Besides the wildflowers, garden flowers, and butterflies, the rainfall in March has produced abundant natural surface water...with resulting frogs, toads, dragonflies, minnows, and a turtle. When I got home, all the water courses were flowing, and despite the cold snap while I was gone, things were coming very, very alive.
Just before I left for Australia, while walking the muddy creek bank, this little fellow jumped out in front of me. Mud-colored and tiny, I thought perhaps it was a toad because of its warty look. Actually, it's the Northern Cricket Frog, Acris crepitans, whose "call" sounds like someone clicking small pebbles together.
Variegated Meadowhawks, Sympetrum corruptum, fly almost all year 'round, but suddenly they're everywhere. This female perched on various stems up near Fox Pavilion, a long way from water she might lay eggs in.	Meanwhile the male Variegated Meadowhawks were defending territory down on the creek, waiting for the gravid females to show up so they could mate. This one, resting for a moment on emergent vegetation in the Sucking Mudhole, was about to be harrassed by the male Familiar Bluet you can see approaching from behind. As far as the bluet was concerned, it was his territory.
The much larger Common Green Darner, Anax junius, flew steadily up and down the creek, each stretch having its own male of the species.
I didn't see this turtle--clearly visible in a landscape shot taken some distance away--but heard it dive into the water. I waited patiently, motionless, until the water cleared and I could see the shape of it in the water...and then it swam across the slough behind the #3 gabion. When it wasn't looking at me, I got the camera up and in position...and then it put its head out.
This is a short-story in pictures. Here is tempation, clear water rippling over a nice clean gravel bed. (photo by Karen Shull)
And here is the evidence...	And here is the outcome. If you have a little creek that's running clear, dabbling your feet in it is a duty...isn't it? Duty or not, it's good childish fun.

Butterflies   |   Water

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