This and that · Feb 7, 10:21 PM


The other evening I snapped a picture of a beautiful sunset. We’ve had a lot of rain and even some snow at the higher elevations. Now the days are growing noticeably longer. This sunset, with its lowering clouds and ridgetops in silhouette seemed amazing to me.

A sign of spring was the first wildflower to be spotted. Usually I come across Milk Maids or naturalized blue Forget-Me-Nots in January or February.

A lupin plant with gray green leaves and blue flowers

This year after the snow, during a sunny pause I glimpsed this lupine in bloom on February 1.

This colony grows on a dry rocky sidehill that dries out very early in the spring. I have noticed over the years that if we have a dry spring but get enough unexpected late rain, this lupine will have new blooms on it at the same time it has seed pods that have already burst open to disperse the earlier crop of seeds.

We can have more rain or even snow, the groundhog can see his shadow and head back for more nap but I am assured that spring is on its way.

* * *

Web design on the range · Nov 8, 02:06 PM

Several spider webs are highlighted against the dry grass of autumn

This is the time of year (autumn to some, fall to others) when the hills are no longer the palomino tan of summer. The dry grass has collected a coating of dust that has been turned to a coasting of gray by the moisture of the fog.

A spider in a dew covered web with the barn far off in the background

The other morning I noticed a collection of spider webs in the tall grass by our gate. A heavy fog was burning off and the webs were sparkling with dew drops. The webs are always there, we just don’t notice them without a little highlighting.

Closeup of a spider with striped legs in his web that is sparkling with dew drops.

I zoomed in close with my camera and noticed the resident spiders awaiting the unsuspecting visitor. The camera caught the beauty of the dew drops but not the nearly glow-in-the-dark green stripes on the spider.

* * *

Mr Badger's View Site · May 28, 05:27 PM

Looking down at ranch buildings from up on a hill Badgers live underground in burrows called setts. (Learn more about badgers here and here). It’s been my experience that they like to be high up, looking our over the country below. This picture is taken from above a local sett—you can see some of the loose dirt the badger has pushed out in the lower part of the picture. His sett overlooks the buildings below.

A group of badger holes making up the badger sett. A lot of loose soil is piled up around the entries to the holes. A sett is usually made up of more than one hole as you can see here. Badger holes make nice homes for other living things—snakes and frogs perhaps. But I would think they’d take up residence only in abandoned badger setts since badgers tend to be loners.

A hole in the earth with roots dangling I was curious about how far in the hole went but I wasn’t going to stick my hand in. Instead I pointed my camera down the hole and got a picture of the grass roots hanging from the roof of the tunnel.

In times past farmers and ranchers would try to eliminate badgers from their fields because they felt the digging was destructive. Larger animals can trip when their feet land in a hole and the holes can also lead to erosion. This particular badger sett is on a steep slope at the top of a swale. I imagine in years to come the the swale will enlarge and eventually become a wash or watercourse. The digging of the badger might speed up this process and then again it might not.

This badger is welcome to keep lookout over the place. Like some of the newcomers to our area, he has made his home where there’s a nice view. But his home blends in with its surroundings and you have to go looking for it to spot it!

Update: On another visit to the badger sett, I again used my camera to explore the hole. When I first looked at this picture I thought the marks you can see were simply cracks in the dry earthen wall of the tunnel.

Claw marks on the inside of the badger holeBut if you look closely you can see these are claw marks from when the badger was excavating, back when the earth was still damp. Imagine how powerful those diggers must be!

* * *

Hiding in the grass · May 28, 09:01 AM

A green grasshopper hidden in the grass. It's hard to see, even for the sighted. If you keep your eyes open when you take a walk you can see amazing things. Looking down, it’s not just dirt and grass beneath your feet. Can you see the grasshopper in this picture? You can click on the thumbnail to get a closer look.

Blending into their environment helps protect these insects from predators. Later in the summer when the grass turns brown, so do the grasshoppers.

A black and white picture of a grasshopper hidden in the grass. It's hard to see, even for the sighted so only the grasshopper is green.In this picture I took out the color and left the grasshopper his natural green. Sometimes, as you’re walking, you don’t notice them until they fly up and away from you.

Being fast on the wing also helps them get away from predators. And since grasshoppers eat plants, being able to fly helps them move to new areas (like your garden!) to find food.

* * *

After the first rains · Dec 7, 10:25 AM

Germinating seeds form cracksThe soil is still warm after our long summer. If there’s enough rain after our first winter showers, the warm moist soil provides optimum conditions for germinating seeds.

This series of photos shows how the seeds thrust up through the soil that has been compacted over the dry summer A closer look at germinationand then moistened by the rain. Can you see the cracks in the soil in the top picture? (Of course not, so click on the thumbnail for a better look.)

The second and third photos show more seeds unfurling toward the sunlight and pushing up the soil. There’s no stopping those little seedlings! A closeup of the seeds pushing their way up through the soil.These are probably a species of Erodium, commonly called Filarie by ranchers. The plants will get a good start so that they are well rooted by the time the colder weather sets in.

* * *

More articles >>