Natural History Wanderings

Yosemite Park reports “As of the beginning of May, wildflowers are blooming in the lowest elevations of Yosemite–specifically in the Merced river canyon–and just beginning in the Valley.Use Highway 99 to drive to Highway 140 to travel through Merced to Mariposa to El Portal for a beautiful drive along the Merced river. Along the way, you’ll see Applegate’s paintbrush, fiesta flower, pretty face, jewelflower, liveforever, Western wallflower, Chinese houses, Indian pink and California thistle (a native thistle). New blooms include blazing star, California sunshine, and fairy lantern–a droopy white flower in the same genus as the Mariposa lily. Plus, several flowers are blanketing the Merced River Canyon’s mountainside—look for the intense rosy pink mats of owl’s clover as well as yellow patches of madia and purple splashes of bush lupine that climb straight up a mountainside. Seven miles before reaching the park boundary, find the 4-mile Hite Cove trail (8 miles roundtrip) in the Sierra National Forest that follows the south fork of the Merced River. It’s famous internationally as a wildflower paradise. In Yosemite National Park, star-tulip, which are white lilies that sit low to the ground, can be found around Big Meadow in Foresta. Walk along Foresta Road or Old Coulterville Road. Access Foresta Road from the El Portal park administrative complex—but plan to walk because this gravel road is not suggested for driving. Access the other end of Foresta Road and the Old Coulterville Road from the community of Foresta, which is off the Big Oak Flat Road inside the park”. http://www.nps.gov/yose/naturescience/bloom.htm
Wildflower walks in Yosemite: http://www.nps.gov/yose/naturescience/wildflower-walks.htm
Common wildflowers of Yosemite: http://www.nps.gov/yose/naturescience/common-wildflowers.htm

Michael Frye commented on May 7 on his landscape blog about Yosemite dogwoods http://www.michaelfrye.com/landscape-photography-blog “The dogwoods are emerging rapidly. When I arrived in Yosemite Valley on Tuesday perhaps half of them were in full bloom, while the other half were still in their green stage. Now I’d say 70 percent have white petals. The next week or so will be the best time to photograph them, before the leaves grow out and hide the blossoms.”

On May 7, 2010 Bishop BLM office reports:  “Desert wildflowers are continuing to show vibrant displays throughout the Owens Valley area. Key spots to check out are the canyons of the White and Inyo Mountains; great displays can be seen along the Saline Valley Road east of Big Pine. Other key spots to check out include; the alluvial fans of the Sierra Nevada (Sawmill & Division Creek), the Buttermilks and Tungsten Hills (west of Bishop) and the Volcanic Tablelands (north of Bishop).  Off the Saline Valley Road Desert Plume, Desert Paintbrush and Apricot Globe Mallow can be seen.
Yellow Tack Stem, Desert Dandelion and Scale Bud are visible in the Tungsten Hills as well as Tidy Tips and Easter Bonnets. Desert Peach and Bitterbrush are also beginning to bloom.  In the Volcanic Tablelands area Venus Blazing Star and Scale Bud are helping to paint the hillsides yellow.  It will probably be another week or two before we see more in bloom in the Long Valley area.”  http://www.blm.gov/ca/st/en/fo/bishop/wildflower.html
Wildflower hikes in the Eastern Sierra:  http://www.blm.gov/pgdata/etc/medialib/blm/ca/pdf/pdfs/bishop_pdfs/botany.Par.72cc9998.File.dat/wildflwhikes.pdf

In Plumas County the “Bloom Blog” reports flowers blooming in the Quincy area.  It is still too early for the higher elevations of the  Lakes Basin.  http://www.plumascounty.org/Things%20to%20See%20and%20Do/wildflower%20viewing.htm