Natural History Wanderings

Submitted by Ter Solomon

Every year I spend a month of spring in Las Vegas to hike Southern Nevada, and I don’t meet any Bay Area folks on the trails, even though it’s nine hours by car from Berkeley. I just returned, and this spring was one of those incredible, rare years when the desert turned green and flowers displays were extreme.
Many Utah and Eaton’s penstemons, but the two-toned penstemon of yellow and white (bicolor) surprised me because I hadn’t seen that color combination in penstemons.
I learned two common spectacle cryptanthas, basin yellow (confertiflora) and golden eyes (flavoculata). They defy the genus name with their showiness.
Tons of giant four o’clock in the sandy areas with lots of flowering evening primroses of various species.
Thousands of winding mariposa lilies (flexuosus) climbing through every shrub. We were in disbelief at their beauty.
Lots of milk vetches, and the white, localized Spring Mtn milk vetch (remotus) struck me the most.
Of course plenty of phacelias, and the one that is most memorable because it is discrete is Washoe (curvipes). And Fremont’s phacelia numbers in the thousands in major ground covers.
Paper bag bushes were completely covered in flowers as was indigo bush, mojave sage, desert almond, cliff rose, linear-leaf goldlen bush, black brush, spiny menodora, and wooly bluestars (Amsonia).

There were lots of what I think were rock gilias (scopulorum) throughout miles of gentle slopes. They were one to two feet high with very wiry stems.
By Lake Mead I saw many more times the number of silverleaf sun rays (Enceliopsis) than ever.
Anyway, you get the idea. Those are highlights that come to mind so far.
This is also a world class birding area with several desert wetland preserves that supply bird lists for guests.
There are lots of furnished monthly vacation rentals in Las Vegas, and that’s how I stay and share with friends.