R: Great Horned Owl.
Today I was on my feet all day volunteering at the opening of Tunnel Tops in the Presidio. AND YET, I so needed time away from people and to connect with some Naturing. So after my day ended, I ventured out for a bit.
First, I was curious about the Sierran Tree Frogs spot. I had been told that when the sun is gone, so are the frogs. So I wanted to see if the sun was gone at that particular spot by 5:30pm. It was. As were the frogs. HOWEVER, I was able to see the flippin’ ADORABLE Anise Swallowtail caterpillars that Ren told me about! SO GORGEOUS. SO MANY. SO COLORFUL.
Then, I wanted to do another check for the Great Horned Owls of the Barnard Avenue owl nursery. I’m likely going to check in on them frequently leading up to my big Naturalist Walk intern project on the 27th. And, I saw TWO TODAY. One was super high up. Guessing an adult? Two was low on a euc branch. Guessing an owlet.
After getting a good look at it, I walked back to the trail and checked back. The owlet was keeping an eye on me! Nothing quite like the feeling of owl tracking you.
As I was about to leave MacArthur Meadow, I saw a Red-tailed Hawk soaring after hearing it cry previously. It looked like it was practicing flying. AND THEN, I saw what I think were THREE PEREGRINE FALCONS! After not being certain what they were as they flew North, two came back. And I was able to confirm! They ALSO appeared to be testing out their flying skills. It was quite nice to just stand and watch that for a while. I’ve never seen Peregrine Falcons in the Presidio before! I had a great spot for the air show going on right then, lemme tell ya.
All the wondering about where the other owlets on Barnard Avenue were made me want to check in on my own GHOs. So I headed to the owl nursery I know and love. And, one owl was there. And, that was odd. Because I wasn’t sure who it was. Hm! I checked over on the Slime Mold Lab Trail, and there was Pa Owl on his little spit of a branch spot! Watched him for a spell, then an owl FLEW IN from the owl nursery direction and landed RIGHT ABOVE HIM on a branch.
Okokok. This is interesting. That is MA OWL’S SPOT. And, she was doing some FIERCE EYES. This made me wonder where Junior was! I know all the birds had their babies early this year. So I haven’t been expecting Junior to stick around as long. Especially as she is so much fiercer than Junior ’21. But, can it be this soon that she’s left the building??
Bottom line is that I’m feeling like I’m not spending as much time with Junior. I’m not proud of that. It’s not even August, and I’m doubting if she’s still around!! More owl pics below for the owl fans.
Oh, and I’ve noticed something lately. I’m more drawn to the wider shots of creatures these days. You could say I’m entering my Jerry Ting phase of photographing wildlife. If you don’t know Jerry Ting’s photography, you’re missing out.
Lastly, I took a short walk to the Music Concourse to hear a tiny bit of the Reggae Sunday program there. On the way back, I walked along the CAS and noticed new plantings! Garden Petunias? And a newtome native plant, Western White Clematis. So glad they’re doing more plantings along that black fence. ALSO, saw a bunch of new California Agaricus mushrooms on that side of the trail! EVEN MORE were where I’d seen them recentlyish, under the redwoods near the Shakespeare Garden.
So, yeah. After two days in a row of being outside and on my feet almost the whole time, I am dang tired. But apparently not enough for a little bit of this and a little bit of writing it all down. Worth it.
The Afternoon Naturalist 