Putah Creek Bioblitz

At the end of Blogger Bioblitz Week, I finally got out to my spot and did a bioblitz survey on my own. This is an exercise in humility: I do well at identifying birds, passably with vascular plants, reasonably well at reptiles and amphibians, but fail when it comes to identify insects or any other invertebrates. A proper bioblitz involves a team of skilled naturalists, but the main aim for the blogger version was to have fun, and so I did.

My spot was a bank of Putah Creek not far from home, located at N 38.5177° W 121.7616°. The upland portion was dominated by non-native grasses and weeds, primarily wild ryegrass Lolium perenne. Near the stream itself was a stand of narrowleaf willow (Salix exigua) with occasional Oregon ash (Fraxinus latifolia). I surveyed plants and birds, the latter anything within about 50 meters of my spot, including overhead and across the creek. I kept my eye out for dragonflies and butterflies, but only saw two of the latter and one of the former, and wasn’t able to get close enough to have a go at looking them up. My favorite identification was wild licorice (Glycyrrhiza lepidota), which I figured out after a browse through the photo library at CalFlora. My species lists follow:

Birds:

• Swainson’s hawk
• Western kingbird
• Snowy egret
• American crow
• Tree swallow
• Red-shouldered hawk
• Ash-throated flycatcher
• California towhee
• Turkey vulture
• Scrub jay
• White-faced ibis
• Bushtit
• Northern oriole
• Mallard
• Black-headed grosbeak

Vascular plants:

• Salix exigua (narrowleaf willow)
• Fraxinus latifolia (Oregon ash)
• Convolvulus arvensis (bindweed)
• Brassica nigra (black mustard)
• Lolium perenne (ryegrass)
• Centaurea solstitialis (yellow starthistle)
• Avena fatua (wild oats)
• Medicago polymorpha (California burclover)
• Eucalyptus sp.
• Vicia sp. (vetch)
• Plantago lanceolata (plaintain)
• Geranium dissectum
• Silybium marianum (milk thistle)
• Rumex conglomeratus (dock)
• Glycyrrhiza lepidota (wild licorice)