What Really Galls the Goldenrods

Some months ago, when the temperatures dipped below freezing, but before layers and layers of snow began their assault on the landscape, I went out and found a couple of patches of goldenrod (Solidago species) and collected a few of the many galls on the stems of the plants. Being a curious person, I noted that the galls showed no sign of anything having exited them, and thought that maybe, just maybe, if I kept them inside and warm for a bit, whatever was due to come out in the spring might make an early appearance for me. I assumed that living inside that hardened gall was a small insect larvae that in the spring would emerge as an adult insect. Well, OK, to be honest I remembered cutting a few open as a kid and finding just such a larvae – a small, grub-like critter. But I had no idea what the adult version was.

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Amphibian Peregrination

It’s not every day that I see a spotted salamander. As a matter of fact, I spent a lot of time as a kid in the woods around here turning rocks over, poking sticks into holes, and generally looking everywhere I could for things that creeped and crawled. Plenty of red efts, plenty of newts, [...]

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Kids are cute,too

Another video… note how the upper juvie decides to gnaw on a stick. These, too, are Mexican spotted owl(ets)…

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When owls are in love…

I thought i’d share this video i took today of two Mexican spotted owls (Strix occidentalis lucida)… they are, well, doing the owl equivalent of kissing, i suppose. Scientific folk call it allopreening. The male is on the right and the female to the left. As of today, they have two young owls out of [...]

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Things start late here in the mountains

When you spend your work days in the woods, it’s nice every once in a while to slow down and -on your own time- walk wherever you want and at your own pace. It lets you notice more. And find nests. There was a junco in a currant bush giving quiet alarm calls as i [...]

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Eowyn the wolverine

Just heard news from the wolverine folk up in British Columbia that Eowyn, the wolverine we captured and collared this winter in the Methow Valley, WA, was found dead up in Canada. Her remains were found buried next to a Doug fir along with some deer remains. The skull was found with deer bones, and [...]

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Living the life

Canyonlands National Park, at the backcountry permitting desk. I mention to the rangers helping me that I worked in the park, surveying for spotted owls, 15 years ago, and was back to hike Salt Creek Canyon.  They’re interested, and curious about my work and life, so I share a few stories.  It’s nice, every once [...]

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Baited camera stations

This was originally posted on the Chattermarks blog: You would think it wouldn’t work. First of all, the wolverine is an elusive creature. It inhabits the untrammeled heights of mountain ranges and is rarely seen or documented. So far this season, with ten traps open every day, we’ve captured just one wolverine. We’ve seen few [...]

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Another Chattermarks blog

I’ve another guest blog posting on NCI’s Chattermarks blog… this one about the baited camera stations we’ve been running.

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On a day in February

Here is the piece I wrote for the Chattermarks Blog about our first wolverine capture of the season, almost a month ago now.  I’ll likely post another or two here in the next few weeks, and will let you know here when and if those go up. Enjoy… It’s the radio call we’ve been waiting [...]

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