Natural History Wanderings

Today I went on a field trip with the Master Birding Class I am taking through Golden Gate Audubon and the California Academy of Science. We saw or heard about 45 different species of birds, saw many wildflowers and even a number of butterflies.

The most interesting observation was watching a Nuttall’s Woodpecker aggressively mob a garter snake that had likely gone after a nest. The Woodpecker was joined by a number of Anna’s Hummingbirds,  Spotted Towhee, Oak Titmouse, and other birds in harassing the snake.

We saw late season Hermit’s and Townsend’s Warblers. The Mt. Diablo Fairy Lantern is still blooming in good number. We also found a good group of Wind Poppies and had three species  of Swallowtail Butterfly.

Click read more to see detailed bird, plant and butterfly lists

Mitchell Canyon Species Lists  5/9/15

 

Plant List

Mt. Diablo Fairy Lantern

Blue Dick

Ithuriel’s Spear

Squaw Bush (Rhus trilobata) looks similar to Poison Oak but terminal or outer most leaf
has no stem

Poison Oak   terminal or outer most leaf has stem

Cow Parsnip

Yarrow

Narrow-leaf Bush Sunflower

Wooly Sunflower

Mustard (alien)

Snowberry

Bindweed or Morning Glory

Clover (Trifolium sp.)

Filaree (alien)

Yerba Santa

Pitcher Sage

Elegant Clarkia

California Poppy

Wind Poppy

California Wild Rose

Chinese House

Bush Monkey Flower

Common Monkey Flower

Common names from Mitchell Canyon Plant List 2009: http://www.mdia.org/site/docs/nature/plants/Mitchell-Canyon-Flower-List-2009.pdf

 

Trees and Large Shrubs

Valley Oak

Blue Oak

Live Oak

Gray Pine (needles droopy and sparse)

Coulter Pine (needles thick and bushy)

Red Alder

Blue Elderberry (in bloom)

Buckeye (in bloom)

Big Leaf Maple

Walnut

Willow

 

Butterflies

Pale Swallowtail

Two-tailed Swallowtail

Western Tiger Swallowtail

California Sister

California Tortoiseshell

Sarah Orange-tip

Variable Checkerspot

California Ringlet

 

Bird List Compiled by Eddie Bartley

California Quail

Wild Turkey

Turkey Vulture

Cooper’s Hawk

Red-tailed Hawk

Band-tailed Pigeon

Mourning Dove

White-throated Swift

Anna’s Hummingbird

Acorn Woodpecker

Nuttall’s Woodpecker

Olive-sided Flycatcher

Western Wood-Pewee

Pacific-slope Flycatcher

Ash-throated Flycatcher

Cassin’s Vireo

Hutton’s Vireo

Warbling Vireo

Steller’s Jay

Western Scrub-Jay (Coastal)

Common Raven

Cliff Swallow

Chestnut-backed Chickadee

Oak Titmouse

Bushtit

White-breasted Nuthatch (Pacific)

House Wren

Bewick’s Wren

Wrentit

Western Bluebird

European Starling

Orange-crowned Warbler

Townsend’s Warbler

Hermit Warbler

Wilson’s Warbler (Pacific Coast)

Spotted Towhee

California Towhee

Dark-eyed Junco (Oregon)

Western Tanage

Black-headed Grosbeak

Lazuli Bunting

Red-winged Blackbird

House Finch

Purple Finch (Western)

Lesser Goldfinch

 

Natural History Note: Mistletoe is Hemiparasite

Hemiparasite – a plant that is parasitic under natural conditions and is also photosynthetic to some degree. Hemiparasites may just obtain water and mineral nutrients from the host plant. Many obtain at least part of their organic nutrients from the host as well.