Recent Wildlife Sightings
I spend a great deal of time outdoors observing wildlife, and while I get to write about quite a bit of it, not every critter I encounter makes it into a blog post!
Check out everything I've been seeing in the field recently here:
Birds on eBird
All other wildlife on iNaturalist
About Me
Named after the Sierra Nevada Mountains, I am a naturalist and avid birder based in Central California. Above all, I am a follower of Jesus Christ, our amazingly good Creator God whose magnificent creation is an unending source of awe and inspiration for me. I hope to inspire others to appreciate, respect and protect this beautiful earth we share, and invite you to come along with me as I explore the nature of California and beyond!
- Siera Nystrom -
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It's spring, and the marshes, grasslands and woodlands of California are brimming with life as young birds of all description hatch, grow and begin to fledge. I've mentioned before that when I can't get out into a proper patch of wilderness, I enjoy birding at CSU Stanislaus. This year, there is something particularly exciting on the college campus: a family of Great Horned Owls ( Bubo virginianus ). Great Horned Owls begin breeding very early (or late) in the year, with courtship beginning in the late fall and early winter. While out for a walk last December, Eric and I heard a pair of Great Horned Owls on campus. Noting the presence of tall pine trees (potential nesting habitat) and an abundance of prey (gophers and waterfowl), I dared to hope they might choose to stay. And it turns out, they did! Great Horned Owls lay their eggs as early as January or February in California. Eggs are incubated by the female for about four weeks,...
Though I often extol the virtues and merits of winter in the Central Valley , especially when it comes to birding, the whole truth is that we experience "bad" weather also, just like anywhere else. But even when the winter weather rolls in, the birds are still out there! And sometimes, despite our best planning efforts, a birding day happens to coincide with crummy weather. In that case, what's a birder to do? Usually, we go birding anyway! Birders far more intrepid than I regularly brave the ice and snow of northern winters to see their favorite birds, so perhaps you should look to them for real tips on winter birding! For those of us in the valleys of California, the worst weather we see - wind and rain - is really comparatively mild. Birding on an extremely windy day! I don't know of anyone who actually likes birding in the rain. But I would argue that birding in the wind is just as aggravating as trying to bird in the rai...
Nearly everyone knows the desert as a barren, desolate land of extremes: high heat, low precipitation; little available food and water; prickly, spiny, unfriendly plants growing in a sea of rocks and sand as far as the eye can see. But for those who stop and look closer, the desert reveals itself as the beautiful, incredible, mesmerizing place it truly is, teeming with unexpected life. Juvenile male Costa's Hummingbird visiting chuparosa blooms next to our campsite in Anza-Borrego Desert State Park. I particularly love the desert in the spring, when the annual wildflowers, cacti, flowering trees and shrubs are all in bloom. (I've experienced the desert in the searing 120 degree heat of summer, and the rainy, even snowy cold of winter... and spring wins every time!) Eric and I just returned from a week in the Colorado desert, exploring the imperiled, accidental Salton Sea (more on that coming soon), the vital wetlands of the Sonny Bono Salton ...
For those of us living in the Great Central Valley, autumn is the time to head to the coast. Of course, there is no bad time to visit California's magnificent coastline. But as the heat and haze of summer drag on in the Valley, the sea becomes increasingly tantalizing: September and the onset of autumn bring sunny weather and an abundance of migratory seabirds and shorebirds to our coast. A new birder visiting California's Central Coast will undoubtedly be met with a splendid array of very confusing birds. Among these are small shorebirds like "peeps" (sandpipers), Sanderlings and various plovers . But the larger birds can be just as confusing, until you learn a few distinguishing features. Four large shorebirds that are commonly seen (and commonly confused) along California's Central Coast are Godwits, Curlews, Willets and Whimbrels. Marbled Godwit (upper left), Whimbrel (upper right), Long-billed Cu...
Coots are not ducks. That's probably one of the first lessons in waterfowl taxonomy you ought to learn. In fact, they're not even kind of sort of related to ducks. American Coots ( Fulica americana ) belong to the Rail family (Rallidae), along with rails (naturally) and gallinules. Going one taxonomic step above family, they belong to the order Gruiformes, which also includes the crane family. Ducks, geese and swans, however, are members of the order Anseriformes, quite a different branch of the avian family tree. So, the next time someone inquires about an all-black "duck" with a white bill and funny-looking feet, feel free to kindly share with them that the coot is not a duck at all, but actually more closely related to Sandhill Cranes ! ļ»æ Adult American Coot with two juveniles Because American Coots are terribly common birds on almost every body of water across nearly the entire North American continent, I pay them ve...
In 1844, early California explorer John C. Fremont gave a somewhat scathing review of Joshua trees when he wrote, "...their stiff and ungraceful form makes them to the traveler the most repulsive tree in the vegetable kingdom." Rather unkind, don't you think? But when Joshua trees were formally described by scientist William Trelease in the 1890's, he noted that Joshua Trees are "the most attractive of all the Yuccas." I am inclined to agree with this sentiment, and must disagree most heartily with Lieutenant Fremont! I, for one, adore Joshua Trees, with their whimsical shapes and great ecological significance! If you struggle with plant identification, the iconic Joshua tree, hallmark of the Mojave Desert, is a good place to start. With densely spiked tufts protruding from the ends of gangly arms stretched towards the heavens, this looks like a plant straight from a Dr. Seuss book....
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