Mt. Pinos and beyond part 1

Maroon-spotted woollystar, Eriastrum signatum.

I was invited out again recently by Wanda Dameron, not only to attend a birding trip to Frazier Park, but also as a means to explore the interesting northern section of Los Padres National Forest. There are some brilliant plants in this region, several of which are endemic and not found anywhere else on Earth. Anything that involves cool high altitude areas catches my interest immediately so of course I was interested.

Before the bird walk began we checked out a nearby spot apparently home to San Emigdio blue, and despite abundance of the host plant I could not see any traces of adults, cats, or eggs. Although, maroon-spotted woollystar was a nice find at this spot. Nearby I checked a wet meadow for Palmer's mariposa lily and came up short. Needless to say the record I saw at this location was several decades old, but these sorts of species often stick around as long as their habitat is left untouched. We met the bird group and traveled up Cuddy Valley Road and into Mount Pinos proper, where I immediately encountered a new Ribes, wax currant.

Wax currant, Ribes cereum.

Birding was decent, but not the most productive. We covered several species but some common birds were not keen on showing. The large field nearby held two interesting plants, western blue flag (iris) and California false helleborine. The endemic Mt. Pinos chipmunk, a subspecies of the lodgepole chipmunk, was scattered but fairly widespread in the pine forests here. They are not very keen at posing in the sunlight though!

California false helleborine, Veratrum californicum, amidst a field of
western blue flag (Iris missouriensis).

Mt. Pinos chipmunk, Tamias speciosus ssp. callipeplus.

Travelling towards the less vehicle friendly section of Cuddy Valley Road, a road that at this point was no more than a hiking trail, I encountered Anderson's lupine followed by mountain yellow violet.  Along the trail I encountered flowers of purple false gilia. These flowers are very small, but make up for their size with their strikingly vibrant flowers that seem to shimmer in the sunlight. As their scientific and vernacular name of "purple false gilia" or "purple false gillyflower" suggests, they are fairly similar to gilias in the genus Gilia. Their scientific name is Allophyllum gilioides which when broken down means "different leaves" and "gilia-like" respectively. Indeed the first clue to these plants is that their leaves are not like those of Gilia!

Mountain yellow violet, Viola pinetorum.

Purple false gilia, Allophyllum gilioides.

As we ascended higher the birding became more interesting, with green-tailed towhees, Cassin's finches, mountain chickadees, and a single white-headed woodpecker. As we hit higher elevations an eagle-eyed observer spotted a Clark's nutcracker perched far on the spire of a pine. This pallid crow relative was quick to give its eerie, raucous calls, which cut through the otherwise silent air around the ascent to the summit. Soon the nutcrackers doubled and then tripled in number until they were surrounding us. Not a new bird for me but I have only seen them once before, so it was a pleasure to see them again.

Clark's nutcracker, Nucifraga columbiana.

Since we were on a bird walk we unfortunately turned back here as there was no further bird benefit to travelling higher. I was able to find some cool species in this open area between us and the summit before turning back, such as spreading phlox, one-seeded pussypaws, silvery field ant, limber pine, and Burlew's onion. I also found a Coniontis sp. darting across the path. This genus of darkling beetles is diverse and understudied in California, and while this is certainly a new one for me it is difficult to say which at this time. Given it was at high elevation, I'm excited to hear what species it might be!

A grasshopper up here set my heart racing but lo and behold, it was a pallid-winged grasshopper, the same species that I get in my backyard! Wow, wonder how he got up here though...

Spreading phlox, Phlox diffusa.

One-seeded pussypaws, Calyptridium monospermum.

Silvery field ant, Formica argentea.

Limber pine, Pinus flexilis.

Mystery Coniontis sp.

We all hiked back down and then met for lunch at Mt. Pinos campground. Here an interesting Listrus sp. alighted on my arm. I wish this one was easy given how nicely patterned he is but unfortunately there are several hundreds of species, and the chances of getting a species ID is minimal!

Listrus sp.

With farewells given, the bird group had departed, and we moved on to other forays...check back for part 2.

Mountain Quail Madness part 2

At Grassy Hollow campground more seed eventually brought in my first Cassin's finch, a bird which I have unsuccessfully sought throughout the mountains before, not to mention incredible arm-length away views of southern alligator lizard, which while not new is something worth posting photos of!

