This year, as in 2002, I am taking my vacation in small chunks, usually a day at a time, visiting some of the magnificent areas in Santa Barbara county. In 2007 and 2006, I took short trips to San Francisco, camping along the way at some wonderful places - plus one or two day trips. The remaining years in-between were generally vacation-free, or spent on home repair.

(Anacapa chain of islands - March 31, 2008)

On Saturday, I went on the SBBG Sedgwick trip, and on Monday, the trip to Anacapa Island. The weather on Monday was perfect, a clear bright day to view the many colorful flowers blooming in large numbers on Anacapa Island. The breeding gulls and pelicans dotted the land, skies and waters of Anacapa. The series of three islets that make up Anacapa Island, just forty-five minutes from Ventura, are a different world of clean crisp colors and fresh air. Except for the sounds of birds and the fog horn, it is devoid of the noise and smog of nearby southern California.

(Pigeon Guillemot - March 31, 2008)

I did not bring my bird lens (used my 28-300mm) because I have found it too bulky for boat trips; thus the first photos of the Pigeon Guillemots are not very good; the birds were in the distance in deep shade. However, I had never seen them before and wanted to take a photo. Besides the gulls and pelicans, other bird captures were of a very ragged White-crowned Sparrow and a singing Bewick’s Wren.

(White-crowned Sparrow - March 31, 2008)

(Bewick’s Wren - March 31, 2008)

(Brown Pelican in a field of cheese weed - March 31, 2008)

The giant coreopsis was the most visibly outstanding feature of the island; I think the flowers are just at their peak. However, interspersed among the giants were many blooms of some of the other 200 species of wildflowers on the island. The next most numerous flower appeared to be wild hyacinth/blue dicks; almost all of them seemed to have more flowers per head than the mainland species.

(Giant Coreopsis - March 31, 2008)

(Wild Hyacinth - March 31, 2008)

(Sand Spurrey - March 31, 2008)

However, Anacapa Island has a large number of invasive plants - primarily ice plant. These imports from the drier regions of southern Africa, tend to accumulate salt in their fleshy leaves, and when they die the soil underneath the plant is more saline than normal. This means that only salt-tolerant species are able to grow in those areas - native plants such as frankenia, California saltbush, quailbush/big saltbush, sea blite and the pervasive invasive Australian atriplex.

(Sea Blite - March 31, 2008)

In 2002 before the black rats were removed from the island, some of the impact of their huge appetites was apparent in their feasting on the wild cucumbers - which were seen lying open and denuded. I remember the lunchtime on the spring 2002 trip, when we were lucky to be able to listen to a brief talk about the proposed plan before it was implemented. This year, some years after the rat removal, the wild cucumbers are intact with the majority of their seeds available for dispersal and use by native fauna. Apparently, there have been many positive results from the non-native rat removal.

(Wild Cucumber- March 31, 2008)

Restoration is ongoing, and many invaded areas are returning to native flora. An additional problem is the bird population itself - that can spread invasive plants from one part of the island to another. Many non-native mallow varieties are growing abundantly in some areas.

(Western Gull among native Coreopsis, Wild Hyacinth, Paintbrush, Morning Glory - March 31, 2008)

However, it was heartening to spend a few hours (far too short) in such a wonderland of flowers and birds, surrounded by the pacific Pacific. On the way back to the mainland, a Pacific Gray Whale or three were seen just outside the harbor.

(Gray Whale - March 31, 2008)

Slideshows

• Click here for all photos from Anacapa Island, Monday March 31, 2008
• Click here for a few photos from the Sedgwick trip, Saturday, March 29, 2008