Hanging at a friend's place in Mariposa county this weekend, where he graciously showed me this sweet orobanche. It parasitizes woodland star and saxifrage.
This one has been bothering me. It is abundant in the Russian river gravel. The flowers are tiny and almost never open completely. Some people have said this is loosestrife, but it doesn't completely match any pictures I've seen for either Epilobium or Lythrum.
I decided not to bring my proper camera and telelphoto on this mini-trip to Boy Scout ... and of course saw cool birds, like this Northern Shrike (a first for me!). Actually, there were a bunch of shrikes out that morning. Though the mask is quite large, I think it's a Northern and not a Loggerhead because of the very clear hook in its bill.
Sunset approaching, and was happy to get this shot on the way back to the car.
Definitely my first wildflower picture. Saw this while hiking with my friends Tom and Joanna.
This was the season. At this time of the year, those little creatures are everywhere, especially close to water.
Possibly the only one Elegant Clarkia I have seen this year.
"Regular" blue-eyed grass flowers were all around us when a small cluster of white flowers caught my attention. The first time I've seen the white version of this common wildflower.
I was amazed at the number of these berries. I did not notice birds eating them, so maybe they are poisonous?
Spotted alongside the trail. We didn't know what it was at the time, but commented that it looked prehistoric.
Boldly perched about 6 feet up in a tree in our campsite, and had plenty to say. Wah! Wah! Wah!
I think this is a ringneck snake. The picture is blurry because this little guy was moving away quickly. I'm lucky to have managed to get a picture somehow.
This is not a rare wildflower, but this one was one of the first we saw this year. The day after, while hiking in the back country, we came upon spots with dozen of them.
For some reason, I like this flower, also called "fairy lantern", a beautiful, poetic name.
This young gopher snake was sunning itself on the trail. The day was relatively cool, and this little guy let me take a few pictures of him without moving much.
Saw this along the trail the day I was taught how to use the macro feature on my camera.
