First-hand observation is probably the best way of learning, and in learning some of the local bird, butterflies and plant species, I have been fortunate to visit many outlying places in Santa Barbara county since 2002. For plants, some of my favories areas are Drum Canyon, Jalama Beach road, Burton Mesa, Refugio Road/West Camino Cielo, East Camino Cielo, Alisal Road etc, but the most interesting place for number of species, so far, has been Figueroa Mountain. However, it took a while for my nerves to get used to driving there, to where I could visit Figueroa Mountain many times since about October last year. On my last visit on Sunday, I considered that this is probably enough for a while … it is getting too dry, and the fear of fires is great, especially of being trapped up amongst the many trees in the area. And now, just a few days later, a fire has started on West Camino Cielo - a favorite place, via Refugio Road, because of low traffic volume and interesting species. A greenbark ceanothus plant photographed there this March and probably burned down by now, is to be used in a California Coastal Commission book on coastal plants.

(Sticky False Gilia - Figueroa Mountain, June 16, 2008)

A number of new species were learned this spring on Figueroa Mountain. The most tricky id (but resolved after a number of days of perseverance) was sticky false gilia, although I had photographed that species (in a different hue) on East Camino Cielo on a trip with Marc and Julie Kummel. I found the plant, the last of a few drying species with a number of typical fire followers just over the top of Ranger Peak, facing south where the soil heats up a great deal in summer. When photographing these low-growing plants I had to pull out a deflated mattress to lean on while taking the photos because the ground was very hot. Growing in this area were two Mentzelias (micrantha and gracilenta), yellow-throated phacelia, another false gilia (I think “blue”, but will have to wait for next year), wild buckwheat (Eriogonum luteolum), and another lifer, diamond fairyfan (Clarkia rhomboidea) a better photo of which will also have to wait for next June. I found a third mentzelia, giant blazing star (Mentzelia laevicaulis) on Sunset Valley Road, but not in a good place to take a decent photo.

(Dwarf Mistletoe - Figueroa Mountain, June 29, 2008)

(Thicket Hairstreak habitat - Figueroa Mountain, June 29, 2008)

(California Buckwheat taken last year. The fall red color shows the extent of the Buckwheat more clearly - Figueroa Mountain, Oct 06, 2007)

However, the main purpose of the last Figueroa visit was to see if I could observe a thicket hairstreak near its host plant, dwarf mistletoe. I had found the thicket hairstreak feeding on California buckwheat near the parking area at the 11 mile marker. After photographing and identifying the butterfly, I read that the host plant is dwarf mistletoe. From previous visits, I knew that I had seen a great deal of mistletoe on a gray pine further up the road from where I found the thicket hairstreak (near a juniper bush). This is only the second observation of this species in Santa Barbara County this year, and the observation will be included in the 2008 Season Summary for Zone 3, The Southwest, by Ken Davenport. The thicket hairstreak has one flight from May to August, and is normally found in mountainous regions because of its host plant. From “Butterflies and Moths of North America”, the following description: “Caterpillar hosts: Dwarf mistletoes (Arceuthobium species), in the Loranthaceae family, which grow on juniper, pine, and fir trees. Adult food: Flower nectar. Habitat: Pinyon-juniper forest, mixed woodland, coniferous forest”.

(Serpentine Sunflower - confused bumblebee, expecting the flower to be facing the sun? - Figueroa Mountain, June 29, 2008)

(Serpentine Sunflower - native bee in flower shadow, and egg deposited on leaf? - Figueroa Mountain, June 29, 2008)

(Serpentine Sunflower - moth also seen on gum plant - Figueroa Mountain, June 29, 2008)

I stopped off at another favorite area that appears to be near a seep, because there are a number of plants still flowering, the most abundant of which is serpentine sunflower (Helianthus bolanderi). Most surprisingly, the flowers were facing away from the sun. Many insects were on the flowers, including a bumblebee that seemed to be lost on the wrong side of the flower and a moth that had been photographed lower down the mountain on an earlier flowering gum plant. Possibly the moth is attracted to yellow flowers in the sunflower family (asteraceae). I need to get an id. The serpentine sunflower was growing with a number of plants listed as to be expected with the plant, namely: narrow leaf milkweed, seep monkeyflower, California buttercup, blue-eyed grass, etc. The plant community of the sunflower is seep wetland on volcanic soils - which fits, because of the serpentine in the area in which it was growing. Across the road were many Toyon with fresh flowers visited by a large numbers of bees, but not quite in volume (quantity and sound) as the coffeeberry at another seep.

