View from above and below

  

As part of my job, I sometimes receive requests from researchers to check on the status of local species, e.g., whether a plant is flowering now or going to seed.  Recently there was an inquiry about an interesting parasitic plant, California Orobanche (Aphyllon californicum).

I couldn't find any at first, but I didn't give up, and in the end I found a few orobanche in flower.  

From above (first photo) the plant is intriguing, but it gets even more interesting if you lie down for a side view:

 

 

And when you look even closer, there are lots (lots!) of glandular hairs  all over the petals.  Look for the tiny hairs with golden tips:

 

 

 

I read that the glandular hairs might be protective against herbivores or pathogens, but it sounds like there are other possible functions, too. 

More to come

  

Blue Coast Gilia (Gilia capitata subsp. chamissonis), with some open flowers and others just starting to emerge (look for the tiny purple petal tips below the open flowers).  Photographed on 21 May 2025.

Spring on the rocks

  

Quick shot of one of my favorite spring wildflowers on Bodega Head -- Coast Rockcress (Arabis blepharophylla).  Photographed on 11 March 2025.

Lavender by the bay

 

 

Nice patch of Sea Lavender (Limonium californicum) in bloom at Point Reyes today (8 August 2024).

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:

 

 

When looking down is looking up

  

Close-up of Calochortus tolmiei, photographed along the northern Sonoma County coast on 26 May 2024.  This beautiful wildflower is also called Pussy Ears, Hairy Star Tulip, or Tolmie's Star Tulip.

These flowers are low to the ground, but the closer you get, the more details you see, the more inspiring they are!

Finding a way

  

 Silver Bee (Habropoda miserabilis) on Seaside Fiddleneck (Amsinckia spectabilis).

 

P.S.  Spectacular Game 7 win for the black-and-gold Bruins!  Yeah, B's! 

Slender spur

  

Blue Toadflax (Nuttallanthus texanus) in the Bodega Dunes on 19 April 2024.

P.S.  The "spur" is the long slender part of the flower (to the left of the petals) that's curving downward.

Light-eyed?

  

I was checking on some wildflowers in the dunes earlier this week and was noticing it seems to be a good year for many of the annuals, including Dark-eyed Gilia (Gilia millefoliata). 

I had seen hundreds of Dark-eyed Gilias, all with typical purplish petals, when I came across one with all white flower parts:

 

 

I looked around and found eight more plants with white flowers in the same area, but no other white-petaled Gilia flowers elsewhere.  

We've seen this phenomenon of white variants in other species, but I hadn't noticed it in Dark-eyed Gilia before, so I thought it was worth documenting.

The Jepson Manual says that Gilia millefoliata petals can be purple or "colorless," so perhaps this variant appears occasionally and we just hadn't seen it in the Bodega Dunes yet.

P.S.  Should we call the variant Light-eyed Gilia?  ;)
 

Turning the corner

  

A Coast Larkspur (Delphinium decorum) to help usher in spring!

The Vernal Equinox occurs on 19 March 2024 at 8:06 p.m. PDT.

May luck be your friend

  

A couple of photos to help celebrate St. Patrick's Day!  

Above, a Sierran Treefrog (Pseudacris sierra) framed by Douglas Iris (Iris douglasiana) leaves.  

Below, Coast Rockcress (Arabis blepharophylla) and clover (Trifolium sp.) leaves:

 

 
With many thanks to Eric for the great photos!

First steps?

  

Ah ha!  It was tucked low among the grasses, but I spotted my first Footsteps-of-spring (Sanicula arctopoides) starting to flower on 16 January 2024.    

Bee careful

 

 

Well, this is a lesson in being careful and taking the time to look closely.  Recently I have been noticing these small bees zipping around visiting Seaside Daisies.  As you can see, they stand out because of the large loads of bright yellow pollen on their hind legs.  

Years ago I observed some bees with "pollen-covered chaps" (Melissodes pallidisignata, see the post from 31 July 2013) and I had been assuming the bees I've been seeing recently were that species.  However, when downloading my photos today I realized this looked like a different species.

Here's another view:

 

 

I'm not that experienced with identifying bees, but I'm wondering if this is Anthophora urbana?  If anyone out there can assist with the identification, I'd appreciate any help.

 

Interestingly, if it is Anthophora urbana, it is abundant on Bodega Head this year and I'm not sure if I've just missed it in the past (didn't look closely enough) or if it's more common this year than in years past?

Purple and blue

 

 

Close-up of a Blue Coast Gilia (Gilia capitata subsp. chamissonis) flower photographed on 29 May 2023.

Purple petals and pale blue anthers make for a nice combination:

 

 

 

Cheery

  

Peter asked if some of the paler flowers in the last photo were Tidy Tips (Layia platyglossa) with almost no yellow.  Well, the more distant view and the camera didn't really pick up the color pattern, so here's a closer view showing the petals with yellow bases and fun white tips.

Cheery little flowers, aren't they?  :)

Coastal colors

  

Spring wildflowers in northern Sonoma County, 20 May 2023.

May flowers

 

Hesperomecon linearis photographed in the Bodega Dunes on 13 May 2023.  Many thanks to Eric for the great photo!

Winter white

  

When we first moved here ~19 years ago, there was a brief but beautiful snowfall.  At the time we didn't know the area very well yet, but we drove around and ended up on Joy Road where there was snow on the redwoods.  I've always wanted to see it again, so this morning I drove Joy Road on my way to work.  There wasn't a lot of snow, but there was a little here and there.  (I'm not totally sure whether it was snow or graupel, but the visual effect was similar.)  Will there be more tomorrow?

A little further down the road, I noticed a Western Trillium (Trillium ovatum) in flower.  A different kind of white!

 

 

Opening up

  

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

Going up

   

A nice orchid from a coastal grassland in Mendocino County on 11 September 2022.  I think this one is Hooded Ladies' Tresses (Spiranthes romanzoffiana).  You can also see this species along the Pomo Canyon Trail or the Kortum Trail.