A large patch getting broadcast with parasitic beetles.
just have to put it in... growing last 4 years on the lowest ground on this property. Why these are 'cornflowers' beats me; and they are memorable as quintessential buttonhole ware for young gentlemen dressed up.
Archie Goodwin observed women with cornflower-blue eyes in more than one of the Nero Wolfe stories.
Not sure about location. In a dried-up shallow pool. There were many others, jumping between grass stocks.
On stickymonkee flower. Another individual was darting about; flying up to intercept this one, but backing off immediately. SMF is a host plant.
Still don't think it same as my previous post from Pt. Lobos.
Very common in Sonoma county, everywhere it's damp. I've seen it clog drainage ditches, for example.
Met a man selling a natural beverage made from some sort of small tubers harvested from far eastern paddy-plantations of these or a very similar appearing plant. He had a pitcher of the stuff, it looked like the sweet rice drink that you can find in the better mexican restaurants.
On the plant featured in my Papilio zelicaon shot. Likely these two are not hers...
The youngest has the "birdshit" patterning, the larger stage has yet to emerge in it's mature habit, and still resembles the earlier form slightly.
A third picture, added 5/31, is of the second P. zelicaon wearing its 'mature' larval raiment.
I know many and many correspondents will yawn, but raccoon problems are not so common in our small city on the Santa Rosa Plain. We've had lots of Possums, so I thought the creature coming in the cat-door was one of those... too bad, because those odd fellows are much easier to dissuade or frustrate. My partner saw it the other day, solving the mystery of the shrinkage of our dog and cat food inventory. That has been done neatly too, without spilling or scattering kibble everywhere as I'd expect from a wild beast.
A few month's ago I posted an Calystegia from the other side of the Golden Gate, and it's ID was a bit of a puzzlement to IN correspondents. These--whatever they are-- were popping up all along the blufftop trail, often on top of robust specimens of poison oak.
A lovely flower: one of the few none natives I snapped breezing through the south shore of the park.
I tend to ignore birds, and certainly am not equipped to try to photograph them; but this little fellow was bravely hopping about right next to us, so I made an exception.
