Natural History Wanderings

submitted by Daniel

The wildflowers are now in peak bloom at the North Table Mountain Ecological Preserve in Oroville. I visited on the morning of Saturday 4/20/19 and was surprised to see more than double the amount of flowers I saw when I visited about three weeks ago. The bloom this year appears to have been delayed at least a week or two due to the colder than usual weather. Some years you would need to walk at least a quarter mile into the fields to find good patches but right now the wildflowers are so numerous they are carpeting the fields with an impressive display and extend all the way to the roadside. The sheer volume of many different types of wildflowers is close to match the amount I saw at North Table Mountain two years ago.
The vernal pool wildflowers are out in full force and along the sides of the streams. The only downside was the low flow at the waterfalls being at least half the volume from three weeks ago. Near Phantom Falls you can see spots where the vegetation is starting to dry up. However, late Saturday afternoon a thunderstorm with lightning came through this whole area dropping a considerable amount of precipitation in a short period of time. Perhaps this recent rain will extend the bloom season but with temperatures reaching the high 80s this week I would recommend visiting North Table Mountain soon if you can before the wildflowers are gone.