wildlife cam
Month: April 2025
pipe wrench
tenderheart
It’s my birthday, and my heart feels tender.
tiny observations
I went nature journaling with Ojai Valley Land Conservancy and Channel Island Nature Journalers, and focused on very small things.
wonky
Very out-of-scale—the back wheel isn’t really smaller than the front one. Bikes are hard to draw!
Lithobates catesbeianus
Spotted down by Arroyo Conejo.
forageables
I’m not going to run out of greens to eat, living here.
Ailanthus altissima
We have these spindly, ungainly bare shrubs outside the window; now that they’re starting to bud, I’m pretty sure they are Ailanthus altissima, commonly known as tree of heaven.
This is not good news. Originally from China, tree of heaven is considered one of the worst invasive plant species in Europe and North America. Its evil reputation has been compounded by its role in the life cycle of the also destructive and invasive spotted lanternfly. It is alleopathic (suppressing the growth of other plants), and is very difficult to eradicate, as it readily sprouts from both seeds and root fragments.
The 1943 novel A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith uses the tree of heaven as an analogy for the ability to thrive in a difficult environment. She writes:
There’s a tree that grows in Brooklyn. Some people call it the Tree of Heaven. No matter where its seed falls, it makes a tree which struggles to reach the sky. It grows in boarded up lots and out of neglected rubbish heaps. It grows up out of cellar gratings. It is the only tree that grows out of cement. It grows lushly…survives without sun, water, and seemingly earth. It would be considered beautiful except that there are too many of it.
If that’s what we’ve got here, I can declare: not happy, Jan!
tree shadows
I hung semi-sheer curtains in the bedroom; in the afternoon sun, the tree shadows dance through them.
Cotoneaster pannosus
Growing up in Canberra, Australia, we had a row of cotoneasters along the back fence, so I immediately recognised the one in the garden here. Silverleaf Cotoneaster, originally introduced from China as an ornamental plant, features white flowers and red fruits. It has escaped cultivation and is now found in disturbed areas, particularly near residential zones, as well as in undisturbed coastal scrub, grasslands, and forests. Each plant can produce thousands of fruits annually, which are spread by birds, small mammals, water, and human activity. Its Cal-IPC (Invasive Plants Council) rating is Moderate.
The berries are toxic to domestic pets, including dogs and cats, and are not considered safe for human consumption. I’ve read that blackbirds, thrushes and waxwings enjoy the fruit, but I have not observed that for myself — must keep an eye out for birds in the bush!
hashiworks 