Created 14-Jun-23
6/7-10/2023 Late Spring Wildflower Extravaganza
The Giant Trillium have come and gone, and one can hardly tell they were here. Lupine and Douglas Iris flowers, gone. Hound’s Tongue has gone to seed; White Globe Lily follows.
A new wave of wonderful wildflowers rules the Ridge. Mariposa Lilies of many colors, many with beetles exploring their secret depths. Midnight-blue Western Larkspur, spiking up through the golden grassland. Related California Larkspur, in a rare appearance in the Oak Woodlands. Abundant Sticky Monkeyflower, still flourishing in many ecosystems. Widespread blue Ithuriel’s Spear (Triteleia laxa), still hanging on, and its rarer relative Golden Brodiaea (T. ioxiodes ssp. ioxiodes).
What a year for Golden Yarrow, all along Trail 15. Its plainer cousin, Common Yarrow, appears in the grassland. Purple Farewell-to-Spring compliments the Golden Yarrow. Blossoming Chamise punctuates the chaparral. Coyote Mint and Pitcher Sage. California Pink appears in a few stands; I don’t notice this plant every year, and it is quite rare on Portola Valley Ranch lands. Colorful lichen contributes its part to the show.
Soap plant puts forth blossoms each afternoon; we see evidence of blossoms past, and blossoms to come.
And insects come, of course. Variable Checkerspot Butterflies pose, stretching wings. Bees and beetles forage flowers.
Next to the collection of wildflowers and butterflies, here is a collection of birds and ants, mostly as a record of species seen. And more views of a rare native plant, endemic to the Bay Area, infrequently seen at Jasper Ridge.
Enjoy this year’s unfolding pageantry.
The Giant Trillium have come and gone, and one can hardly tell they were here. Lupine and Douglas Iris flowers, gone. Hound’s Tongue has gone to seed; White Globe Lily follows.
A new wave of wonderful wildflowers rules the Ridge. Mariposa Lilies of many colors, many with beetles exploring their secret depths. Midnight-blue Western Larkspur, spiking up through the golden grassland. Related California Larkspur, in a rare appearance in the Oak Woodlands. Abundant Sticky Monkeyflower, still flourishing in many ecosystems. Widespread blue Ithuriel’s Spear (Triteleia laxa), still hanging on, and its rarer relative Golden Brodiaea (T. ioxiodes ssp. ioxiodes).
What a year for Golden Yarrow, all along Trail 15. Its plainer cousin, Common Yarrow, appears in the grassland. Purple Farewell-to-Spring compliments the Golden Yarrow. Blossoming Chamise punctuates the chaparral. Coyote Mint and Pitcher Sage. California Pink appears in a few stands; I don’t notice this plant every year, and it is quite rare on Portola Valley Ranch lands. Colorful lichen contributes its part to the show.
Soap plant puts forth blossoms each afternoon; we see evidence of blossoms past, and blossoms to come.
And insects come, of course. Variable Checkerspot Butterflies pose, stretching wings. Bees and beetles forage flowers.
Next to the collection of wildflowers and butterflies, here is a collection of birds and ants, mostly as a record of species seen. And more views of a rare native plant, endemic to the Bay Area, infrequently seen at Jasper Ridge.
Enjoy this year’s unfolding pageantry.
6/7-10/2023 Late Spring Wildflower Extravaganza
Visitors 44
93 photos
Created 22-Dec-23
Modified 22-Dec-23
6/7-10/2023 Birds, Ants, and King Snake
Visitors 10
23 photos
Created 22-Dec-23
Modified 22-Dec-23
6/7/2023 Rare Plant near Escobar Gate: Arcuate Bush-Mallow (Malacothamnus arcuatus)
Visitors 14
6 photos
Created 22-Dec-23
Modified 22-Dec-23
Dan Quinn