Pacific Northwest Wildflower Bloom Reports has a new update for flowers, birds, butterflies, and other animals seen in East Simcoe Mountains Unit, Klickitat Wildlife Area in the Columbia River Gorge at June 17, 2017: East Simcoe Mountains Unit, Klickitat Wildlife Area.
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | June 21, 2017
Columbia River Gorge Wildflowers 6/17/17
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | June 21, 2017
EPA Gives Notice To Dozens Scientific Advisory Board Members
The Washington Post reports
The Environmental Protection Agency has given notice to dozens of scientists that they will not be renewed in their roles in advising the agency, continuing a scientific shake-up that has already triggered resignations and charges from some researchers that the administration is politicizing the agency.
Read full story at: EPA just gave notice to dozens of scientific advisory board members that their time is up – The Washington Post
Posted in Environment | Tags: EPA Gives Notice To Dozens Scientific Advisory Board Members
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | June 20, 2017
California’s Dying Sea: Salton Sea
The Desert Sun has series of videos on what is happening to the Salton Sea
The Desert Sun investigates the crisis of the shrinking Salton Sea, from its worsening dust storms to its disappearing birds. The lake is becoming a toxic dust bowl — nearly 15 years after California lawmakers promised to fix it.
Watch videos at California’s Dying Sea
Posted in Environment | Tags: Salton Sea
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | June 19, 2017
What Happens When You Plant a Pile of Bear Scat?
Cool Green Science blog reports on “What Happens When You Plant a Pile of Bear Scat” In one case
one sample of bear scat from last fall sprouted 1,200 seedlings this spring. Now the greenhouse is, well, green, because of one pile of purple poop full of berry seeds. Mostly Oregon grape with some chokecherry chewed in for variety.
Read more about what was discovered at What Happens When You Plant a Pile of Bear Scat? – Cool Green Science
Posted in Animals | Tags: Planting Bear Scat
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | June 18, 2017
Marin County Wildflowers 6/18/17
The Marin County CNPS Facebook page has a report and photos from a hike along Kent Lake Trail from Bon Tempe Dam to Potrero Camp.
Beautiful old Redwoods and Doug Fir, Manzanita, Madrone & all the usual wildflowers (Ithuriel Spear, Yarrow (yellow and white), Tar Weed, Indian Pinks, Monkey Flower) and I think Pearly Everlasting…oh, Western Azalea, of course.
See Photos at Marin Native Plants
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | June 18, 2017
How Do Flamingos Stand on One Leg Without Falling Over
Audubon has an article explaining how Flamingos are able to stand on one leg without falling. over. The new research shows that the birds are specially built for balancing. Read story and see video at How Flamingos Stand on One Leg Without Falling Over | Audubon
Posted in Birds | Tags: Bird Research, Flamingos, How Flamingos Stand on One Leg
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | June 17, 2017
Marin/Sonoma Wildflower Updates 6/17/17
Marin County CNPS Facebook page has photos for Lake Sonoma and Azalea Hill at Marin Native Plants
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | June 17, 2017
Santa Monica Mts. Wildflowers 6/16/17
Santa Monica Mts. National Recreation Area has a new wildflower report
Topanga Canyon State Park Musch Trail 6/16/17
Days are getting hot. So in order to do this hike we started at 7am at Trippet Ranch. We took the Nature Trail to the fire road and continued toward Eagle Rock and then took the Musch Trail back to Trippet Ranch. The Trippet Ranch pond is still surrounded by tiny, hopping, juvenile western toads. So watch your step. They are fun to watch. Starting up the Nature Trail there is a wonderful group of Indian milkweed in full flower. Once we got to the fire road we saw the standard chaparral flowers of early summer; California buckwheat, slender tarweed, sticky monkey flower, laurel sumac, cliff aster and heart leaf penstemon. There are still great quantities of flowers. Further along the fire road we came to great patches of plummers mariposa lilies accompanied by lots of scarlet larkspur. They sight is really stunning. Heading down the Musch Trail we encountered a new set of flowers that included mustard evening primrose, white pincushion, poppies, yellow monkey flower, sticky phacelia, black sage, and to my surprise, the beautiful notable penstemon. It seemed that every turn of the trail brought a new surprise. Once it was a meadow filled with farewell-to-spring and purple clarkia. Once it was a shady spot filled with Indian pinks. Once it was a coiled rattlesnake. Once it was another grassy area studded with narrow leaf milkweed, vervain and sticky madia. A 3.5 mile hike and we were finished by 9am.
