Monthly Archives: May 2023

Pigeon Guillemot

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While visiting the boardwalk in Santa Cruz, California, I noticed several of these sharp looking birds that I’ve never seen before. The Pigeon Guillemot is an attractive auk that nests on rocky coastlines of the North Pacific. Its velvety, dark brown plumage is set off by a bright white patch on the upper wings and vivid scarlet feet.

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Unlike many other species of in its family, which feed far out at sea, these birds stay fairly close to shore where they forage along the seafloor for small fish, worms and crustaceans.

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Male Pigeon Guillemots court females by showing off their red feet. On land, the male circles or even jumps over the female, pointing his bill downward and raising his scarlet feet conspicuously as he marches around her. Rapid zigzag chases in the water may also be involved in courtship.

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The Pigeon Guillemot’s nest is shallow scrape in pile of dirt, pebbles and shells. It tends to be located in a crevice or cave, among boulders, in an abandoned burrow, or under driftwood or debris. These birds may also excavate a nest burrow. The same site is usually re-used for several years.

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After their 1 to 2 eggs hatch, both parents feed their young, bringing them small fish at all hours of day, especially in early morning. Offspring leave nest 1 to 2 months after hatching (usually at night) and scramble or flutter down to the water. They are able to swim and dive immediately, but are not capable of strong flight for another 2-3 weeks.

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This was a neat bird to observe while on my California adventure.

Third Eye Herp
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Western Millipede

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This is a species of millipede found in California with no common name. Scientifically its kmown as Paeromopus angusticeps. It occupies the largest geographic range of all four species of Paeromopus, covering much of Northern California in a large arc extending from Monterey County on the central coast, north along the Coast Ranges to Humboldt County, and descending along the Cascades and Sierra Nevada range of eastern California.

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Adults possess up to 80 body segments and range from 4 to 6 inches long, and are about a quarter on an inch wide. Their color consists of alternating bands of brown on a black or blue-black base color, although in some individuals the banding is largely indistinct from the base color.

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Millipedes are a group of arthropods that are characterized by having two pairs of jointed legs on most body segments; they are known scientifically as the class Diplopoda. The name derived from this feature is “Di” meaning “two” and “poda” meaning “feet.”

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Most millipedes feed on decomposing vegetation or organic matter mixed with soil. They often play an important role in the breakdown and decomposition of plant litter.

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These creatures are among the first animals to have colonized land, dating the species back 400 million years. Early forms probably ate mosses and primitive vascular plants.

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Due to their lack of speed and their inability to bite or sting, their primary defense is to curl into a tight coil to protect their delicate legs inside their armored exoskeleton. Many species also emit foul-smelling liquid secretions through microscopic holes called ozopores.

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Millipedes have inspired and played roles in scientific research. In 1963, a walking vehicle with 36 legs was designed, said to have been inspired by a study of millipede locomotion. For me they are always a fun find while out in the field.

Third Eye Herp
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California Sea Lion

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While visiting California I spent some time observing these very cool animals that are known for their intelligence, playfulness and noisy barking.

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Males tend to be chocolate brown, while females are often golden brown. At about five years of age, males develop a bony bump on top of their skull called a sagittal crest.

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California Sea Lions are very social animals and groups often rest closely packed together at favored haul-out sites on land or float together on the ocean’s surface in “rafts.”

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These mammals live along the rocky Pacific Ocean coastlines of western North America. California Sea Lion males bark like dogs to communicate with other males and females.

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California Sea Lions mainly emerge from water on sandy or rocky beaches, but they also frequent manmade environments such as marinas and wharves. They are sleek animals that are faster than any other sea lion or seal and can top out at speeds of 25 miles an hour.

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They are sometimes seen “porpoising,” or jumping out of the water, presumably to speed up their swimming. They have also been seen “surfing” breaking waves.

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California Sea Lions are opportunistic eaters, feeding on squid, octopus, herring, rockfish, mackerel and small sharks. They are entertaining animals to watch and were a fun part of my visit to the Golden State.

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Western White Trillium

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While hiking in the Santa Cruz Mountains, I came across this unmistakable and endearing plant that softly lights up the vernal understory of moist coniferous and mixed forests in California and some of its surrounding states. This plant is also known as Pacific Trillium, Coast Trillium, and Pacific Wake-robin. The “wake-robin” name refers to the plants early spring blooming season.

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This wildflower is easy to identify due to what looks like three showy white petals held just above three large triangular leaves. A perennial that grows from rhizomes, it technically produces no true leaves or stems above ground; the stems are considered an extension of the horizontal rhizome. The part of the plant that we notice most is an upright flowering stalk and the leaf-like structures are bracts, but most people call them leaves, because they photosynthesize.

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This is one of many types of flowers that rely on ants for the distribution of their seeds. The ants collect trillium seeds and bring them back to their nests. Trillium have a calorie-laden appendage on each seed called a strophiole. Ants eat the strophioles and discard the seeds, thus dispersing them to different parts of the woods. Ants have been observed to carry trillium seeds as far as thirty feet from the plant where they collected it from.

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Western White Trillium’s flowers bloom starting in late February in the southern part of its range and in March or April elsewhere. Citizen science observations of flowering plants of this species peak during the first week of April. Since White Trillium is Ohio’s State Wildflower, it was neat to see the West Coast species of this plant.

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