(Big Cone Douglas Fir - young cones seen on Catway Road - Figueroa Mountain, June 29, 2008)

On Catway road, I parked my car at the “four-oaks” parking area, and walked a little way along that road for the first time - photos are included in the slideshow. Many Lorquin’s Admirals were seen, but usually too far away for a photo. Also, wherever the large California milkweed was seen at various places on Figueroa Mountain, insects were abundant - especially some large bumblebees, but not as large as those once seen near false lupine.

Until the next rainy season, I will probably stick to areas closer to home. As packing continues in the case of the worst scenario, I wish all those closer to the fire the very best; hopefully there are no damaged structures.

Slideshow - After clicking on the link below, click on the “i” in the middle of the screen to see picture titles of the photos in the slideshow.

• Summer Flowers, Insects

The cooperation between insects and flowers seems to hit a peak in May and June, when plants such as Buckwheat, Milkweed and Coffeeberry bloom. These plants appear to be the most popular with butterflies and bees, although I have seen Holly-leaf Cherry covered with insects in sunnier places elsewhere.

(Variable Checkerspot - Happy Canyon Road, May 14, 2008)

The most common butterfly, Variable Checkerspot, springs into action a little earlier than May. Checkerspots were seen sipping nectar from a number of different flowers, unlike other butterflies that seem to be more choosy. On one florabundant section of Happy Canyon Road, checkerspots were seen in the hundreds in early May. On a cooler day at the end of May, I returned to shoot butterflies - but they were not immediately seen in the overcast weather. However, as I looked at different flowers, the checkerspots were seen perching silently on the branches of all kinds of plants, waiting for the sun to come out. They were very lethargic, and could be approached to within a reasonable distance.

(Lethargic Variable Checkerspot - Happy Canyon Road, May 25, 2008)

Later, in June, when the milkweed started to flower, butterflies could almost certainly be found on California Milkweed. I saw Monarch caterpillars (picture in slideshow) on a few of them.

(California Hairstreak on Milkweed - Figueroa Mountain, June 15, 2008)

(Bumble Bee on Milkweed - Figueroa Mountain, June 15, 2008)

California Buckwheat plants are a virtual hive of activity with visiting bees, butterflies and other bugs. On Figueroa Mountain and Happy Canyon Road, buckwheat blooms in a number of places and I photographed a few new species to add to my collection, such as Gold Hunter’s Hairstreak and Thicket Hairstreak.

(Gold Hunter’s Hairstreak on Buckwheat - Figueroa Mountain, May 26, 2008)

(Thicket Hairstreak on Buckwheat - Figueroa Mountain, June 08, 2008)

(Honeybee on Buckwheat - Figueroa Mountain, June 08, 2008)

I stopped off at a seep on the front side of Figueroa Mountain, where Seep Monkeyflower was blooming, and found a very large Coffeeberry humming with activity. I tried to capture the sound of this activity on video, which was then uploaded to Flickr where it can be seen/heard at the second link. On a bee course in Carmel Valley, it was learned that Coffeeberry is a very attractive plants to insects. (There is a lot of Buckwheat and Coffeeberry on More Mesa, with the attendant insects in summer - important in these days of bee population crashes.)

Slideshow - After clicking on the link below, click on the “i” in the middle of the screen to see picture titles of the photos in the slideshow. (The last three photos are from the end of last year.)

• Pollinators - Bugs, Bees, Butterflies

Video - Click on link below for a video of activity around a Coffeeberry shrub/tree.

• Coffeeberry Bees

Another year has passed, and it was a privilege to put together the third newsletter for the Cheadle Center for Biodiversity and Ecological Restoration. Once again I was impressed by what was accomplished by CCBER since the last newsletter. The activities of CCBER were reviewed by the Oversight Committee in December 2007, and in a report it was stated that “CCBER is a jewel of an institution on the UCSB campus, dedicated to education, research, and outreach related to the region’s biological diversity and restoration.” One of the recommendations was to set up a “Friends of CCBER” group.