See photos and older posts at What’s Blooming
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | June 17, 2017
Columbia River Gorge Wildflowers: Eagle Mt. 6/16/17
Oregon Wildflowers reports on Eagle Creek in the Columbia River Gorge
Eagle Creek There are still plenty of wildflowers blooming along the Eagle Creek Trail: profuse Seep Monkeyflower (Mimulus guttatus) and Streambank Arnica (Arnica amplexicaulis) starting shortly after the trailhead, Little-leaf Montia (Montia parvifolia), Wild Ginger (Asarum caudatum), Turtlehead (Nothochelone nemorosa), Bigroot (Marah oreganus), Globe Gilia (Gilia capitata), Self-Heal (Prunella vulgaris ), Rosy Plectritis (Plectritis congesta), profuse Tapertip Onion (Allium acuminatum) in rocky areas and on hillsides, occasional Small-Flowered Tiger Lily (Lilium columbianum), profuse Common Clarkia (Clarkia rhomboidea) starting to open shortly after the cliff-side trail segments, Yarrow (Achillea millefolium), profuse Twinflower (Linnaea borealis), Salal (Gaultheria shallon), Inside-Out Flower (Vancouveria hexandra), Broad-leaf Stonecrop (Sedum spathulifolium), and Hyacinth Cluster Lily (Triteleia hyacinthina).
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | June 17, 2017
Why Yellow Birds Mysteriously Turn Red
National Geographic reported on new research that helps explain the relationship between bird color and their diet.
For the yellow-shafted northern flicker, “you are what you eat” has proven freakishly true.
The answer, it turned out, had to do with their diets: The birds were eating red berries that turn their feathers crimson, according to new research published in The Auk. Vibrant yellow, orange, and red hues common in bird plumage actually come from pigments in the food they eat.
Read full story at Why Yellow Birds Mysteriously Turn Red
Posted in Birds | Tags: Bird Color
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | June 16, 2017
Point Reyes: Drakes Beach Road to Reopens
Point Reyes National Seashore reports
Drakes Beach Road to Reopen Saturday, June 17
Since mid-April, the road to the very popular Drakes Beach at Point Reyes National Seashore has been closed due to a road collapse from a failed culvert. Work on the road will be completed and reopened on Saturday, June 17.
The Drakes Beach Café, operated by the Point Reyes National Seashore Association, will reopen on Saturday, July 1, in time for the 4th of July holiday
Posted in Park | Tags: Point Reyes
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | June 16, 2017
Highway 120 East of Yosemite To Open
Mono County Facebook page reported
Caltrans District 9 plans to open the east side of SR 120 west this Monday at 2pm. NOTE: Tioga Pass into Yosemite National Park remains closed and a projected opening date for that section of the road has not been set.
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | June 16, 2017
Mount Rainier Wildflowers 6/15/17
Mount Rainier National Park has a new report
Currently Blooming – June 15, 2017
One of the biggest factors affecting the timing of wildflower blooms is elevation. On a clear day, the temperature falls roughly 5°F (~10°C) for every 1,000 feet you move up in elevation. That means a trip from the Nisqually Entrance at an elevation of approx. 2,000 feet up to Paradise at 5,400 feet means the temperature will decrease by 17°F – that’s the difference between a 70°F day and a 53°F one! (Just imagine the difference on the summit at an elevation of 14,410 feet – a change in temperature of 62 °F!)
The effect of elevation on temperature clearly results in more snow at high elevations, which in turn affects the wildflowers. On the lower elevation east side of Stevens Canyon, penstemon and paintbrush are already starting to bloom. On the higher elevation west side of Stevens Canyon around Reflection Lakes, there is still snow on the ground with only a few avalanche lilies coming out. Now is a good time to go for a drive and see these changes as you move up and down the elevations of Mount Rainier.
Wildflower Reports
- Stevens Canyon Road (6/14): West Side (towards Reflection Lakes) avalanche lilies, phlox, trillium; East Side (towards Grove of the Patriarchs) Menzie’s penstemon, cliff paintbrush, buttercup, bear grass, lupine, wild strawberry
- Grove of the Patriarchs (6/14): foam flower, siberian miner’s lettuce, star flower, fringecup, piggyback plant, bunchberry, false solomon’s seal, star-flowered false solomon’s seal, vanilla leaf, Cascade Oregon-grape
- Nisqually Entrance to Longmire Road (6/14) – vanilla leaf, cow parsnip (early), columbine, foam flower, lupine (near Kautz), buttercup, lots of bunchberry!
- Longmire (6/8) – roundleaf violet, stream violet, alaska violet, calypso orchid (late), twayblade, Cascade Oregon-grape, wild strawberry, kinnikinnick, serviceberry, siberian miner’s lettuce, bunchberry, smooth alumroot (early), big-leaved sandwort, star solomon’s seal (early), lupine
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | June 16, 2017
Where Do Walrus Hangout?
