Tag Archives: Terry Pfardresher

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Terry Pfardresher found something we don’t see very often in her garden in Gualala. She wrote, “Any idea who this character is? Wings are too large for a bumblebee.” It’s a Snowberry Clearwing, Hemaris diffinis, a member of the Sphinx family.

Naturalist Laura Baker identified the diurnal moth. She wrote, “When the adults emerge (eclose), they have scales on their wings, but with a few shudders, the scales fall off, leaving the wings transparent and the moth resembling a bumblebee. Caterpillars feed mainly on snowberry and honeysuckle while adults nectar on a variety of plants.”

Mother Nature is simply amazing!

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

It's cool and windy, with clouds scudding by. It actually looks like we could get some sprinkles!

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Terry Phardresher found an elusive Phantom Orchid near her Gualala home.

This native wildflower is also called Ghost Orchid as it is white. It has a symbiotic relationship with a fungus called Leathery Earthfans as it can’t produce its own food. The fungus feeds on the roots of nearby trees. This three-way partnership allows the Phantom Orchid to survive in dark forests. The interconnectedness of Nature is on full display here.

Terry told me recently she has found a second one!

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

Foggy this morning, sunny this afternoon, and the wind is absent.

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The Osprey chicks I watch in Anchor Bay have recently fledged, but here is a look at an active nest in Gualala. Terry Pfardresher photographed the chick in the nest with a parent perched on the edge of the nest. It's most likely the mother Osprey waiting for her mate to bring back a tasty fish.

When the male Osprey brings a fish, the mother will tear off pieces of the fish to feed to her offspring. She will also take some for herself.

Ospreys usually leave the Mendonoma Coast around the first days of autumn, migrating southward. Once in a while, one or perhaps two will stay and overwinter here.

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

Fog in places today, but sunny and quite breezy just a little ways away from the ocean.

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Robert Keiffer wrote, "Today, April 28, I found a Turkey Vulture nest cavity in a hollow black oak tree."

"The trunk has a 1” crack near the base and I was able to peek at the two eggs inside.  The adult had scrambled up and out of the cavity as I got close to the base."


"I cannot stress the importance of old decadent hollow oak trees!"

Some years ago, Terry Pfardresher found a nest in a Redwood stump. Her photo shows the fledgling perched on the edge of the stump.

The moral of the story is, if you have a snag or stump and it doesn't endanger you, let it stand for the sake of birds and other wildlife.

Thanks to Bob and Terry for allowing me to share their photos with  you here.

It's a beautiful day on the Mendonoma Coast. Warm weather will be moving in this week!

 

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The Point Arena-Stornetta Lands are achingly beautiful. Terry Pfardresher hiked there earlier this week and took these two photos at the southern end of the Lands. The first photo shows a low tide.

Southern portion of the PA-Stornetta Lands at low tide by Terry Pfardresher The rocky shoreline of the Point Arena-Stornetta Lands by Terry Pfardresher

On Saturday August 1st, there is a BIG event called Discover the Coast. Leslie Dahlhoff describes it for us:

"Don't miss it!  Discover the Coast is on this Saturday, starting at 10am.
Lots of info and food.  No Speeches!  All Free!
Open House at the Mendocino College Coastal Field Station.
Free admission to the Lighthouse.
Free Shuttle Bus all day between City Hall to the Lighthouse will
provide access for one-way hiking on the Discovery Trail.
Become a founding member of Friends of Point Arena - Stornetta Lands.
Hope to see you there."

The shuttle bus will run from 9:30 am to 4 pm. Park near the Point Arena Lighthouse or by City Hall.

The Lighthouse is open from 10 am to 4 pm.

City Hall, the Field Station, and the Discovery Trail open 10 am to 2 pm.

Here is a list of the docents who will be along the Discovery Trail:

Discovery Trail Docent Stations

  1. Beach Watch & MPA Watch, Greater Farallones National Marine Sanctuary Beach Watch Monitoring Program, and Marine Protected Area Watch

What to see: Coastal wildlife; including various nesting coastal seabirds, Harbor seals, California and possibly Stellar’s sea lions, possibly whales. Even the occasional Mola mola if you have a good eye! Also, see a demonstration of Beach Watch and MPA Watch survey activities.

Docents: Jamie Hall, Taylor Nairn, Margaret Lindgren. Meet Greater Farallones National Marine Sanctuary staff and volunteers involved with the Beach Watch and MPA Watch programs. Beach Watch is a twenty-one year old sanctuary monitoring project which just expanded, with the sanctuary, to include this very coastline and offshore area. Local citizens survey beaches for live and dead wildlife and coastal human uses. Beach Watch is a partner in the statewide MPA Watch monitoring effort which identifies human uses in coastal areas inside and adjacent to California State Marine Protected Areas.

  1. Seabirds

What to see: Coastal birds, possibly some whales and seals, possibly Pelagic Cormorant and Western Gull chicks.

Docent: Doug Forsell is a retired U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service seabird biologist. He spent ten years in Alaska, 4 years on wildlife refuges in the central Pacific Ocean, and 22 years working in Chesapeake Bay and Atlantic Coastal waters. Doug currently conducts monthly bird, mammal, and marine debris surveys on 9 local beaches, monitors nesting cormorants, and is trying to restore the native vegetation around his home on Iversen Point.

  1. Geology : Nuclear Plant and Oil Rigs, what could have been. What to see: Recent folding and faulting, marine terraces, petroleum source rock. Observe/discuss how geology constrains land use.

Docent: Dr. Mike Lane is a Registered Geologist with the State of California. Mike has worked as a resource exploration geologist (geothermal, oil & gas, and uranium), and as a consulting geologist involved in groundwater contamination issues. During a varied career,he also served as Adjunct Faculty, teaching classes in environmental geology at Hamilton College and Mohawk Valley Community College in upstate New York.

  1. History. What to see: A view into Arena Cove from a historical site.

Docent: Julie A. Verran is a general naturalist educated at UC Berkeley, University of Nevada Reno, and College of the Redwoods Mendocino Coast. She has worked as a lab or field assistant in several fields including history, and as a news reporter/photographer specializing in nature, local history and government.

  1. Plants & Lichens

What to see: Samples and identification of local wildflowers, native plants and lichens.

Docent: Jon Thompson is a botanist and member of the Dorothy King Young Chapter of the California Native Plant Society. He has worked for the U.S. Forest Service, and as a private botanical consultant in Mendocino County. He has over twenty years of professional experience in the field of botany. Examples of local lichens will also be on display.

It will be a spectacular event, one not to be missed.

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