Cassin's finch, Haemorhous cassinii.

San Diego alligator lizard,  Elgaria multicarinata ssp. webbii.

The final intended stop of the day was the summit of Table Mountain. I didn't really know what to expect up here but given it is such high altitude I was expecting some amazing flora. Wanda said this spot was also known for a rare butterfly, veined blue, so I made sure to keep an eye for it. This spot paid off quickly with 8 new species: pinewoods lousewort, Parish's biscuitroot, Mojave linanthus, the rare Big Bear Valley woollypod, united blazingstar, the beetle Scelolyperus sp., Torrey's blue-eyed Mary (ssp. wrightii). One of my first encounters at this location was the most memorable however. I followed a dainty brown lycaenid butterfly and when it alighted...it was none other than the fabled veined blue! Incredible views were had of this butterfly as it flitted around and, to my frustration, never opened its wings more than 45 degrees. There were at least five of these flighty blues scouting low over the ground. This species is specific to its host plant, a high altitude subspecies of Wright's buckwheat that grows completely flat along the ground. One of the more unusual finds was starch grape-hyacinth, a garden plant which was certainly not meant to be in the middle of alpine meadow! I am not certain how "countable" this plant is, but there was no sign of human tampering. So on the list it goes!

Parish's biscuitroot, Lomatium nevadense var. parishii.

Mojave linanthus, Linanthus breviculus.

Big Bear Valley woollypod, Astragalus leucolobus.

Veined blue, Plebejus neurona!!

Starch grape-hyacinth, Muscari racemosum.

We made a stop at Lake Jackson before heading home where there were a great handful of surprises, though mostly species I had seen before. I can't resist posting images of the queen however. And no, not the Queen atop the balcony of Buckingham Palace! Although, this one did wave just the same! One thing both share though is that they were not in any fit condition to be running a marathon any time soon! I had to rescue this butterfly at one point since on a particularly dreary attempt to escape me it fluttered a little and then tumbled into the pond! I think it was on its last legs. Another thing they share is a close relation to the monarch(y)! The queen butterfly is an uncommon species in the region which only occasionally drops by on its erratic, unpredictable migrations to nowhere specific, so seeing one at all was fantastic!

Queen butterfly, Danaus gilippus.

Queen butterfly, Danaus gilippus.

 Some more species for the day's tally that I found at Lake Jackson: the nondescript but never reliable crisp-leaved pondweed, western choke cherry, and a well-patterned aphid on the sedge Carex alma which would sure be a new one for me if I could identify it! I also had my first ever good views of echo azure, Celastrina echo. A bonus was Utah serviceberry growing in a glade nearby.

Crisp-leaved pondweed, Potamegaton crispus.

Utah serviceberry, Amelanchier utahensis.

A mysterious aphid!

With the day falling we headed back through the mountains towards the warm lights and smog of the Los Angeles basin. Interesting species were not done though with a cool roadside pull-off that was blanketed in the cream flowers of Peirson's lupine, Lupinus peirsonii, a very rare flower which I have seen before but never in such great numbers. At this stop I found a very dried out Parish's oxytheca (Acanthoscyphus parishii). The final, final stop of the day was at a dusk-lit Switzer Falls, where I made search for an amphibian that I've been wanting to see for some time. Eventually I did find one. Here he is, a California newt:

California newt, Taricha torosa.

With round-leaved brookfoam (Boykinia rotundifolia) on the hike back to the car, we were finally done for the day. Wanda told me that spotted owls used to roost regularly in this valley until they were shot by disrespectful idiots. But still incredible to think that I was walking through a forest once inhabited by one of America's rarest birds. I never thought I'd have the chance to be anywhere near their habitat let alone a known location for them. Eternal gratitude to Wanda for tolerating my madness throughout this and previous outings! What a day that was.

Mountain Quail Madness part 1

Mountain quail, Oreortyx pictus!!

Again I had Wanda Dameron to thank for another wonderful outing! There were no particular goals of today's trip besides an up and down journey across the eloquent San Gabriel Mountains. Okay, maybe that previous sentence was a lie. There were actually several goals for today, but all of them required some lottery-teetering luck. So I preferred just to ignore them and be surprised instead!