NPR reported about developing a database on showing where walruses are found. It is quite interesting to read about all the sources they used to compile the database.
For the first time, scientists have built a single database showing where Pacific walruses have gathered for the past 160 years, including sites along both the Russian and Alaskan coasts. The tool, which was published last month, will be used to protect vulnerable animals.
Read more at What Does It Take To Map A Walrus Hangout? 160 Years And A Lot Of Help : The Two-Way : NPR
Posted in Animals | Tags: Mapping Walrus
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | June 15, 2017
Pacific Northwest Wildflowers 6/15/17
Oregon Wildflowers posted a number of new reports. Click on location to see report
| Location | Area/City | State | Visited |
|---|---|---|---|
| Saddle Mountain | Oregon Coast – Northern | OR | 06/15/2017 |
| Grassy Knoll | WA | 06/14/2017 | |
| Horse Rock Ridge | Willamette Valley | OR | 06/12/2017 |
| Kings Mountain | OR | 06/11/2017 | |
| Star Flat | Southwest Oregon | OR | 06/11/2017 |
| Days Gulch Botanical Area | OR | 06/10/2017 |
You can see photos on their Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/groups/oregonwildflowers/permalink/635359179993073/
(NOTE: You must be a member of the Oregon Wildflowers Facebook group to view these photos)
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | June 15, 2017
Where To Go to See Eastern Sierra Wildflowers
If you are planning on going to the Eastern Sierra and/or White Mountains to see wildflowers this summer here are some helpful resources for planning your trip.
Natural History Wanderings
Best Sierra Nevada Wildflower Hotspots https://naturalhistorywanderings.com/2011/07/12/sierra-nevada-wildflower-hotspots/
Best Sierra Nevada Wildflower Hikes https://naturalhistorywanderings.com/2010/06/05/best-sierra-nevada-wildflower-hikes/
“Wildflower Hot Spots of the Eastern Sierra,” Bureau of Land Management. Download for free here or stop by any Inyo National Forest ranger station/visitor center and make a $2.00 donation for your own copy.
Mono Country Tourism
Website: Wildflowers
Facebook page: Mono County Tourism – California’s Eastern Sierra – Home
Instagram: Mono County Tourism (@monocountytourism) • Instagram photos and videos
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | June 14, 2017
Santa Monica Mts. Wildflowers 6/12/17
Santa Monica Mts. National Recreation Area has new wildflower reports
Topanga Canyon State Park Santa Ynez Canyon 6/12/17
This hike is one of the best for late spring and summer. There are two distinct sections; the riparian, where you start and the chaparral that you climb up into. In the riparian section the Humboldt lilies are the stars, they are everywhere this year, many more than I have seen in past years. They are so large and so bright that they almost appear to be illuminated. There is a lot of heart leaf penstemon and California buckwheat and a little bit of a lot of other flowers but the Humboldts are what you get excited about. After walking through the riparian section, and being careful to avoid the plentiful poison oak, you climb up into the chaparral section. This section also has stars and they are the scarlet larkspur which is really tall and really plentiful and the plummers mariposas which are abundant and stunning. There are also some other lovelies to enjoy; white snapdragons, canyon dudleya, sapphire wool stars and twiggy wreath plant. It will do your soul good to visit this place.
Zuma Canyon Ocean View/Canyon View Loop 6/8/17
By the second week of June I figured that the flowerswould be about finished but I went anyway. I could not have been more wrong about the flowers-the displays are stunning. Just pulling into the Zuma Canyon parking area you can see the entire valley floor carpeted with purple sage with sprays of bush mallow shooting out above with the whole thing punctuated by the occasional bladder pod bush. I took the Ocean View/Canyon View Loop, a trail that is a bit less traveled than the Zuma Loop Trail. I could not keep track of the flowers. There were bushes full of milkwort, there was sticky phacelia, lots of heart leaf penstemon, patches of perezia and slender tar weed, lots of cliff asters, sticky madea and white and golden yarrow. Climbing up the hill the mustard growing by the side of the trail gets a bit overwhelming-it is 10-15 feet tall. At first I enjoyed the sensation of being an ant traveling through grass and then I started feeling a little claustrophobic and resentful that I could not see the views this trail is named for. Fortunately the intense mustard falls away and the views return. There are entire mountainsides that a simply coated with purple sage, it is spectacular. Almost as breathtaking are the large number of plummers mariposas growing at the top of this trail, a great reward for steep climb up on the mustard choked trail.
