Sunday, May 8, 2011

Color on the Tablelands

Wildflower season may have gotten off to a bit of a slow start, but the Volcanic Tablelands just north of Bishop are currently covered in color!


Malacothrix glabrata
desert dandelion

Mentzelia nitens
Venus blazing star

Sphaeralcea ambigua
apricot mallow

and

Chaenactis fremontii
desert pincushion

Lupinus sp. and
Malacothrix glabrata

Signs of Spring

Visiting a project site near Manzanar, we came across nesting birds and wildflowers, definitely signs of spring!

Sage Sparrow (Amphispiza belli) nest

Linanthus parryae
sand blossoms

and

Eriophyllum wallacei
wooly easterbonnets

Opuntia basilaris
beavertail cactus

Sunday, May 1, 2011

Sierra Nevada Bighorn Sheep Recovery

This past week I attended the Sierra Nevada Bighorn Sheep Recovery Implementation Team meeting in Sacramento. The team is composed of biologists, researchers, and land managers with responsibilities affecting recovery of the endangered species. I learned a lot and it was humbling to be in a room with so many experts in the field.


Inspired by the meeting, I took a hike up into Pine Creek Canyon where I heard that bighorns had been seen at lower elevations. On the way back down from the mill, we spooked a group of nine Sierra Nevada bighorns: three rams, three ewes, and three young. After scrambling a ways up a cliff face, the sheep felt safe enough to allow us to watch them while they fed. It was an amazing encounter with this highly endangered species.