Natural History Wanderings

The Bishop BLM office just posted this wildflower update for 5/19/11 for the area east of the Sierra (lower elevations of  Inyo and White Mts.,  Fish Slough, Crowley area, Bishop, Round Valley, Owen Valley):

“On Wednesday May 11, I went about 8 or 9 miles out the Fish Slough Road, there are some great carpets of yellow and white flowers out that there. The dominant things blooming include scale bud, desert dandelion, Venus blazing star and desert pincushion. Apricot globe mallow, lupine and camissonia are also blooming. Wild iris are starting to bloom in meadows and pastures around the Bishop and Round Valley area.

There are still some good things to be seen down at lower to mid elevations in the Inyo and White Mountains. I got a report of there being lots of desert five-spot blooming near the French Springs area.

Some flowers are starting to pop up further north as well. I have been seeing lots of Pursh’s milk-vetch around the Crowley area and I am starting to see Nevada lomatium in open gravelly soils at around the 7,000 to 8,000 foot level.”