See photos and older posts at What’s Blooming
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | June 14, 2017
Seven Things You Can Do About Climate Change
The New York Times has an article with seven simple guidelines for reducing carbon emissions that you can do to help decrease the impact of climate change at What You Can Do About Climate Change – The New York Times
Posted in Environment | Tags: Things You Can Do About Climate Change
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | June 13, 2017
El Portal Road (Hwy. 140) To Yosemite National Park Closed
Yosemite National Park (U.S. National Park Service) reports
El Portal Road in Yosemite National Park Remains Closed
Date: June 13, 2017
Highway 140 closed at Parkline at least through the weekend
The El Portal Road and Arch Rock Entrance into Yosemite National Park remain closed due to a rockslide that occurred yesterday around Noon. Yosemite National Park staff are assessing the area and the road will remain closed at least through the weekend of June 17-18, 2017. After the assessment is complete, crews will begin to remove rock debris and repair the road to make it safe for visitors to travel on. There is no estimate for when the road will reopen.
Around Noon yesterday, a large rockslide occurred from the “Parkline Slab” cliff, about 1 mile east of the park boundary on Highway 140.The rockslide originated from a point mid-way up the cliff, approximately 400 feet above the base of the cliff and 600 feet above the El Portal Road.
Roughly 4,000 tons of rock detached from the cliff along a cliff-parallel exfoliation joint; the approximate dimensions of the slab are 50 x 80 x 15 feet. This massive slab of rock slid down the cliff, hit a ledge, and broke into many pieces; these pieces fragmented further on hitting the base of the cliff, fanning out over an area more than 1,000 feet wide. The bulk of the debris slid and rolled down the slope at the base of the cliff, piling up on the El Portal Road, and continuing down to (and into) the Merced River.
Of the total volume of material that fell, roughly 1/3 of that landed on the El Portal Road, covering an area of road about 150 feet long under up to 15-20 feet of rock debris. The largest boulder on the road is about 130 tons, and there are several other boulders that are only somewhat smaller. Boulders and smaller “flyrock” fragments covered a section of road nearly 1,000 feet long. The road sustained damage, both to the paved surface and the retaining wall.
Yosemite Area Regional Transportation System (YARTS) buses will run on a modified schedule. To see the schedule, please visit www.yarts.com
A news release will be issued with updates as repairs progress on the El Portal Road.
Posted in Park | Tags: EL Portal Road Closed, Highway 140 Closed, Yosemite National Park
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | June 13, 2017
Sonora Pass Opened Today
Sonora Pass is officially OPEN! See what the top of the pass looked liked moments after Caltrans opened the gate at Mono County Tourism – California’s Eastern Sierra – Home
Posted in Drives | Tags: Sonora Pass Is Open
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | June 13, 2017
Save The Ducks
The New York Times reports
Ducks: A Point of Unity in a Capital of Ruffled Feathers –
In an otherwise divided capital, there’s one thing most people can agree on: The city’s ducks must be protected at all costs. This means using federal money to build ramps to help ducks step into the Capitol Reflecting Pool, calling for police aid to remove ducklings from the Library of Congress roof, and, as of this coming Tuesday, draining the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool to remove parasites that live in snails and have killed dozens of ducks.
Read full story at Ducks: A Point of Unity in a Capital of Ruffled Feathers
Posted in Birds | Tags: D. C. Ducks
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | June 12, 2017
Henry Coe Wildflower Update 6/11/17
Henry Coe State Park has a new wildflower bloom report for June 11, 2017 at the Pine Ridge Association website with photos and a list of flowers now in bloom at: Henry W. Coe – Wildflower Guide.
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | June 12, 2017
Climate Destabilization Causing Thousands of New Species Migrations
Environ News reports on how climate destabilization is causing thousands of species plants, animals, insects, and birds to change migration patterns
A spate of new research studies has confirmed a disturbing pattern: climate disruption is confusing migratory birds, causing trees to relocate and allowing tropical diseases to spread northward. “Human society has yet to appreciate the implications of unprecedented species redistribution for life on Earth, including for human lives,” states a study, “Divergence of Species Responses to Climate Change,” published May 17, 2017, in Science Advances.
