Passing showers during the early morning of 21 April 2026 brought views of several rainbows. Here's a quick shot to help celebrate Earth Day.
Remember to go outside today and send out thanks to the Earth. As David Byrne says, "She's the only one we have."
The beautiful wings of a California Darner (Rionaeschna californica). Note how shiny and new they look. [You can click on the image for a larger version.] I could see this darner's wings glittering in the sun as it flew across a grassland. When it landed nearby, I leaned in for a closer view. Because the wings are so fresh, it's likely this individual metamorphosed recently. Once a dragonfly has been flying for a while, the wings lose their shine and can show nicks and other impacts.
Wow! Eric took some striking photos of featherduster worms last weekend. This is Serpula columbiana, a marine worm that lives in a white calcareous tube and uses its broad fan to filter food from the surrounding water.
The round, trumpet-like structure is an opercular plug. When the fan is withdrawn into the tube, the plug seals the opening to protect the worm within.
I'm a big fan of these beautiful tubeworms, and Serpula columbiana comes in lots of different color forms, so here are two more examples:
After off and on rain showers for most of the day (12 April 2026), Eric spotted a brilliant rainbow to the southeast of Cotati at sunset.
We spent some time watching an American Dipper (Cinclus mexicanus) in a creek along the Oregon Coast today (5 April 2026). I had trouble deciding which photos to share, so here are a few different views. Enjoy!
A beautiful view of the tentacles of an Orange Sea Cucumber (Cucumaria miniata). You can also see a few of the cucumber's tubefeet closer to the rock. Photo from Del Norte County in California on 4 April 2026.
With thanks to Eric for a great photo!
I'll write more about this soon, but for now I'm sharing a photo of a Surfbird (Calidris virgata) eating a By-the-wind Sailor (Velella velella). Photographed on Bodega Head on 21 March 2026.
