Natural History Wanderings

Antelope Valley Poppy Reserve report the Current Bloom Status as of 2/12/15

The hills are covered with green, and a handful of poppies have already started blooming along the edge of the parking lot.  Filaree and loco week have also begun blooming, and some other small flowered species. We’re expecting a very good to excellent bloom this year; our peak is typically mid-April but it may be earlier this year if we don’t receive more rain to sustain the bloom.
Visitor center opening date will be determined shortly.

via Latest Poppy Reserve Researcher Field Notes for 2/9/15

Poppies are starting to bloom! You can see plants along Lancaster Road going to the Poppy Reserve and there are a few poppies blooming in the park. There were three nice rain events that produced over an inch of rain:

1. December 2, 2014 (1.67 inches),

2. December 12, 2014 (1.84 inches) and

3. January 11, 2015 (1.20 inches).

I’m sure there was germination of poppies at other times but as I walk the trails I am seeing three different sizes of the plants that are pretty consistent with these rain falls.

There are poppy plants that measure 7 to 8 inches (starting to produce flowers), 3 inches and 1-1/2 to 2 inches (these smaller plants do not have flowers yet). This could mean an extended flowering season.

The Poppy Trail South Loop and Tehachapi Vista Point Trail are showing flowers on filaree, slender keel fruit, tiny forget-me-nots, locoweed, fiddleneck, poppies and the grape soda lupine.

Seeing insects like the Darkling beetles, painted lady butterflies, sulfur butterflies and bees. Spotted three ground squirrels on the way to the Reserve and eight horned larks.

The maintenance crews are busy cleaning the trails and getting rid of the tumbleweeds that were in front of the Visitor center, covering the picnic area and clustered on the trails.

Wildflower Sightings

Munz Ranch Road is starting to show poppies, mostly on the west side of the road. These are both annual and perennial poppies.

The flowers are just starting to show and you can spot them here and there. Hope for more rain, no hard freezes, no high winds that can blow off petals and dry out the soil and warm sunny days.