Several specimens found near a stream at 2,200masl
Photo and observation by N. Enzian at the Neill Point Preserve BioBlitz. Used with permission.
Spur-winged Plover, Vanellus miles.
It's the start of the breeding season for the birds at Travis,
This is the first juvenile Spur-winged Plover that I have seen this year.
Pulled out of a hole, adult bird nearby.
Appeared to be digging in the soil.
Hanging out in outdoor library at the Canopy Lodge.
Baby found in the front lawn of a residence
A scrappy expanse of silky refuges and capture webs littered with body parts of previous victims. When preferred prey is entangled, the female spiders emerge from their 'nests' and overpower it by grabbing its extremities. In this case, a wasp https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/9319446.
Presumably they inject venom because after a minute or so the prey stops struggling. Then they snip it out of the web and carry it into one of several 'nests' or refuges.
Unwanted prey, often beetles (see https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/9319435 ) are also killed but sometimes left in the web, uneaten. Ants, in this case, Maranoplus ( https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/9319390 )scavenge around the periphery of the webs, feasting on unwanted beetles or other left-overs.
in tree lichen/ Eggs are deposited within the old cuticula after moulting.
Small, so probably a nymph. Bark or Ghost perhaps?
Pandanus tectorius is a species of Pandanus (screwpine) that is native to Malesia, eastern Australia, and the Pacific Islands. Common names include Thatch Screwpine, Hala (Hawaiian), Fala (Samoan), Bacua (Spanish), Vacquois (French), Kaithai (கைதை meaning the plant that pricks the hand) (Tamil) and Mudu keyiya (Sinhala).
P. tectorius is a tree that grows to 4–14 m (13–46 ft) tall. The single trunk is spiny and forks at a height of 4–8 metres (13–26 ft).[2] It is supported by prop roots that firmly anchor the tree to the ground. Its leaves are usually 90–150 cm (3.0–4.9 ft) long and 5–7 cm (2.0–2.8 in) wide with saw-like margins.
Flowers
Pandanus tectorius is dioecious, with very different male and female flowers. Male flowers are small, fragrant, form clusters or racemes, and short lived, lasting only a single day. Female flowers resemble pineapples.[2]
Fruit
The fruit of P. tectorius is either ovoid, ellipsoid, subglobose or globose with a diameter of 4–20 cm (1.6–7.9 in) and a length of 8–30 cm (3.1–11.8 in). The fruit is made up of 38–200 wedge-like phalanges, which have an outer fibrous husk. Phalanges contain two seeds on average, with a maximum of eight reported. The phalanges are buoyant, and the seeds within them can remain viable for many months while being transported by ocean currents.[2]
Habitat
Pandanus tectorius naturally grows in coastal regions, such as on mangrove margins and beaches,[2] at elevations from sea level to 610 m (2,000 ft).[3] It requires 1,500–4,000 mm (59–157 in) of annual rainfall. Thatch Screwpine is well adapted to grow in the many soil types present on coasts, including quartz sand, coral sand, and peat, as well as in limestone and basalt. P. tectorius is salt and wind tolerant and favors slightly acidic to basic soil (pH of 6-10). It prefers to grow in full sunlight, but grows well with 30-50% shade.[2]
Range
Pandanus tectorius occurs from Port Macquarie in New South Wales to northern Queensland, Australia and Indonesia east through the islands of the tropical Pacific Ocean to Hawaii.[4] Its exact native range is unknown due to extensive cultivation; it may be an early Polynesian introduction to many of the more isolated Pacific islands on which it occurs. P. tectorius is known to have predated human settlement on Hawaii due to seed and pollen samples taken from Kauaʻi's Makauwahi Cave.5
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Duck Lake
Female blue morph.