As a once-a-year volunteer activity, the newsletter is a very enjoyable and manageable (and educational) task amidst other activities. The newsletter can be seen here:

• The Nature Press

One of the more interesting articles was that about “Invaders, Restoration and Resistance—CCBER and Beyond” by Carla D’Antonio. The overgrowth of fennel, radish, harding grass, etc on More Mesa has frequently filled me with a sense of despair about how much has been damaged. It is always nice to visit other areas where there are fewer invaders. However, I was very disappointed on Sunday to see harding grass on Figueroa Mountain for the first time. This is a very dangerous plant, and once it becomes established, spreads relentlessly. What to do? There are only a dozen plants in this area now, and removal would be manageable and successful. I would take a pick axe there if it were permitted, but it is probably not. In May, I saw star thistle in many places, and pulled a few when I stopped to take photos - but on the last trip last Sunday, the thistle seems to have dried up and disappeared - unfortunately leaving seeds all over the place to grow again next spring.

(Harding Grass - Figueroa Mountain, Jun 08, 2008)

In March and April, vast expanses of blue lupine, orange poppies and pink shooting stars cover the hills and valleys. In May, rocky areas are covered by patches of orange monkeyflower. Purple clarkia appear in large groups on many banks along roadsides. A number of Clarkia species are called “farewell-to-spring”, to the point of confusion, because they appear at the end of spring. Four species of Clarkia were seen on Figueroa Mountain, and can be seen in the slideshow. Other flowers blooming en masse in May, are the more subtle colors of purple sage, white sage, deerweed, chamise, golden stars and golden yarrow. Butterflies are also more numerous in May.

(Purple Sage - Figueroa Mountain, May 18, 2008)

Dispersed among many mass flower communities, are an assortment of other interesting flowers that do not flower until May. I came across a number of new-to-me species this year, one of which was found by Callie on her return trip from Manzana Creek - dwarf brodiae at a place she calls the “meadow”. It immediately appeared to be a brodiae, and I found another photo of the Figueroa species in Calphotos for a full identification.

(Dwarf Brodiae - Figueroa Mountain, May 14, 2008)

Another newly observed species was purple navarettia, seen in a number of different places. It is a tiny plant that can be easily overlooked. It was identified using the Flickr group “Guide to California Wildflowers”.

(Purple Navarettia - Figueroa Mountain, May 14, 2008)

Indian breadroot was seen at a higher elevation, a little further from the “meadow” area. Recognizing it as a member of the pea family, I opened the Jepson Manual to the Fabaceae section and read the first entries to start keying the plant, and my brain froze at the terminology. So I leafed through all the Fabaceae diagrams looking at the leaves, which were quite distinctive, and found the plant. Calphotos photos helped confirm the id.

(Indian Breadroot - Figueroa Mountain, May 26, 2008)

Another new, very beautiful plant, Deer Brush, was flowering en masse at the top of Ranger peak. It was identified with the help of the plant list provided on the SBBG Figueroa Mountain trip, and was confirmed by Calphotos.

(Deer Brush - Figueroa Mountain, May 26, 2008)

Slideshow - After clicking on the link below, click on the “i” in the middle of the screen to see picture titles. It may be a good idea to click the “Fast” button, because there are many photos.

• Figueroa Mountain, Happy Canyon Road, late spring

After a fire, seeds of various plants are stimulated to grow because of richer soil enhanced by ash and/or rain water that leaches from burned wood. Other seeds are stimulated to grow in areas that have been cleared of brush allowing access to more direct sunlight. Whatever the reason, or a combination of all of the above, some plants are known as fire followers.

On a trip out along Manzana Creek, the edges of the Zaca fire were reached after about a mile. Many of the standard fire followers were seen, of which the most interesting were:

• Twining Snapdragon - Antirrhinum kelloggii
• Popcorn Flower - Cryptantha intermedia
• Whispering Bells - Emmenanthe penduliflora
• California Chicory - Rafinesquia californica
• Yellow-throated Phacelia - Phacelia brachyloba
• Caterpillar Phacelia - Phacelia cicutaria
• Sticky Phacelia - Phacelia viscida
• Chaparral Blazing Star, San Luis Stick Leaf - Mentzelia micrantha
• Common Eucrypta - Eucrypta chrysanthemifolia

(Twining Snapdragon - Manzana Creek, May 11, 2008)

(…read more…)