I saw a California King Snake the other day;  it was the first one that I’ve seen around here for quite some time.  Unfortunately it was flat as a pancake:  a roadkill specimen!  So, sparing you that image, this is what he would have looked like.  Thanks to californiaherps.com for this photo of a really beautiful serpent.

Hummingbird approaching Indian Tobacco flower

  The Indian Tobacco plant  ( Nicotiana glauca ) is a member of the potato family.  It grows profusely here along the banks of Cache Creek in the central valley of California.  It is believed to have been used for smoking by the Native Americans  in this area.  Here is a hummingbird ( I think it is an Anna’s ) about to imbibe the nectar of the wild tobacco flower.

A young Gray Fox on the hunt

This little Gray Fox appeared to be hunting  Ground Squirrels, which  are plentiful in this area.  The squirrels were well aware of him and making a lot of warning noises.  The fox, frustrated, was pretty small and youngish;  it could have been his first time out on his own.  I wished him good fortune and a successful hunt.

sandpipers in the wind

It was a cool and breezy morning, and I was feeling some empathy toward these sandpipers, all bundled up against the wind.   I watched them for a while, but then something spooked them and they were off.

sandpipers taking flight

After a while I approach a lone Cottonwood.  Sitting  down in the relief of it’s shade, I pull out my canteen.  Good!  The water is still cool.  As I sit there I can hear the Cottonwood leaves rustling in the wind:  it is a good sound.  As I rest here in the Dunnigan Hills I am almost alone, but not quite.  There is a Yellow-billed Magpie perched on a branch nearby, nervously sharing the shelter on this hot summer day.

With curiosity I was watching this Scrub Jay collecting various sticks and other odd stuff.  I suppose, of course, that it was building a nest; a practical one no doubt, not the ostentatious mansions constructed by the Bowerbird.  I wouldn’t have believed it if I hadn’t seen a documentary film of the Bowerbird’s artistry.  This incredible construction had a huge thatched roof supported by several pillars. Out in front was a large lawn of green moss formed into a pleasing rectangle.  Around the yard were meticulously arranged  piles of brightly colored objects, such as flowers, berries, rocks, and beetle wings. They were very creative; each bird building a unique little abode apparently trying to outdo one another.

Breaking formation.

It’s kind of a marshy area, however there is not a lot of standing water about. Then I come across a fairly large pond, and begin watching a group of herons. Off to the north I notice a flock of birds approaching low on the horizon. They are White Pelicans formed up in a straight line moving diagonally across the sky. They move closer, and now their formation is breaking up. It looks as though they want to set down on this body of water. Silently and smoothly they glide in. Then suddenly, changing plans, they turn moving off to the west. I admire their graceful flight, take a few photos, and then they are gone.