Rain thrush

 

Whew, it's been a busy couple of days, but here's a nice view of a Hermit Thrush (Catharus guttatus) during a hike near Sonoma Mountain on 14 February 2021.  It was just starting to rain.

Dashing around

There were quite a few Blue Dicks or Wild Hyacinths (Dichelostemma sp.) in bloom along the North Sonoma Mountain Trail on 7 March, and I started to wonder what might pollinate them.

 

Eventually I spotted a few insects visiting the flowers...and one of them was a nice surprise for me:

 

Although it might look like a moth at first because of its overall brown coloration, note the knobs (or swellings) at the tips of the antennae, indicative of a butterfly.

This is a fast-moving species, and I didn't get great pictures.  But here's a slightly different angle:

 

This is a Propertius Duskywing (Erynnis propertius).  [Propertius was a Latin poet, but I can't find an explanation for why this butterfly was named after him.]  Its caterpillars feed on oaks, many of which surrounded this grassland, so this was good habitat for this species.

I haven't spent much time around oaks since moving to California, so this is my first duskywing sighting.  It brought back memories of scrub oak habitat on Cape Cod...and the same feelings of frustration watching duskywings dashing around, hardly ever stopping, making it difficult to see their field marks and to photograph them.  As soon as I saw the way it flew, I knew it was a duskywing, and that it was going to be challenging.

Duskywings are territorial and this one was true to form.  It chased other butterflies that tried to nectar on nearby flowers.  Here's a shot of the duskywing after it dove at a lady (the butterfly at the lower right):

 

It will be fun to go back and try for better views.

It's easy not being green

 

How about an orchid to start your day?

Striped Coralroot (Corallorhiza striata), photographed from the North Sonoma Mountain Trail on 7 March 2015.

I only had time for a couple of quick shots, but here are two more for the record.

 

No doubt you've noticed the red and white stripes, but also note the lack of green, as this plant does not photosynthesize.  Striped Coralroot is a myco-heterotroph — it obtains its nutrients by parasitizing fungi.

 

 

This orchid flowers between February and July, so you have plenty of time to catch up with it this year.  Watch for it emerging from the leaf litter of shaded woodlands.