Ugh. Another one down. I don’t know why there’s a sudden spate of collision deaths, but we need to do something about it right away.
spinus psaltria
Tag: nature journaling
food-chsia!
It’s fun when your curiosity leads you to a new food growing in your yard. I saw these little purple fruit and wondered if they were edible — and yes, they are!
Fuchsia fruit can be substituted for berries in any recipe (teas, sauces, ice creams, jelly, tarts, pies, cheesecakes, pavlovas …) The biggest fruit-producing fuchsias are the single petal varieties (which is what we have.) But we’d need a lot more plants before we could count them as an actual food source. But still, I’m delighted with this new knowledge.
setophaga coronata
We’re enjoying these cheery winter garden visitors.
forficulidae
The tiny but mighty earwig packs quite a pinch. Don’t let one crawl up the leg of your pants.
tyrannous vociferans
When I pulled into the Park yesterday, I saw a new-to-me flycatcher snaring insects on the wing. The flight pattern drew my attention; if the kingbird hadn’t been actively hunting I might not have noticed it. So pretty, with its lemon yellow underbelly and white chin!
neoconocephalus
I never really knew what a katydid was (as opposed to a grasshopper) until the other night. An easy-to-spot difference is the length of the antennae. Also, katydids are primarily nocturnal and grasshoppers are diurnal.
Insects in the family Tettigoniidae are commonly called katydids (especially in North America). More than 8,000 species are known. Many species exhibit mimicry and camouflage, commonly with shapes and colours similar to leaves.
The specimen we sketched is in the Neoconocephalus genus. Gotta love that cone head!
passerella iliaca
corvid comparison
vaccinium corymbosum
This variety of blueberry is meant to grow in our climate, but ours just … don’t, really.
Toxostoma redivivum
I don’t often see a California thrasher around here, so I’m always happy when I do. One has been hanging about the bird bath and bushes close to the house the past few days. Sweet!
hashiworks 