Three hundred million years ago, when the world was a hot swamp and the air carried twice as much oxygen as it does today, it is very likely a Griffinfly landed on a horsetail (the plant that was around back then, not the equine anatomy which was not). At the time they were the dominant […]
Outdoors
Posted inLife + Outdoors
HumBug: The Butterfly House
Scoping the North Coast Journal’s calendar, I noticed a post about the Butterfly House at the Humboldt Botanical Gardens. Of course I had to check that out. Just north of the College of the Redwoods campus, the botanical gardens are a nice place to while away a few hours among tidy, well-maintained flower beds. The butterfly […]
Posted inLife + Outdoors
HumBug: Butterfly vs. Spider
Some time ago, I mentioned in passing that butterflies and moths are covered with scales and fine hairs. They are easily dislodged and I theorized that these easily discarded structures might serve them as a release mechanism from sticky traps like a spider’s web. Last night I noticed a small cross orbweaver (Araneus diadematus) in […]
Posted inLife + Outdoors
HumBug: Dragon Hunting
On a recent stroll along my favorite section of the Van Duzen River, I saw about a dozen dragonflies of at least five species. I was able to get close enough to get photos of three individuals. Two of those were species I’d never seen before, the spot winged glider and the grappletail. The latter […]
Posted inLife + Outdoors
HumBug: Still in the Dark
Going out late at night allows me to see things many people might prefer not to. Lately, I’ve discovered several dwellers in the dark of which I was unaware. What appeared to be several good sized caterpillars munching on wild honeysuckle turned out to not be future moths at all, but sawfly larvae. Closely allied with […]
Posted inArts + Scene
Splashdown: Kinetic Day 2
They survived the sand and dared Deadman’s Drop. On Sunday, Kinetic Grand Championship competitors got amphibious, using foam, floats, kayaks and paddles to navigate the waters of Humboldt Bay. Making waves (and making it back to shore) is no joke — listing craft, log jams and busted cabooses were just a few of the challenges. […]
Posted inArts + Scene
All Downhill: Kinetic Day One
After parading around the Arcata Plaza, teams competing for glory (or just trying to stay upright) took off on the 2017 Grand Kinetic Championship. As the crowd cheered on Saturday, the human-powered contraptions made their way to the Manila Dunes to face Deadman’s Drop, the steep, sandy, downhill challenge that’s toppled many a team. Photographer […]
Posted inLife + Outdoors
HumBug: Shades of Green
Finally, it seems spring has sprung and from the pale rattlesnake grass (Briza maxima) to the deep Crayola blue-green of the firs, the old logging road was lined with a thousand shades of green. My eye caught movement at the edge of a little clearing so I followed it. At first I thought it might […]
Posted inLife + Outdoors
HumBug: Glowworms and Fireflies
This time of year, if you’re out and about in the late afternoon and a small black beetle trimmed in orange, sporting an ostentatious set of ferny antennae lands on your arm, don’t be alarmed. It’s only a male Douglas fir glowworm (Pterotus obscuripinnes) looking for love. They land and fan the air with that […]
Posted inLife + Outdoors
HumBug: Getting the Jump on Pests
Saturday was sunny, windy and cold. I was feeling a little under the weather, so I bundled up and went outside, camera in hand. Even on a gray day my spirits are lifted when I am greeted by my favgorite species of spider: the red backed jumping spider, Phidippus johnsoni. I’ve written about them before […]