Natural History Wanderings

Antelope Valley California Poppy Reserve SNR reports

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. 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. Please stay on the concrete to take photos! The four o’clocks, Acton Daisy 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 please watch out for snakes crossing the road- they are part of the ecosystem and all are protected in the park.

We had a moderate number of poppy plants germinate from October storms, but many were lost to a later freeze. Subsequent rains brought more germination but were not frequent enough to carry them through for long. Bloom peak and duration is as unpredictable as Mother Nature, and it seems the conditions were not right in the Antelope Valley this year for a good bloom.