Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks / Giant Sequoia National Monument
Hmm, observation selection is kind of broken.
August 5-7, 2012.
I guess I'd heard "high Sierras" in the parks' descriptions and gotten the impression that the whole area was up over 7000 feet and would have perfect weather midsummer, but that was not the case! The foothills and canyon were blazingly hot. I went in the (lovely green, breathakingly cold) Kings River and within two minutes of getting out was completely air-dried. Also surprisingly populated for a weekday trip; all the reserveable campsites were completely full and I slept "dispersed" in the conveniently-adjacent national forest.
Particularly nice:
Star-filled night sky.
View from Moro Rock.
White-throated swifts shooting noisily past at approx. mach 3.
Caddisfly cases?
Leavis Flat campground by a creek.
觀察
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珠頸翎鶉 (Callipepla californica)觀察者
sea-kangaroo描述
A good-sized group of immature quail with little crests under an oak tree. Not that the photo turned out at all.
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橡樹啄木鳥 (Melanerpes formicivorus)觀察者
sea-kangaroo描述
Lots and lots of these all along the roads up in here, though they mostly eluded my camera.
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sea-kangaroo描述
Leavis Flat Campground.
Small. When resting (didn't get a photo), held its legs bunched together and straight out, in a sort of T or X (I forget).
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sea-kangaroo描述
Leavis Flat Campground.
I guess these are caddisfly larva cases? They seem kind of square, though. They were pretty small, stuck on securely, and had no discernible openings. They were on boulders in the creek, both above and below the water line.
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sea-kangaroo描述
Trail of 100 Giants.
Saw lots, including a couple groups of juveniles/immatures. (the photo is an adult, though)
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sea-kangaroo描述
Trail of 100 Giants.
Photo isn't great, but there were a lot of these guys and I got a pretty good look at most of them. All quite small, lots of white on the backs of the ears and behind the ears, stripes dark brown/bright white, tails reddish with black tips.
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sea-kangaroo描述
Trail of 100 Giants.
Yellow wings, blue on the "calf" of the jumping legs, sometimes but not always made sounds when flying away.
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sea-kangaroo描述
Trail of 100 Giants.
I think this is the aphid and not the fungus (Exobasidium vaccini) because of the two different gall shapes, and because I don't recall the flatter ones being convex on the reverse side.
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冠莓草屬 (屬 Horkelia)觀察者
sea-kangaroo描述
Trail of 100 Giants.
Didn't get a photo of the leaves.
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sea-kangaroo描述
Just past Trail of 100 Giants/Redwood Meadow Campground.
Slithering rather slowly and awkwardly. Not sure if it was having trouble getting purchase on the road, if it was trying to keep on eye on me and escape at the same time, or if rattlesnakes are naturally kinda dopey (hadn't seen one actually moving before, usually they just sit).
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黃枝衣科 (科 Teloschistaceae)觀察者
sea-kangaroo描述
Several species here, but I mean this for the orange one.
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美洲黑熊 (Ursus americanus)觀察者
sea-kangaroo描述
Evening in the Crescent Meadow area.
Only one cub. Saw a different mother/single cub pair farther west along the road, too.
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子囊菌門 (門 Ascomycota)觀察者
sea-kangaroo描述
Lots of this brilliant yellow lichen (also in Kings Canyon, I assume the same kind). Streaks of it visible from the main road far below.
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sea-kangaroo描述
Next to the road in a little meadowlet somewhere between Giant Forest Museum and Wolverton Road.
Only Rudbeckia on the NPS checklist.
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中國圓田螺 (Cipangopaludina chinensis)觀察者
sea-kangaroo描述
Big fat dark snail on the lake edge. Opening sealed up tight by the snail inside.
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sea-kangaroo描述
Not 100% sure, but seems like a good fit-- three dark areas on each wing, fat skimmer-like body.
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sea-kangaroo描述
An incessant swarm on the feeders at Kings Canyon Lodge. "Tzippity-zippity-zip!"
Allen's or Rufous, not sure which. There were a whole lot of them of all different maturities and sexes, constantly switching places and running each other off, plus they tended to be either backlit or reflective. Definitely did not see any with all-rufous backs, though of course that doesn't necessarily mean anything.
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sea-kangaroo描述
Red tail with black tip, lots of white behind ears/on backs of ears, brown/white stripes.
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sea-kangaroo描述
Tiny little kangaroo rat-type thing bouncing across a mountain road at night. Didn't get a good look beyond that and the fact that it was brown, but this is the only hopping mouse species in range. (jumps were all very short and shallow, like a dropped ping pong ball just before it stops)
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