Today’s highlights included seeing two young Great Horned Owls with an Adult, Cinnamon Teal  and Canada Goose with young, and Great-tailed Grackles mating. There were also some impressive Buckeye Trees in bloom and a number of butterflies and some large dragonflies. The flowers were mostly non-natives along the trails and even the Butterfly Garden had mainly flowers that were not from California.

To see the instructors bird list, which also includes the number of each species seen go to: http://www.wingbeats.org/classes/lists/12Romance.htm

To see my bird and butterfly list click read more

Coyote Hills Regional Park

May 19,2012

Birding Class with Bob Lewis

52 species

Canada Goose

Gadwall

American Wigeon

Mallard

Cinnamon Teal

Northern Shoveler

Ruddy Duck

Ring-necked Pheasant       Heard only

Pied-billed Grebe

Double-crested Cormorant

American White Pelican

Great Blue Heron

Great Egret

Snowy Egret

Black-crowned Night-Heron

Turkey Vulture

White-tailed Kite

Northern Harrier

Cooper’s Hawk

Common Gallinule

American Coot

Killdeer

Black Oystercatcher

American Avocet

Bonaparte’s Gull

Western Gull

California Gull

Mourning Dove

Great Horned Owl

Anna’s Hummingbird

Nuttall’s Woodpecker

Black Phoebe

Western Scrub-Jay

Tree Swallow

Barn Swallow

Bushtit

Bewick’s Wren

House Wren

Marsh Wren

European Starling

Common Yellowthroat

Spotted Towhee

California Towhee

Song Sparrow

Dark-eyed Junco       heard only

Western Tanager

Red-winged Blackbird

Brewer’s Blackbird

Great-tailed Grackle

Brown-headed Cowbird

Bullock’s Oriole

House Finch

Also heard but not by me: Sora, Pacific Slope Flycatcher

Butterflies seen:

Swallowtail

Monarch

Cabbage White

Umber Skipper

The Hungry Valley Guided Wildflower tours of 2012 have ended for this year. Self-guided tours will still yield displays of Poppies out along Stipa, Powerline and Badger, and along the first mile of Gold Hill Road from the North Entrance. Scarlet Bugler is blooming in profusion near Smith Forks Campground and Yucca can be seen blooming throughout the park.

A few late season Mariposas are blooming along Stipa, but it is like treasure hunting — they are small, few and far between.

Lawsuit Launched to Protect Endangered California Condors in Arizona From Lead Bullets

TUCSON, Ariz.— Conservation groups officially notified the U.S. Forest Service of their intent to file a lawsuit against the agency for its failure to protect endangered California condors in Arizona’s Kaibab National Forest from toxic lead ammunition left behind from hunting activities. Lead ammunition is the leading cause of death for Arizona’s California condors — which are among the world’s most endangered species — and is completely preventable since nonlead alternatives are now readily available.

The groups — the Center for Biological Diversity, Sierra Club and Grand Canyon Wildlands Council — provided the notice under the Endangered Species Act and the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act.

“At a time when other agencies are stepping up efforts to get toxic lead out of the food chain, the U.S. Forest Service continues to bury its head in the sand, refusing to exercise its authority to protect wildlife on its lands and prevent the needless lead poisoning of Arizona’s condors,” said Jay Lininger, a conservation advocate with the Center. “If we want condors to survive, we must stop using ammunition that contaminates their food supply with toxic lead, especially on our national forests.”

California recently switched to mandatory nonlead ammunition for hunting in that state’s condor range; yet the Forest Service allows the continued use of lead ammunition in the Kaibab National Forest of northern Arizona, despite overwhelming evidence that lead ammo jeopardizes the survival and recovery of endangered species, including condors.

“Lead poisoning is a huge problem, not just for the condor but for other wildlife and even humans,” said Sandy Bahr, chapter director for Sierra Club’s Grand Canyon Chapter. “Nonlead ammunition is now available for virtually all hunting uses, including the 22 rimfire ammunition, previously thought to be technically infeasible. Our national forests should lead the way in protecting the magnificent condors of the Grand Canyon region from further lead poisonings.”

Condors were first reintroduced to the Vermilion Cliffs near the Arizona-Utah border in 1996 and were classified as an “experimental nonessential population” under the 10(j) rule of the Endangered Species Act. Now more than 60 condors fly freely throughout the region, including the Kaibab National Forest, Grand Canyon National Park and lands in Utah and Nevada.

