Hoping for rain

Last night we returned from an out-of-state meeting to smoke-filled skies.  Tonight (12 November 2018) the moon was glowing orange on the western horizon:

 

I'm so sorry for everyone affected by the fires.  Here's hoping for some rain to help the firefighters.

 

Ocean blues

 

A photo from Big Sur, taken in April 2009.

 

A hint

 

A hint of green at sunset tonight (7 November 2018).

Check the boxes

Can you find a common theme shared by these three photo mosaics?

Here's the first one:

 

Any ideas yet?  

Here's the second one: 

 

Need a hint?  Consider the first letter for each organism, starting in the upper left corner and reading like a book.

The third mosaic:

 

I know this is tricky.  And the theme is?

For the first mosaic: Veliger, Otter, Tern, Echinoderm

For the second mosaic: Vulture, Octopus, Trifolium, Eagle

For the third mosaic: Vermetid, Owl, Toad, Egregia 

Thanks so much for playing.  Don't miss your chance to use your voice in the elections on Tuesday!

Golden light

 

American Pipit (Anthus rubescens) in the golden light of fall.  Photographed on 2 November 2018.

P.S.  The pipit was walking among the seaweeds in the wrack line.  The whitish algae to the right of the pipit is a piece of coralline algae that's been bleached by the sun (it's normally pink).

Trio at twilight

While walking Salmon Creek Beach at the end of the day today (3 November 2018), Eric and I noticed three Pacific Golden-Plovers (Pluvialis fulva) feeding on the upper beach.  The light was fading and they were a bit distant, but here are a few shots for the record. 

Views of single birds:

 

 

 

Two together:

 

And all three:

 

A nice way to end the day!

P.S.  For more information about golden-plovers, you can review some earlier posts, e.g., "Going for gold" on 20 October 2012 and  "Golden-plover, Part 2" on 23 October 2016.

Waiting

This week I felt lucky to catch another glimpse of a local River Otter (Lontra canadensis) family.  This time they were fishing along the rocky shore.  While the mother was swimming and diving offshore, two young otters waited expectantly for her return.

First, the mom, diving below the surface:

 

And the two little ones, looking out to sea, wondering where she is and what she'll bring back:

 

(They didn't have to wait too long for dinner — mom was successful and returned with a very nice fish!)