Gliding in

  

Small swarms of these dragonflies have been visible for several days now, but I've mostly seen them zipping around, chasing small insect prey.  Today I finally caught up with one perched, so here you go — a nice view of a Spot-winged Glider (Pantala hymenaea).  The spots can be subtle, but look for the dark brown patches along the inside edge of each hind wing.  [You can click on the image for a larger version.]

Although fewer in number, there have also been some Wandering Gliders (Pantala flavescens) in the mix.  I didn't seen one perched, but here's a Wandering Glider in flight (below).  Note the more golden coloration (rather than looking reddish brown in flight), and the lack of a dark spot along the inside edge of the hind wing:

 

 

Both species are known as long-distance dispersers, and summer is a great time of year to watch for them, especially after warm conditions.

Family outing

  

For several weeks now, a family of Western Bluebirds (Sialia mexicana) has visited our yard at the end of the day.  They perch on the gutter and fly down to catch insects among the short vegetation.

It used to be just the adults, but now they're accompanied by juveniles — see the two speckled birds on the left, above.  I'm wondering if the light is just right at that time for picking out insects in the rays of light of the setting sun?  Or maybe we're just the last stop on their route through the neighborhood?  

Either way, I love hearing their soft call notes from inside the house, and I'm glad our yard provides some early evening snacks for them!

Kelp toes

  

Tiny little kelp toes -- close-up of a Bull Kelp (Nereocystis luetkeana) holdfast attached to a rock.  Washed ashore in Bodega Bay on 27 July 2024.

A rose among the seagrass

 

I've heard of several observations in Sonoma County this summer, but this is the first Hopkins' Rose nudibranch (Ceratodoris rosacea) I've seen this year.  Thanks so much to Chris for spotting it!

This is a species that can appear in Northern California during and after El Niño events, so it's possible we're seeing a somewhat lagged response to warmer water conditions during the past year.

With a pearly luster

  

A quick shot of a fun sea squirt, Cnemidocarpa finmarkiensis.  One description says this species has a "pearly luster," which seemed right to me.  

Photograph from the South Jetty in Bodega Harbor on 24 July 2024.  Good spotting, Eric!

Not often visible

  

It was very foggy this morning, so perhaps the conditions led to this road-killed bird that I encountered today (22 July 2024).  The reddish coloration caught my eye from a distance, and I realized it was a species you don't often get to see up close, so I thought I'd share a few photos.

Note the gray face, and the reddish slightly down-turned bill.

Here's the entire bird:

 

 

You can see the large feet and very short tail.  This is a Virginia Rail (Rallus limicola), a secretive marsh bird, more often heard than seen.

Virginia Rails have striking barred black-and-white flanks:

 

 

So although this was an opportunity to learn about a local species that's not often visible but living close by in marshes and wetlands, this sighting serves as another reminder for drivers to slow down.

Silky seas

  

This photo is from a couple of days ago.  So calm!  Hardly a wave to be seen.  But I hear that the wind and waves are going to pick up quite a bit this weekend.  Might see some upwelling conditions at the coast during the next several days.  A contrast from one week to the next!

P.S.  You can tune in to the local marine weather forecast here.

Down and up

  

While helping out with a field trip in northern Sonoma County today (16 July 2024), we were fortunate to have nice views of a Steller Sea Lion (Eumetopias jubatus).  

In the photo above, the Steller Sea Lion is the larger, blonder sea lion at the top.  It's surrounded by California Sea Lions (Zalophus californianus).

At one point the sea lions started looking around while some birds were active in the area, which resulted in this fun head-on view of the Steller Sea Lion, and better views of the California Sea Lions for comparison:

 

 

P.S.  With many thanks to this summer's EVE 114 class for a great day in the field!

 

Blending in

  

Well, I need to take a better photo, but here's a quick one for the record.  This looks like Corambe pacifica, a nudibranch I haven't photographed yet.  It was on a bryozoan colony on a piece of drift kelp.

Along with Corambe steinbergae, this species is a bryozoan specialist. Its coloration and patterning looks just like the bryozoan prey.

For an introduction to these intriguing nudibranchs, see "Ay, Corambe!" on 20 September 2013 and "A story with a point" on 17 August 2014 (this one includes a link to a great video!).

A local network?

  

Net-of-Cords Kelp (Dictyoneurum californicum) 

Note the interesting reticulated or network-like patterning.  The blade was in the process of splitting into two through the center.

Dictyoneurum has a distinctive holdfast -- strap-shaped, with haptera (branching root-like structures) on both sides.

 

 

[This kelp had washed ashore, so I placed it on a rock to take a photo, but this kelp lives much lower in the intertidal zone.]

Looking out

  

 The eye of an abalone (the dark spot at the base of the tentacle).  

What do they see? 

ADDENDUM (9 July 2024): P.S.  I've received some questions about where the eye is exactly, so here's the same photo with the eye circled:

Sticky and sweet?

  

Nice lighting on these Sticky Sand-spurrey plants (Spergularia macrotheca) this afternoon...including the glandular hairs (hence the common name).

The sand-spurrey flowers were being visited by these wonderful bees.  I'm not sure which species of bee this is, but it was fun to watch them probing the nectaries near the bases of the filaments:

 

 

Summer gold

  

Close-up of Giant Kelp (Macrocystis pyrifera) in Bodega Harbor on 29 June 2024.

Cool cat

  

Okay, so I haven't been lucky enough to photograph a Bobcat recently, but I've been involved in some discussions about Bobcats (and Mountain Lions), so I was looking through some older photos tonight...and then I thought that it would be fun to post a couple of them.

The scientific name of our local Bobcat is Lynx rufus -- I'm guessing the "rufus" part of the name refers to the reddish coloration in the fur:

 

 

Both photos are from Bodega Head in 2013.