grasslands and meadows, pastures also. They are members of the Blackbird family and they are insect eaters. In other words, you won't find this robin-sized bird at a seed feeder. They have a flute-like call, which you can hear at this link: https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Western_Meadowlark/sounds

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

We had a nice wet storm overnight, Friday night. There was 1.60 inches in our rain gauge. And mushrooms will be in our immediate future. More rain tonight!

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This little squirrel, also called a Chickaree Squirrel or a Pine Squirrel, was looking right at Craig and his camera.

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They eat pine seeds, acorns, berries and other fruits, and they are waiting for the first mushrooms to appear, as they eat them too.

Actually two people have found edible mushrooms recently, Boletus eduilis and Oyster mushrooms. But it's been too dry since our first two storms for many mushrooms.

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

We had a beautiful sunrise this morning, as clouds have been streaming by. Bonus pic taken by me. See the big moon in the upper right. A lovely way to start the day.

There are a lot of clouds this afternoon so we could have a spectacular sunset!

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Craig's wife, Rita Peck, looked out their window and saw this little owl taking a bath in one of the water bowls they leave out for wildlife.

Craig spotted the Pygmy Owl again, this time perched on a branch and looking very clean from its bath!

I love these little owls and I thank 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

Sunny and cold this morning with clouds drifting in this afternoon. We have rain forecast for tomorrow - hooray!