Since condors have been released in Arizona, at least 12 to 14 have died of lead poisoning, making such poisoning the bird’s leading cause of death. Scientists agree that lead ammunition used in hunting is the primary, if not the sole, source of the lead poisoning of condors, which often feed on carcasses and gut piles of game. Increasing numbers of wild condors must periodically receive emergency lifesaving treatment for lead poisoning. In 2006, 95 percent of all Arizona condors had lead exposure, and 70 percent of the Arizona population was treated. Condor experts have concluded that as long as lead ammunition is used in the condor range, recovery of the species is unlikely.

Hunting is allowed in most of the Kaibab National Forest, and no restrictions have been imposed on the use of lead ammunition by either the Forest Service or the Arizona Game and Fish Department. Conservation groups want to work with the Forest Service to develop a plan to require the use of nonlead ammunition in the Kaibab without having to file a lawsuit. If forced to file a lawsuit, the groups could seek an immediate ban on the use of lead ammunition in the Kaibab.

Find more information about the lead poisoning threat at www.savethecondors.org.

The Center for Biological Diversity is a nonprofit conservation organization with more than 350,000 members and online activists dedicated to the protection of endangered species and wild places.

The Sierra Club is one of the oldest and most influential grassroots environmental organizations in the United States, whose mission is “to explore, enjoy, and protect the wild places of the earth; to practice and promote the responsible use of the earth’s ecosystems and resources; and to educate and enlist humanity to protect and restore the quality of the natural and human environments. It has 1.4 million members and supporters nationwide and 12,000 members in Arizona. 

“Biologists estimate annual loss of species at 1,000 times or more greater than historic rates, and linguists predict that 50-90% of the worlds languages will disappear by the end of the century,”

Read more at BBC News – Study links biodiversity and language loss.

It included  funds for the Cuyamaca Rancho State Park Interpretive Association to keep Palomar Mountain State Park open. The article pointed out that of  the 15 state parks that have funding to stay open temporarily , only three — Jack London, Bothe-Napa Valley, and Bale Grist Mill — have signed agreements in place with the state to stay open after July 1. The other 12 parks that have temporary funding to stay open are still waiting upon agreements to be finalized.

1. Antelope Valley Indian Museum
2. Colusa-Sacramento River SRA
3. Del Norte Coast Redwoods State Park
4. Henry W. Coe State Park
5. McGrath State Beach
6. Mono Lake Tufa State Natural Reserve
7. Samuel P. Taylor
8. Tomales Bay State Park
9. South Yuba River SHP
10. Jug Handle State Natural Reserve
11. Plumas-Eureka SP
12. Jack London SHP
13. Santa Cruz Mission SHP
14. Bothe-Napa Valley State Park
15. Bale Grist Mill SHP
16. Benicia Capitol SHP

Read more at: More State Parks Spared from Closure, Foundation Announces | State Park | SoCal Wanderer | KCET.

Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks  heading east along highway 198 through Three Rivers. The California buckeye (Aesculus californica) is in full bloom… Also in full bloom, and adding multiple shades of golden yellow to the landscape, are California flannel bush (Fremontodendron californicum), bush poppy (Dendromecon rigida), elegant madia (Madia elegans), and bush monkeyflower (Mimulus aurantiacus). …along the slopes are the tall spires of white flowers of the chaparral yucca (Hesperoyucca whipplei). … Giant Forest or General Grant Grove in Sequoia, the Western dogwood (Cornus nuttalii) is showing off its large white and elegant flowers

Pinnacles National Monument. several different clarkias—elegant clarkia (Clarkia unguiculata), wine-cup clarkia (Clarkia purpurea), and speckled clarkia (Clarkia affinis) Hiking on the Old Pinnacles route … are patches bright red scarlet bugler (Penstemon centranthifolius), yellow pretty face (Triteleia lugens), fringed onion (Allium frimbriatum), silver bush lupine (Lupinus albifrons) and butterfly mariposa lily (Calochortus venustus). …. mule ears (Wyethia helenioides)— … Paintbrush (Castilleja sp.), Venus thistle (Cirsium occidentale), golden yarrow (Eriophyllum confertiflorum), woolly blue curls (Trichostema lanatum) and larkspurs (Delphinium sp.)

