An Aspiring Naturalist Learns His Place
One of the things that stood out to me on my recent visit to Ataku Island was how heavily some of the false azalea (Menziesia ferruginea) was browsed. The first stop we made after leaving the beach was a small clearing at the top of a knoll. It was not entirely evident to me why … Read more
Connor was investigating this old scat that he found on a log, or I probably wouldn’t have noticed it. Although the age seems to have deteriorated the form significantly, making it a bit more difficult to tell what sort of animal might have left it, there are really not too many options for what it … Read more
While walking the Forest and Muskeg trail yesterday, I stopped to take the pictures I’m using on this post. There are two things in particular that catch my eye, one that I noticed at the time (and prompted me to take the pictures in the first place). The second I didn’t notice until I got … Read more
Original post where the mystery is offered. If you’ve not read it already, check it out and then come back here. Given the uniformity of the trail, my best guess at this time is a gastropod of some sort. Perhaps the periwinkles or limpets that are common at this upper level of the beach. I … Read more
I almost passed by without noticing the odd streak of sand across a face of the rock embedded in the beach. I was in a broad transition zone between the sandy lower beach and loose cobbles at the base of a bedrock cliff at the highest intertidal zone. It would have been easy enough to … Read more
Earlier this year I posted about yellow jacket scrape marks on my deck. The activity has continued throughout the summer and I finally got around to trying to capture (digitally) one of the workers. I posted a photo on bugguide and got the Common Aerial Yellow Jacket (Dolichovespula arenaria) back as the id. I still … Read more