bees in the bay breeze

Now that the days are much cooler here, there are few butterflies around. When the daytime temperatures hit the mid-60's at the warmest, for a few hours bees and butterflies visit. The occasional cabbage white, umber skipper or fiery skipper fly by during those hours. What a surprise to see this gulf fritillary in our native patch, resting among the dried native grasses and buckwheat, absorbing the warmth of the sun.

This article confirmed what I've observed about monarch caterpillars. I've seen and wondered about the head-butting when one of these caterpillars encounters another caterpillar on the same milkweed leaf or stem. And yes, they get particularly ferocious in their fifth or last instar before pupating. https://www.ecowatch.com/hungry-angry-caterpillars-2648991765.html?rebelltitem=2#rebelltitem2

What a fascinating article and equally fantastic photos by Craig Burrows, of flowers and how they appear to pollinators. The pollen of sunflower actually glows brightly! https://www.huffpost.com/entry/craig-burrows-flowers-ultraviolet-light_n_58f4ff14e4b0b9e9848d7da6#:~:text=Sometimes%2C%20the%20most%20beautiful%20things,see%20them%20under%20ultraviolet%20light.&text=When%20he%20shines%20an%20ultraviolet,flowers%20will%20come%20to%20life.

The hermit thrush, who is looking at me in the photo above, was happily bathing and soaking in the bird bath. A golden-crowned sparrow waited its turn for a while, perched in the blackberry vines behind and above the bath. But the hermit thrush showed no intention of leaving, and the sparrow became impatient. The sparrow hopped into the bath. The thrush remained. As the thrush sat in the bath, the sparrow bathed, fluffing its wings between dips in the water. The thrush is fac

The other day while I was out in the front yard, my neighbor was painting the door of her utility cupboard, which is attached to her house. She suddenly yelled. A bumble bee had flown into the bucket of paint. She quickly scooped out the poor bee that was almost completely covered in the wet paint, and put it in my open palms. Fortunately I was already wearing gardening gloves. I rushed to our garden hose and turned it on so that I could a very low pressured steady stream of

A few months ago, I planted this blue blossom ceanothus Ceanothus thyrsiflorus in our native patch. We have one growing in a large pot on our patio. It remained about the size of this one for several months, and then it suddenly grew double in height and even more in width. I'm hoping that this ceanothus, native to California and Oregon, will do equally well in the clay soil. It is a Skylark varietal and should grow to five feet in height and width. Yes, it's an ongoing effor

What dramatic sunsets we've been experiencing these past few days! And they aren't due to smoke particles in the air, because there haven't been any fires in the air, thank goodness. The temperatures are chilly except during the daytime, and the air quality close to excellent. It almost looks like a tunnel of light forming through the clouds. Even more light tunnels forming through the clouds!

It's so good to still see many pollinators around, including bees and butterflies. Here is a Yellow-Face bumble bee Bombus vosnesenskii pollinating a blossom in our Meyer lemon tree. I'm pleasantly surprised to see these bumble bees still visiting this late in the year. A honey bee busy in one of the lavender shrubs.