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Phloeodes diabolicus

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Liberty Canyon

I first learned about diabolical ironclad beetles a week or so ago, when K found one in the backyard. It’s an extremely cool critter: it is flightless and has a remarkably long adult lifespan of eight years, compared to weeks or months for most adult beetles. It also has an incredibly tough exoskeleton, able to bear pressure of 40,000 times its body weight (thus, the ‘ironclad’ moniker). I was pretty excited to see a whole bunch of them today! It was also a thrill to encounter a skunk moseying down the track in broad daylight. He raised his tail a few times but decided not to spray us (whew!).

Polypogon monspeliensis

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Polypogon monspeliensis

What is this fluffy-flowered grass on the water’s edge, we wondered. Turns out that rabbitsfoot or beardgrass is native to Europe, Asia, and northern Africa, but is now found in other parts of Africa, as well as in Australia and both North and South America. In California, it is widely distributed but typically confined to moist habitats. The flowers sure are attractive, but the grass can form dense stands and outcompete native plant species.