Placerita Canyon Natural Area. The report is that they are at their peak of the wildflower season. The best trail for wildflowers is the Canyon Trail, flowers  in bloom include elegant clarkia (Clarkia unguiculata), paintbrush (Castilleja sp.), Chinese houses (Collinsia heterophylla), blue larkspur (Delphinium sp.), farewell to spring (Clarkia amoena), virgin’s bower (Clematis sp.), California everlasting (Pseudognaphalium californicum), bush monkeyflower (Mimulus aurantiacus), Yerba Santa (Eriodictyon sp.), California wild rose (Rosa californica), bush poppy (Dendromecon rigida), Elderberry (Sambucus nigra ssp. caerulea), goldfields (Lasthenia sp.), dudleyas (Dudleya spp.)

Hungry Valley SRA masses of flowers now blooming. grape soda lupine (Lupinus excubitus). Spencer’s primrose (Camissoniaopsis sp.),desert dandelion (Malacothrix glabrata) ,Desert tidy tips (Layia glandulosa) ,forget-me-nots (Cryptantha spp.),  baby blue eyes (Nemophila menziesii), pink Davey’s broad- flowered gilia (Gilia latiflora ssp. davyi) are increasing in numbers after the rain as well. California Poppies (Eschscholzia californica) are blooming in increasing numbers, especially along the Wheatfield and Salt Lick Trails near Powerline Road.

To see the full report and older reports go to: http://www.theodorepayne.org/hotline.html

Oregon Wildflowers had the following reports:

Dog Mountain 5/15/12 Balsam root is at maximum bloom, or if not at maximum it will be in a few days.

Cape Horn 5/14/12 Poison Larkspur (Delphinium trolliifolium) is in full force

Silver Falls State Park 5/13/12 section of trail between South Falls and Lower South Falls: Candyflower (Claytonia sibirica), lots of Scouler’s Corydalis (Corydalis scouleri) and Pacific Bleeding Heart(Dicentra formosa), Evergreen Violet (Viola sempervirens), and Fairy Lanterns (Prosartes smithii)

Pacific Northwest Wildflower had detailed wildflower reports for the following two areas (click on dates to see lists):

 Champion Lumber Company Haul Road, Wahkiacus to Beeks Canyon May 16, 2012

Staver Property, west of The Dalles, Oregon May 14, 2012

Digital Asset Management and Adobe Lightroom 4
Gary Sharlow
Education Manager and Photographer

Sunday, June 3rd, 2012 from 1:00 – 4:00 pm
In this workshop you will be taken through the steps of setting up Adobe Lightroom for the first time all. Many professional photographers and photo editors identify this as the single most important step in their photographic workflow. It will be presented in a way that it can be useful no matter what your level of photographic expertise. We will cover the basic features of the library mode and how to organize your collection including the use of external drives. There will be an additional presentation about using your photos for conservation and how you can help effect change and protect the natural world through your passion for nature photography.

Conservation Photography Field Excursion and Workshop
Exploring The Eastern Sierras
Gary Sharlow, Education Manager, Photographer
Geoff Willard, Education Manager, Natural History Guide

Sunday July 15th – Tuesday July 17th Sunrise to Sunset
The Sierra Nevada is a photographer’s dreamscape. John Muir famously referred to it as ‘the Range of Light,’ and Ansel Adams’ stunning photos made the beauty of the Sierra Range known around the world. Immerse yourself in the practice of Conservation Photography in this special field excursion. In 3 days, we will explore the landscape and wildlife diversity of the Eastern Sierra to include Owens Valley, Mono Lake and Yosemite National Park where we will grapple with the area’s complicated water and conservation history, and gain invaluable insight into how to capture the landscape through your lens. By the end of the trip, we aim to help each participant complete a photo series that tells a visually-captivating story of the land, its people, its past and future. Moderate hiking is to be expected with free time during the middle of the day for adventuring.

Learn More at: http://www.calacademy.org/events/lectures/#020512

Excerpt from Calphoto wildflower updates for trails at  Mt. Diablo

two short hikes on the top of Mt. Diablo today, both very worth your while
for wildflowers. One is a .7 mile loop called Mary Bowerman (it shows up as Fire
Interpretive Trail on all maps.) Most noteworthy on this loop are the bitter
root plants near Diablo Perch.
The other walk we took was the Summit Trail north to almost the saddle between
the two peaks of Diablo. Here there are large amounts of bush lupine.
Both trails have a great degree of variety, and of course, gorgeous views too.

