Natural History Wanderings

Antelope Valley California Poppy Reserve SNR reports on April 2, 2016

The season appears to have ended early, as last month’s rains came too late to sustain the bloom that had barely started. The fields are mostly grasses now; only a handful of poppies are blooming alongside the trails. The beavertail cactus in front of the visitor center is blooming, which usually happens after the season has ended- a sign that an early summer is on the way. The four o’clocks on Lightening Bolt Trail will be blooming soon, and the Acton encelia and buckwheat are blooming on Kitanemuk Vista Point.

The park is still a pleasant place to visit, with miles of gently rolling trails for strolling, a picnic area, and the visitor center with displays about the wildlife and flowers of the area.  We are currently seeing many of the side-blotched lizards zipping across the trail, larks singing in the rabbitbrush, and caterpillars of an unknown species that will soon bring butterflies.