We headed back to Riley Wilderness Park this past week again. With the weather so warm it really doesn't feel like we're having any winter at all, except for the dry, chapped hands and lips we've had. The fresh greens were withering in the exposed areas, let's hope for rain soon.
This butterfly is hardly noticeable, it flits around so quickly and it is so small that you'd easily dismiss it for a dull moth, but upon closer inspection it is exquisite. The females have brown upperwings while the males have a shimmery blue. Here are some better pictures at the UCI site:
http://nathistoc.bio.uci.edu/lepidopt/lycaenid/acmon1.htm
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| Acmon Blue |
Within the dry creek bed there are fresh shoots of mulefat. I have never seen this particular creek fill with water.
Along the bottom of the creek bed is a very fine white sand. Is it from the beach? Did the creek deposit it here from further up its trail? Was it brought in by man? Along its edges are interesting tracks I'm unable to identify without my field guide.
These are either dog or coyote tracks. Nails indicate a dog since cats will retracts their nails. Is it possible to tell between a coyote and a dog?
Here are some more pieces of potentially the same animal we found last time.
Here is the vertebrae and ribcage we found last time. We thought it was a coyote, but if the teeth go with it, those don't appear to be coyote teeth.
The kids found this millipede
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| miner's lettuce |
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| lichen |
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| Our Starry Night Tree |
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| Why does the grass have red tips? |
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| Turkey Tails |
Some nature journals
