On and on

  

Well, these photos don't really do them justice, but there were some interesting clouds overhead as I was leaving work tonight (31 January 2023).  Long, tight, parallel strands running across the sky.  (That's the moon in the corner.)

 

 

Pretty cool!  (Literally, perhaps?)

Frosty funnels

  

Frost is rare on Bodega Head, and it feels even more so now than when I first started working here 18 years ago.

But the air temperature reached 32.6°F (0.3°C) this morning (31 January 2023) and there were pockets of frost in low-lying areas.

Such a long tail

  

Quick shot of a River Otter (Lontra canadensis) from 9 January 2023.  I especially like how you can see the length of the tail relative to the body.

Through the clouds

  

Bands of light at the horizon, 27 January 2023

Opening up

  

Footsteps-of-spring (Sanicula arctopoides) opening up on 25 January 2023.

Hanging out with Jupiter

 

 

Hanging out with Jupiter tonight.

 

 

 

Photographed from Cotati on 25 January 2023.

Crescent moon, Venus, and Saturn

 

 

Crescent moon, Venus, and Saturn at sunset on 23 January 2023.  [Venus is down and to the right of the moon, and Saturn is down and to the right of, but fairly close to, Venus.  Saturn is likely too faint to see in this photo, but see below for orientation.]

Sheared off

 

 

It's been a couple of weeks since the significant wave event during the early January storms, but I've been working on a small side project to document some of the storm impacts on Bodega Head.  

 

At the offshore buoy maximum recorded swell heights reached ~31 feet during the early morning of 5 January 2023.  Impressively, there were sustained swell heights of over 25 feet for at least 5 hours that day (coincident with a high tide), and swells over 20 feet continued for at least 24 hours.  These powerful waves sheared off many pieces of rock from the bluffs on Bodega Head.  Here's one example from a site that is ~30-40 feet above sea level.  The smoother, somewhat orange-colored rock is the new rock surface exposed after the storms.

Mid-morning flight

 

 

 

A couple of views of a Northern Harrier from 16 January 2023.

 

 

 

One more fish?

  

Belted Kingfisher (Megaceryle alcyon) in Bodega Harbor at sunset, 19 January 2023

Along the shoreline

  

There are still some Red Phalaropes around in Bodega Harbor, so here's another photo before they head back out to sea.

Towards shore

  

A wave shot from 12 January 2023.

Storm skimmer

  

I've been hearing reports of a Black Skimmer (Rynchops niger) in Bodega Harbor during the last few days, so with a break in the weather today I went to take a quick look around at Doran Beach.

After a little searching I spotted the skimmer near the mouth of Cheney Creek.  Although a bit distant, here are a few zoomed-in photos for the record.

Another flight shot:

 

 

And two while sitting:

 

 

 

 

 

 

And one more, showing the feather patterning in the wings and tail:

 

 

 

Black Skimmers are rare in Sonoma County, sometimes showing up after the breeding season.  They're generally found farther south during the winter (e.g., along the coast in southern California and Baja California, Mexico).  This bird's presence in Bodega Harbor at this time of year is probably related to recent storms.

8.5 inches so far

  

Wow, 8.5 inches of rain in Bodega Bay during the past 10 days, and the rain just keeps coming.

Above, an Osprey (Pandion haliaetus) with a surfperch (possibly a Redtail Surfperch, Amphistichus rhodoterus) during morning showers. 

Below, a Red Phalarope (Phalaropus fulicarius) in Bodega Harbor in the afternoon rain:

 

 

 

 

The phalarope and the squall

  

The recent storms have blown some Red Phalaropes (Phalaropus fulicarius) close to shore.  I noticed a least a handful along the Bodega Harbor shoreline today (10 January 2023).

Here's another shot from the outer coast.  I was trying to photograph the waves and the sky, but it looks like there are two phalaropes in the photo, flying across the wave splash.  [You can click on the image for a sharper version.]

 

 

 

ADDENDUM (11 January 2023): Just for fun, I followed up on Peter's comment re: black-and-white photography and converted the phalarope image above to black and white:

 

Wind and waves

  

Another photo of the stormy conditions on 7 January 2023.  

[You can click on the image for a larger version.]

Rolling by

Early this morning we were woken up several times by loud rolling thunder.  When I got up to try to record it, I also noticed flashes of lightning off to the southeast.

First, here's a very quick video clip of the lightning: 

 

And if you'd like to hear the associated thunder, here's a short audio clip.  (The thunder might be easier to hear with headphones.)

nhbh · thunder 2023.01.08

[Note: If you're reading this by e-mail and can't see the video or audio players, click on the title of the post to go directly to the NHBH website to access the clips.]

Storm bird

 

 

I was doing some work on the coast today when some movement out my window caught my eye.  It was quite stormy and the light was dim, but I thought I could see a dark-winged bird with white flashes in the wings.  I haven't seen a jaeger so close to shore off Bodega Head, but sure enough, a jaeger was struggling in the wind and landed on the bluff!

Here's another quick shot for the record -- my first Pomarine Jaeger (Stercorarius pomarinus) on shore in Bodega Bay:

 

 

In this area jaegers are mostly found pretty far offshore, but with recent storm conditions, I can see why this one was sheltering on land:

 

 

Waves were in the 18-20 foot range this afternoon with winds at 25 mph with gusts to 40 mph.

 

Break in the storm

 

 

There were 20-30 foot swells at the coast today.  It's always hard to judge scale when looking at wave photos.  Can you find the two gulls in the photo above?  [You can click on the image for a larger version.]

 

And here's a different view:

 

 

 

 

Those are large waves!  While documenting some storm impacts, I came across a group of Black Oystercatchers (Haematopus bachmani) huddled together on the upper beach.  It looked like they were just trying to get some rest:

 

 

 

Although there's more rain on the way, when I returned to Cotati there was a break in the clouds and a rainbow spreading across the sky to the east:

 

 

 

Take care during these stormy conditions.  💗

Local iguana?

  

Looks a bit like a marine iguana, doesn't it?  

Eric snapped a few photos of this interesting sculpin in the low intertidal zone last month.  Here's a view of most of the fish (below).  I love the banding and mottled patterns in shades of gray and green!

 

 

Thanks, Eric, for sharing such great images!

 

P.S.  We're wondering if this is a Mosshead Sculpin (Clinocottus globiceps)?

Afternoon rainbow and sunset spindrift

  

It was overcast and raining for most the day (2 January 2023) and then around sunset the sky became interesting, with a bright rainbow to the east and dramatic lighting on the waves to the west.  

Although faint, here's a photo of the rainbow with the moon:

 

 

And here are two wave photos, with sunset lighting up the spindrift:

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sounds like we'll be seeing quite a bit of rain this week.

For the count

  

Whew, I spent the day helping with the Western Sonoma County Christmas Bird Count today, but here's a quick shot of an American Pipit (Anthus rubescens).