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What
Genus OrgyiaObserver
curiouserDescription
These caterpillars have been popping up for the last month or so. They are always found around oak trees. This one was almost an inch and a half long.
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Pacific Coast Tick (Dermacentor occidentalis)Observer
curiouserDescription
Little tick found in the brush.
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Common Snakeflies (Genus Agulla)Observer
curiouserDescription
Strange little bug found on a car parked under an oak tree. Full body length was a little over an inch.
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Octopus Spiders (Genus Tmarus)Observer
curiouserDescription
Body length was maybe half an inch.
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Ornate Tiger Moth (Apantesis ornata)Observer
curiouserDescription
Found resting on the staircase. Body length from head to wingtip was almost one and a half inches.
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Black-bellied Slender Salamander (Batrachoseps nigriventris)Observer
curiouserDescription
Little salamander found under a rock. Three or four inches long, with a tail accounting for half the full length. It was relocated to another rock nearby.
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Lesser Goldfinch (Spinus psaltria)Observer
curiouserDescription
Little bird on some shrubbery in a parking lot. He mostly ignored me, and split his time between preening and singing at other birds.
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Fungi Including Lichens (Kingdom Fungi)Observer
curiouserDescription
The cool, wet weather has brought these out in a damp corner. The dead log behind them is oak, as are most of the leaves around. The mushrooms themselves are 2-2.5 inches tall, the stems are Q-tip thin, the caps are less than an inch in diameter.
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Inkcaps (Genus Coprinopsis)Observer
curiouserDescription
There was a rainstorm a couple days ago, and these little guys popped up all over our compost piles. The caps don't last long before they fall apart, so I sought out the youngest one I could find.
Photos / Sounds
What
Bobcat (Lynx rufus)Observer
curiouserDescription
Bobcat laying in the meadow in the early morning. It twitched its tail as it watched the activity of the local birds (who were very upset about the predator nearby). You can see the eyespots on the backs of its ears in a couple of pictures.
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What
Striped Racer (Masticophis lateralis)Observer
curiouserDescription
Little baby snake in one of the stalls. Was about a foot long and the width of a pencil at its thickest.
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Grain Weevils (Genus Sitophilus)Observer
curiouserDescription
Weevils wovvle, but they don't fall down. This obnoxious pest is sometimes found in the grain room, resulting in disposal of infested feed and a thorough cleaning. This little one was only a couple of millimeters in length.
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Figeater Beetle (Cotinis mutabilis)Observer
curiouserDescription
Big green beetle lumbering around. Lovely metallic green color, about an inch in length.
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Striped Racer (Masticophis lateralis)Observer
curiouserDescription
Caught at lunch under a wall. The unwilling guest was an alligator lizard. The snake was over two feet long.
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Peck's Yellow Dust Amanita (Amanita elongata)Observer
curiouserDescription
Bright yellow mushrooms that popped up after a rainstorm. The caps were almost an inch and a half in diameter. The stems were almost three inches long.
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Spined Micrathena (Micrathena gracilis)Observer
curiouserDescription
Little spider using its body to hold tension on its web. I couldn't get a better angle for the shot without destroying the web (which I'd hate to do).
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Running Crab Spiders (Genus Philodromus)Observer
curiouserDescription
Spider with one missing leg perched on the side of a birch tree. The body length was a little over a centimeter.
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Subfamily NematinaeObserver
curiouserDescription
Little caterpillar in a defensive position on a fallen leaf. It was around an inch long.
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Bald-faced Hornet (Dolichovespula maculata)Observer
curiouserDescription
Grapefruit-sized hive hanging from a young tree. The insects stayed calm as I stood by and got pictures before leaving them to their business.
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Brown Prionid (Orthosoma brunneum)Observer
curiouserDescription
Clinging to the screen door in the morning. Over one and a half inches in length.
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Green Burgundy Stink Bug (Banasa dimidiata)Observer
curiouserDescription
Little guy hanging on a screen door. Maybe one centimeter in length.
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Neoclytus modestusObserver
curiouserDescription
Chilling on a golf cart windshield. Between one to one and a half centimeters long.
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Genus TrogodermaObserver
curiouserDescription
Tiny beetle found in the kitchen. Maybe a third of a centimeter in length.
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Bark Lynx Spider (Hamataliwa grisea)Observer
curiouserDescription
Fuzzy little guy chilling on my windshield. The body was under a centimeter long, and it left a trail of what looked like dust behind it when I was shooing it off the car.
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Western Bluebird (Sialia mexicana)Observer
curiouserDescription
Little bird checking out an emu feeder, looking for dropped pellets. Not the clearest shot, but the closest I could get.
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Bathroom Moth Fly (Clogmia albipunctata)Observer
curiouserDescription
Very small fly hanging out on a soap dispenser in one of the outhouses. The wingspan was less than half a centimeter.
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Greater Bee Flies (Genus Bombylius)Observer
curiouserDescription
Dredged out of a trough (unfortunately didn't make it). The wingspan was over two centimeters, the body was about one centimeter in length not including the proboscis.
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Mourning Dove (Zenaida macroura)Observer
curiouserDescription
Handsome little dove hanging out by the science museum. It had patches of orange-pink iridescence on its nape.
Photos / Sounds
What
Carpet Moths (Subfamily Larentiinae)Observer
curiouserDescription
Little moth on diamond plate. The body was about one and a half centimeters, the wingspan was two centimeters.
Photos / Sounds
What
Pallid Bat (Antrozous pallidus)Observer
curiouserDescription
Small dead bat found by hay barn. The body was fully desiccated, but kept most if its details. From nose to rump it was over three inches long. Cause of death unknown.
