Pollinator Posts by May Chen

It’s almost noon by the time I reach Diablo Bend.  The Silverleaf Lupine, Lupinus albifrons is finally blooming.  Despite the profusion of flowers, the place is surprisingly quiet.  Occasionally a noisy Digger Bee, Anthophora sp.

I visit Skyline Garden in the Berkeley hills this morning, walking the stretch of the Skyline Trail south of Siesta Gate.  A tiny fly, no more than 3 mm long, is resting on a tender

A Black-tailed Bumble Bee, Bombus melanopygus (family Apidae) has landed on a cluster of manzanita flowers.   Its tongue extended, the bee proceeds to take nectar from the flowers, not from the proper opening of

Back at the Regional Parks Botanic Garden again.  The first order of business is to ascertain that the American Winter Ants I saw on the Evergreen Currant, Ribes viburnifolium last time were no mere incidentals.

When the sun finally peeks through the overcast sky this afternoon, Fred and I decide to go for our walk at Crab Cove, Alameda.   I check the native plants around the visitor center.  A

A large Beaked Hazelnut, Corylus cornuta in the back of the garden is blooming gloriously, with numerous male catkins dangling from bare branches.  The Hazelnut is monoecious, with separate male and female flowers borne on the

After a gloomy day of endless rain showers, I am happy to visit the Regional Parks Botanic Garden again.  It is a cold but sunny morning, with temperatures in the mid 50s F. Whenever I

Two American Winter Ants meet on the edge of a Miner’s Lettuce leaf, exchanging messages by touching antennae.   The American Ant, Prenolepis imparis is a widespread North American ant.  A dominant woodland species, it is most

I take my walk on Nimitz Way at Inspiration Point, Berkeley this morning.   On the grassy slope on the side of the paved trail, a California Manroot, Marah fabacea is blooming prolifically.  Marah species

A Greater Bee Fly, Bombylius major (family Bombyliidae) is hovering under a cluster of Manzanita flowers, its wings a blur.   Bombylius major, commonly known as the Greater Bee Fly is a parasitic bee mimic fly in

I visit the Regional Parks Botanic Garden today. Near the front gate, a Buckbrush, Ceanothus cuneatus is blooming profusely, sending a heavy perfume into the air.  A swarm of bumble bees buzz around the flowers

It is fun to visit the native plant garden at Crab Cove, Alameda, now that more plants are coming into bloom.    Although past prime blooming, the large shrubs of Buckbrush, Ceanothus cuneatus continue to be

Time for a walk at the Sibley Volcanic Regional Preserve in the Oakland hills.   Under the dappled shade of the oak woodland, I spot a Cow Parsnip leaf that has squiggly lines on its

Although not immediately obvious, this tree is in glorious bloom!  Prodigious male catkins are hanging from the bare branches of a California Hazelnut or Beaked Hazelnut, Corylus cornuta against the dark background of a Bay

A small wasp with very long antennae has landed on the sunlit leaflet of a fern frond.  A parasitoid wasp in the superfamily Ichneumonoidea?  iNaturalist has suggested the genus Odontocolon (family Ichneumonidae). The Ichneumonidae, also

It’s been a while since I last walked the West Ridge Trail in the Reinhardt Redwood Regional Park in the Oakland hills.  I hope the trail has had time to dry out after all the

Near the visitor center, the patch of Oregon Grape, Mahonia aquifolium (family Berberidaceae) is putting up quite a show.  Bright lemon-yellow flowers have started to bloom atop bronze-red foliage.  Woody-stemmed and spreading by rhizomes, the evergreen

It’s a beautiful, sunny morning at the Regional Parks Botanic Garden, Berkeley.   The Osoberry, Oemleria cerasiformis is blooming profusely, with clusters of white flowers hanging on every tip and node of the branches.  

Right in the middle of the trail, tiny pellets of soil surround the entrance of two adjacent ant nests.  I put down a penny for scale.   On my knees and using the macro lens,

An Osoberry, Oemleria cerasiformis by the trail is starting to bloom!  The plant is easily recognizable by the small white flowers that hang in droopy clusters from the tips of the stems.   About half a

At Skyline Garden this morning, I walk the Skyline Trail from Siesta Gate heading south.  Surely there must be some early blooms now? Though past its floral prime, the California Bay, Umbellularia californica is still

I feel the urge to check on the Wild Cucumbers, Marah species at Joaquin Miller Park in the Oakland hills.   I easily locate the robust Coast Manroot, Marah oregana under the Monterey Pines by

I have the privilege of visiting a large private property in the Claremont Hills in Berkeley this morning.  The land has been kept predominantly wild, and naturally abounds in native plants.   Since the deer

Under the redwood canopy, the vibrant green spotted leaves of Fetid Adder’s Tongue, Scoliopus bigelovii show up conspicuously despite the dim light.  The leaves have expanded and flared out from the center of the individual