Mitchell Canyon trail had a very good showing of flowers, more than
I expected.  Good variety and quantity, especially along the Globe Lily trail
and further up the canyon where it starts to come out of the nice, shady
trees. Ithuriel’s spear was most copious, and others in full bloom
included indian paintbrush, Mariposa lilies, morning glories, yerba santa,
black sage, monkeyflower, wind poppies, wine cup clarkia, oregon sunshine,
some Mount Diablo sunflowers (these might be better this weekend) and yes,
the Mount Diablo globe lilies, especially on the section of the Mitchell
Canyon trail that’s parallel to the Globe Lily trail

Read all Calphoto wildflower updates at: http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/calphoto/

Related articles

• Mt. Diablo Wildflowers, North Peak Trail (naturalhistorywanderings.com)
• Mt. Diablo Wildflower Bloom Report (naturalhistorywanderings.com)

Avian Cholera Killing Thousands Of Klamath Basin Birds

Up to 20,000 Klamath Wildlife Refuge Birds Have Died From Avian Cholera

How You Can Help The Klamath Birds

This week Audublog reported that the Bureau of Reclamation has released more water into the refuge which will greatly help the birds make it through the summer. Over 20,00 emails were sent to the Secretary of Interior requesting that   more water be released. Letter writing activism seems to have had a positive impact. Read more at Audublog ~ Thanks to you, birds in the Klamath getting much needed water.

Read more at Environmental News Network Wildlife and Habitat Conservation News: Just how far can a polar bear swim?.

“In a research plot in California’s Yosemite National Park, big trees those with a diameter greater than three feet at chest height account for only 1 percent of trees but store half of the area’s biomass, according to a study published this week in PLoS ONE.”

Large trees have thick bark that helps trees survive fire and insect attacks. Even when they die these trees are important as habitat for many species such as threatened Northern Spotted Owl and the endangered Marbled Murrelet make their homes in the canopies of old-growth forests.

Read more in the New York Times Safeguarding Mammoth Trees, Champs of the Ecosystem

Yosemite Valley is alive with birdsong; yesterday’s birdwalk included black-headed grosbeaks plentiful and loud, western tanager, yellow, yellow-rumped, and black-throated gray warblers, Cassin’s vireo, white-throated swift, flicker, oriole, Anna’s hummingbird displaying in front of the Visitor Center, and more.

In the El Portal area the Clarkia Farewell-to-Spring is in bloom, as is buckeye, Ceanothus, and elderberry. Most of the grass and forbs have gone to seed and are browning. The dogwoods in the Valley are glorious right now.

Spent time in both areas this weekend and found lots of flowers.
Again no fields of flowers but lots of variety.
On Mt Tamalpais we took the old railroad grade from Bookjack to the West Point
Inn. Still lot of Oakland Star Tulips out.
On Ring Mountain the Tiburon Mariposa Lilies are starting to bud but no flowers
yet. Lots of white onions, phacelia and chinese houses. Getting to end of tidy
tips, blue-eyed grass, baby stars and gold fields.

You might also want to check out NitaWinter’s book of wildflower photos at Blurb: Impressions of Spring-Wildflowers of the West on Our Public Lands

Monte Bello OSP for a short hike canyon trail, stevens creek naturetrail yesterday.Theres no field of flowers, grasses are getting high. There are spots ofpoppies, checker-blooms here and there in the grass. We also saw blue-eyedgrass, baby blue eyes, owls clover, rose clover, clarkia.If youre in flower hunting mode, lots to see. Especially in the shady areas,you can find Purdys irises the cream one with light brown veins, Two eyedviolets, and pacific starflowers. Beware of ticks.

Read all Calphoto reports at: http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/calphoto/

New Yosemite Falls Webcam Provides a Spectacular View of North America’s Highest Waterfall

Date: May 14, 2012 Working in partnership with the National Park Service and Delaware North Companies Parks & Resorts at Yosemite, the Yosemite Falls webcam is the fourth supported by the Conservancy and the first to offer a view of a Yosemite waterfall. The other Yosemite Conservancy webcams feature spectacular views of Yosemite landscapes, including Half Dome, El Capitan and the Sierra Nevada mountain range.”

link to Yosemite Webcams: http://www.yosemiteconservancy.org/webcams

The webcams provide windows into Yosemite for people to plan a visit and to be inspired about the need to preserve and protect one of the worlds most unique places,” said Mike Tollefson, Yosemite Conservancy President. “This technology makes the parks incredible scenery accessible to anyone, anywhere and at any time. What could be better than starting your day by viewing Yosemite Falls?

“Tollefson said that technology allows more people than ever to connect with the park in new and different ways. More than 400,000 people have viewed the webcams annually since 2009. “We added the Yosemite Falls webcam in response to the publics request for live images of this iconic setting,” he said.