Posted in Animals, Birds, Environment, Wildflowers and Other Plants | Tags: Climate Change and Migration Disruption
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | June 11, 2017
Sierra Wildflowers 6/11/17
A couple of quick posts from Facebook
Yosemite National Park: In October 2015, the Taft Toe Fire (a prescribed burn) was set in Yosemite Valley, just west of the Four Mile trailhead. Today, we’re seeing benefits of the burn as Gray’s lupines, lupinus grayi, carpet the forest floor. See photos at https://www.facebook.com/YosemiteNPS/?hc_ref=NEWSFEED
McGee Creek: McGee Creek was unbelievable today! GO NOW! See photos at https://www.facebook.com/VisitEasternSierra/?hc_ref=NEWSFEED&fref=nf
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | June 11, 2017
UC-Berkeley Botanical Garden Photos 6/11/17
The UC-Berkeley Botanical garden has many things in bloom right now. Areas that I especially liked today were the South American, South African and Desert/Cactus sections. There are also many Pipevine Swallowtail butterflies in flight. It was a bright, sunny and midday and I hadn’t planned on doing photography so today’s photos are taken with an iPhone.
Posted in Garden, Photos (Sandy's), Wildflowers and Other Plants | Tags: UC-Berkeley Botanical Garden
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | June 11, 2017
What Utah’s Canyon Country Can Tell Us About Donald Trump’s National Monuments Review
NPR has a story about President Trump’s and Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke’s review of 27 National Monuments focusing on Bears Ears National Monument and Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument. Below are a few brief excerpts. Read full story at What Utah’s Canyon Country Can Tell Us About Donald Trump’s National Monuments Review : NPR
A looming decision about whether to abolish or shrink the Bears Ears National Monument in Utah should provide an early signal of how the Trump administration will deal with a long list of public lands issues.
A tour of Grand Staircase-Escalante. That is, a tour of the national monument’s economic impact, the political cloud surrounding it — and what we can expect once Zinke’s decision comes down.
Posted in Park | Tags: Donald Trump's Review of National Monuments
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | June 10, 2017
Backyard Flower Photos
A collection of flowers blooming in my backyard
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | June 10, 2017
Mount Rainier Wildflowers 6/8/17
Mount Rainier National Park has a new report
Currently Blooming – June 8, 2017
Visitors often ask when is the peak wildflower bloom. However, some flower species bloom early in the season, while some bloom late. Coltsfoot, one of the first flowers of spring, is already done blooming and entering the seedhead stage! At the same time, many flowers are still buried under snow in the subalpine meadows. So “peak wildflower bloom” is roughly the time period when the largest number of wildflowers are blooming at the same time (which is usually in early August).
Wildflower Reports
- Longmire (6/8) – roundleaf violet, stream violet, alaska violet, calypso orchid (late), twayblade, Cascade Oregon-grape, wild strawberry, kinnikinnick, serviceberry, siberian miner’s lettuce, bunchberry, smooth alumroot (early), big-leaved sandwort, star solomon’s seal (early), lupine
- Nisqually Entrance to Longmire Road (6/1) – vanilla leaf, cow parsnip (early), columbine, foam flower, lupine (near Kautz)
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | June 10, 2017
100 Practical Ways to Reverse Climate Change
The New York Times reports on a new book with many practical suggestions on how to reverse climate change
At a time when the science of global warming is under attack and many people complain of climate change fatigue, some cheering news occurred last month: A book about climate change became a New York Times bestseller in its first week of publication.
Drawdown: The Most Comprehensive Plan Ever Proposed to Reverse Global Warming, edited by environmentalist Paul Hawken, is the first environmental book to make such a splashy debut since Elizabeth Kolbert’s Field Notes from a Catastrophe in 2006.
Kolbert’s book warned of cataclysm; Hawken’s tries to prevent it. Bringing together geologists, engineers, agronomists, climatologists, biologists, botanists, economists, financial analysts, architects, NGOs, activists, and other experts, Drawdown offers 100 solutions to reverse global warming.
Posted in Environment, Uncategorized | Tags: Climate change, Global warming
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | June 9, 2017
North Coast Redwood Update 6/7/17
Where to photograph in California – Yahoo Groups (Calphoto) has a report on the North Coast Redwood Rhododendrons
I spent several days in the Redwoods (all of them 6/3-6/7). The Rhodies where really not present. Last fall I believe they failed to set buds for this spring due to the stresses of the drought. What I did see was phenomenal new growth with a promise of a good future show. But I also saw some new concerns.
The forest is dry. Lady Bird Johnson Grove and Damnation Trail/creek and other places where dry. I experienced sunshine and slight overcast in each of the four days. I was hoping to find fog but saw none. Research indicates that one of the effects of climate change is less fog. This north coast is reliant on summer fog. The redwoods are designed specifically to glean moisture from the fog and drop it to the ground to nourish flora and fauna alike but with less fog, there is no assurance of rhoadies or anything else. The entire north coast ecosystem is clearly at risk, and this current republican president and his minions have no plan to protect it!
Natural History Wanderings 