Sunday, May 22, 2016
HumBug: Bugs at the Refuge
Posted By Jennifer Fumiko Cahill @jfumikocahill on Sun, May 22, 2016 at 2:00 PM
After dropping off 20 years worth of household hazardous wastes, I rewarded myself on the way home (camera in hand of course) with a stroll through the Humboldt Bay National Wildlife Refuge. The neatly laid out and maintained gravel paths offer a great place to relax and soak up a bit of nature. There were few birds in evidence: only one large egret and a few swallows too far away to get a good photo. There were, however, some interesting insects.
I finally saw a few dark metallic green dock beetles, which feed on sorrel, also known as, “dock.”
I got pictures of two different species of carrion beetles both near the same place. Though a bit gruesome, their lifestyles are interesting. These are some of the insects made popular in crime shows as indicators of post mortem interval (PMI), helping forensic entomologists determine how long a body has been dead. There is a good introduction to the subject on Wikipedia.
I watched several blue mosaic California Darner Dragonflies patrolling along the edges of the open waterways, too.
A pretty, green metallic spreadwing damselfly put in an appearance too brief for a good ID. The real stars of the show that day were dozens of Pacific forktail damselflies. Flying like tiny blue and black helicopters among the low grasses beside the paths they were ardently working at the preservation of the species and, from the numbers I saw, doing a pretty good job of it.
Throughout the entire refuge there are signs posted illustrating the different birds and animals that can be seen, and although they seem to have left out the insects, it is still one of my favorite places.
Related Locations
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Humboldt Bay National Wildlife Refuge
- 1020 Ranch Road, Loleta Loleta CA 95551
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707-733-5406
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About The Author
Jennifer Fumiko Cahill
Bio:
Jennifer Fumiko Cahill is the arts and features editor of the North Coast Journal. She won the Association of Alternative Newsmedia’s 2020 Best Food Writing Award and the 2019 California News Publisher's Association award for Best Writing.
Jennifer Fumiko Cahill is the arts and features editor of the North Coast Journal. She won the Association of Alternative Newsmedia’s 2020 Best Food Writing Award and the 2019 California News Publisher's Association award for Best Writing.
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