t has never occurred to me to speak with elegant animals. I am not curious about the opinion of wasps or of racing mares. Let them settle matters while flying, let them win decorations by running! I want to speak with flies, with the bitch that has recently littered, and to converse with snakes…….I want […]
Rubber Boa (Charina bottae) Read More »
his is North America’s largest terrestrial salamander (the aquatic one for a later time!). These critters grow to about 13 inches in total length. They range from southern B.C, through western WA and OR, and into northern CA and northern Idaho. They are not found on the Olympic Peninsula where a closely related species, Cope’s
Pacific Giant Salamander (Dicamptodon tenebrosus) Read More »
Oh yea – there’s this whole other Kingdom of plants! Kingdom, Phylum, Class, Order, Family, Genus, Species – or easier to remember as Kings Prefer Cokes Over Frosty Grape Sodas. I know this one as fairy slipper, with reference to the shoe like appearance of the lower lip of the flower. It has a wide distribution
Calypso orchid (Calypso bulbosa) Read More »
This time we’re talking about a local species – this came up because, here in the Seattle office, near the ship canal, I just started hearing their arrival this spring. You can check here to listen for yourself http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/caspian_tern/idThey remind me of pterodactyls, though I’ve never really heard one of those. The Caspian is the
Caspian Tern (Hydroprogne caspia) Read More »
Sticking with the desert theme this week – this is the only type of rattlesnake found in the Pacific Northwest. It’s a heavy bodied snake with large dark spots, a triangular shaped head, a distinct eye stripe, and of course a rattle at the end of the tail. The largest specimen recorded in WA was
Western rattlesnake (Crotalus virdis) Read More »