Yosemite National Park Superintendent Don Neubacher said, “Technology is providing new ways to connect people to Yosemite, help visitors to plan trips and learn about the park. All of this improves the visitor experience.

“Millions have viewed the Yosemite Nature Notes online video series, which provides breathtaking and in-depth interpretive programs about Half Dome, Rockfalls and Wildflowers among its 17 episodes. So far, four million have viewed the Frazil Ice episode on YouTube and nearly a half million people have enjoyed another about rainbows seen at night on waterfalls called “moonbows.” Podcasts are helping visitors plan trips, and learn about culture, nature and history.

Visit www.yosemiteconservancy.org to bookmark or share images from the Yosemite Falls webcam or find links to Yosemite Nature Notes online video series

via New Yosemite Falls Webcam Provides a Spectacular View of North America’s Highest Waterfall – Yosemite National Park.

• Memalosse Viewpoint: The trail from Memaloose Viewpoint south into the National Forest is great right now. The Hillside is full of Balsamroot and Lupine and paintbrush clumps in the lower part of the hillside.
• Dalles Mountain Ranch: Balsamroot and lupine look terrific! This is a good time to visit.
• Dog Mountain: The summit meadow wildflower display is still 2-3 weeks off, but there are plenty of flowers in bloom
• Columbia Hills SP.: It was quite beautiful with Balsamroot and Lupine

Wikipedia description of difference between a Total Solar Eclipse and an Annular solar Eclipse:

A solar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes between Earth and the Sun, thereby totally or partially obscuring the image of the Sun for a viewer on Earth. An annular solar eclipse occurs when the Moon’s apparent diameter is smaller than the Sun, causing the Sun to look like an annulus ring, blocking most of the Sun’s light. An annular eclipse appears as a partial eclipse over a region thousands of kilometres wide.

For more information about the eclipse go to the Photonaturalist posting:  Get Ready For the Upcoming Annular Eclipse on May 20th

Hiked through the Traverse Creek Botanical Special Interest Area out behind Placerville. There are flowers to see, but not as much variety as I had hoped for. The dry early season cut back on the bloom, and it is starting to get warm (in the mid 80′s). The creek still has a lot of water, though, so there should be flowers for a while. We saw Yellow Star Tulip (you had to search), several kinds of Monkey Flower, a LOT of Blue Dicks, Canyon Dudleya, Foothill Poppies, Indian Paintbrush, Tomcat Clover and a number of others I’m still working on identifying. On the road up there, on Highways 49 and 193, there were a LOT of Fairy Lanterns on the shaded roadside.

I’ll have an article with directions on my blog by next weekend.

Read all of Calphoto’s posts at: http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/calphoto/

Highlights of todays field trip included getting good looks at Lazuli Bunting, Rufous-crowned Sparrow, Lark Sparrows mating and carrying nesting materials and Kestrels nesting. Many birds were singing to set up territory and attract mates.  We saw and/or heard a total of twenty-nine species.

We also saw a good number of native plants in bloom and several butterflies. Today’s slideshow is of some of the butterflies that we saw. I did much better with butterfly photos as most birds required binoculars and spotting scopes for good looks.

Sibley Volcanic Regional Park,  May 12, 2012

Bird List 29 species

California Quail       heard only

Wild Turkey       heard only

Red-tailed Hawk

American Kestrel       nesting

Band-tailed Pigeon

Mourning Dove       heard only

Anna’s Hummingbird

Nuttall’s Woodpecker       heard only

Pacific-slope Flycatcher

Western Scrub-Jay       heard only

Common Raven

Tree Swallow

Chestnut-backed Chickadee

Bushtit       heard only

Wrentit

European Starling

Orange-crowned Warbler

Wilson’s Warbler

Spotted Towhee       heard only

Rufous-crowned Sparrow

California Towhee

Lark Sparrow       mating, carrying nesting material

Song Sparrow

Dark-eyed Junco

Black-headed Grosbeak       heard only

Lazuli Bunting

Purple Finch

Lesser Goldfinch       heard only

American Goldfinch

Native Plants

Mules Ear

Checker Mallow

Lupine

Paintbrush

California Poppy

Ithuriel’s Spear

Blue Dicks

Yarrow

Hedge Nettle

Bush Monkeyflower

California Strawberry

California Blackberry

Blue Elderberry

California Phacelia

California Buttercup

Butterflies

Anise Swallowtail

Buckeye

Northern Checkerspot

California Ringlet

Cabbage White

The Wildflower Festival is July 9 to 15, 2012. For more information go to  Crested Butte Wildflower Festival .