A short drive into the mountains and a surprise pair of quail skittled across the road. We stopped the car and I kicked the door open as quickly as I could. A few moments later and we were gazing up at the humble mountain quail ascending the cliff face on foot. Less than half an hour into the day and I had already seen the most difficult species on my wish list! Wow!

As if in celebration another of my nemesis birds, black-chinned sparrow, was serenading far down in the valley. This is the second time I've heard them, the first along the Sandstone Peak trail at Circle X Ranch. Did this one finally decide to show? Of course it bloody didn't, but that's fine...

There were a few botanical additions along the drive up including blue-stemmed keckiella (Keckiella ternata), deerbush (Ceanothus integrrimus), and one of my nemesis species chaparral whitethorn (C. leucodermis). The entrance to Chilao campground gave me looks at Davidson's phacelia, summer lupine (Lupinus formosus), and an uncommon native mustard by the name of California rockcress. Further into the campground yielded abundance of a real gem of the pine woods, snowplant, a parasitic plant that bears vivid red foliage. This stop was also my first recorded sighting of ponderosa pine, although I've probably seen it before. Sturdy sedge (Carexa alma) was also growing in a small ditch nearby, adding to a quickly accelerating day total.

Chaparral whitethorn, Ceanothus leucodermis.

Davidson's phacelia, Phacelia davidsonii.

California rockcress, Boechera californica.

Ponderosa pine, Pinus ponderosa. The pinecones
of this tree left a cut on my hand that is still here
3 weeks later!

Snowplant, Sarcodes sanguinea.

At the visitor center Wanda revealed a cache of bird seed which we laid out at the feeding platforms. Within moments birds swarmed the area, though mostly bundles of band-tailed pigeons. It was good entertainment watching these very large pigeons try and compact themselves together on the tiniest platform. Every now and then another would fly and sit on top of another, trying to claw a space to stand on. Of note though was another mountain quail (!) that came in once the pigeons moved on! This was the most expected location to see this elusive bird today but after the luck this morning I didn't count on seeing another! Incredible views, too.

Mountain quail, Oreortyx pictus.

Along the short trail nearby I encountered mustard flower rust, an interesting fungus that takes over the upper portion of mustard plants and reproduces the flowers in its own guise! These pseudoflowers attract pollinating insects as would any real flower, carrying the spores and infecting other unlucky plants in the mustard family. This example was not quite at pseudoflower stage but the infection was more than beginning. The affected mustard in this instance was California rockcress.

Mustard flower rust, Puccinia monoica.

Along the way to Buckhorn I called a stop along the road when I noticed some unusual orange flowers by the roadside. As I suspected this was the rare and endemic San Gabriel Mountains sunflower, a silver-leaved plant that lives up to both parts of its name! The reddish bases to the ray florets (i.e. what look like petals) are a distinguishing feature of the subspecies gabrielensis, although on many of them this was inconspicuous. Immediately in Buckhorn I was greeted with a stunning sight, the bright and bristly caterpillar of the silver-spotted tiger moth. In the same location I also encountered both mountain pink currant (Ribes nevadense), a common riparian shrub here, and black-tailed bumble bee (Bombus melanopygus), a species that is overall common except for my area.

San Gabriel Mountains sunflower, Hulsea vestita ssp. gabrielensis.

San Gabriel Mountains sunflower, Hulsea vestita ssp. gabrielensis.

Silver-spotted tiger moth, Lophocampa argentata.

Mountain pink currant, Ribes nevadense.

Along the Burkhart trail at this site I went searching for American dipper, but unfortunately came back negative. On the plus side this habitat was really amazing and I have a few new species to show for it: western branded skipper, a relative of one of my favourite chalk-loving English butterflies, mountain whitethorn, volcanic gilia, Parish's umbrellwort, the beetle Hylurgops sp., another more striking beetle Nemognatha scutellaris, and brief fly-by encounters with California tortoiseshell.

Western branded skipper, Hesperia colorado ssp. leussleri.

Parish's umbrellawort, Tauschia parishii.

Nemognatha scutellaris.

More in part 2.