Archive for August, 2009

2009 Audubon California Magpie Survey

Yellow-billed Magpie

Yellow-billed magpies have been my favorite bird since my youth.  When I was young, my good friend Ranse and I would hop on our bikes and ride out past the edge of town to go fishing and I was always fascinated with the many magpies we would pass along the way. 

The Yellow-billed Magpie which is often the subject of my painting, lives in California’s Central Valley and along the coast ranges; and more to the point  the largest population is here in Yolo County.   

By clicking on the top image, you can access the 2009 Yellow-Billed Magpie survey results and if you are interested you can also access information to help with future studies of this beautiful and unusual bird.

As kids we loved to find milkweed with monarch caterpillars.

We would, of course, imprison them in an old peanut butter jar (with some milkweed) and wait for the magic transformation.

I took this photo in the vegetable garden yesterday, and was having a difficult time with identification. It’s a great looking spider; I think it is the western spotted orb weaver.

We took a little drive this morning in the country just north of town, and noticed that the air was very smoky.

In this photo that I took of an oxbow lake (which is a remnant of the Sacramento River) you can see the discoloration of the sky.

CalFire reports that there are four wildfires in Shasta and Plumas counties. I guess that the smoke is being carried down here on the north wind.