Panorama Vista Preserve

Steppin' out

2012-01-23T18:10:00.000-08:00

Over the Fence

2012-01-07T12:40:00.001-08:00

Bee Tree

2011-12-27T08:25:00.000-08:00

These overlapping honeycombs are located 15 feet or so out in the open up an old tree snag. With cooler weather the bees are moving more slowly but are still buzzing in and out. (Photo by Andy Honig)

Beautiful Bobcat

2011-12-27T08:13:00.000-08:00

Western Bluebirds

2011-12-01T09:02:00.000-08:00

A flock of Western Bluebirds, 30-40 of them, have been spotted on the Preserve. They are distinctive with their rusty red breasts and, of course, bright blue feathers. No one we have talked to so far remembers bluebirds in this area (although in February a much smaller group of Mountain Bluebirds briefly visited; the weather at the time was very cold.)

Monty Byrom concert SOLD OUT

2011-10-20T20:30:00.000-07:00

INHALE Opening Reception

2011-10-20T11:58:00.000-07:00

Where? at the Younger Gallery Downtown! This art exhibit is co-sponsored by the Preserve.

Parkway Benefit Concert

2011-09-20T12:11:00.000-07:00

Did you know that the Panorama Vista Preserve is the largest private component of the Kern River Parkway? On Oct 30 (Sun), at 5 pm, local musician Monty Byrom will be appearing in a benefit concert for the Parkway at the home of Phil and Janada Shepard. Tickets are $30, which includes wine, beer, and snacks. Only 100 tickets will be sold. Call Phil or Janada at 588-7278 for reservations; no tickets will be available at the door.

More photos, Sept 8

2011-09-13T10:04:00.000-07:00

A little additional excitement was a small fire off near the river, possibly caused by one of the many lightning strikes we had in the night.

Workday at the Preserve, Sept 8, 2011

2011-09-13T09:48:00.000-07:00

Saturday was a workday for volunteers from the Kern Audubon Society and also for the Interact Club from Foothill High School, led by teacher Jan Graves. In these pictures we see Jan and a tree she helped plant 2 years ago, Harry Love, Al Caetano, Madie Elsie, Rod Lee, East High student Trevor Sutton, and Foothill students. Bill McDonald was there too. The job of the day was to walk the drip lines looking for breaks and then repairing them. Thanks, everyone.

Brice Drewry Memorial

2011-09-06T15:51:00.000-07:00

A large thank you to friends and family of Brice Drewry for donations of more than $400 to the Preserve. A tree will be planted in his memory. A World War II vet and former oil field worker, Mr. Drewry died in Bakersfield on July 18, 2011 at age 88. Donors included Mary L. Williams and Lorene Chandler of his hometown of Seminole, Oklahoma; David and Krikett Perea of Denver, Colorado; Linda Lee McKenzie and Katherine L. White of Fresno; Linda Vaughn of Banning; and Steve Edwards, Richard & Sharon Hall Hoffman, Louise Lacy, and Garden District Flowers of Bakersfield. Again, thank you.

Aug 24 12:30-4pm: East PV entrance to be blocked

2011-08-20T20:08:00.000-07:00

Chevron has notified the Preserve that it "plans to hydrotest our production lines that run under the bike path near Darrell’s mini storage. The testing is currently scheduled for August 24, 2011 in the afternoon from 12:30 – 4pm. In order to ensure the safety of the public, Chevron would like to block the entrance where the testing will occur."

Equestrians will also be affected by this temporary closure.

Seniors Visit Panorama Vista

2011-08-12T17:26:00.000-07:00

Thursday morning, August 12, ten residents of Carriage Estates toured the Preserve, guided by Andy Honig, from the comfort of their van. They enjoyed seeing and handling samples of native vegetation, such as coyote melon, that Andy handed around and were impressed by the size of the cottonwoods and other trees, about which they had good questions. At Rocky Point Weir they got an excellent view of the rushing river.

Coyote Melon and Jimson Weed Blossoms

2011-07-22T20:23:00.000-07:00

Georgia O'Keefe painted jimsonweed (aka Datura) often, perhaps because of the graceful form and purity of its white blossom.

The coyote melon is a stinky plant (aka Cucubita foetidissima) but has a lovely flower, much like its squash cousins.

Empty killdeer nest

2011-07-22T20:09:00.000-07:00

A shallow depression shows the location of the former nest. Not a speck of shell to be seen.

Killdeer Eggs Now All Hatched

2011-07-16T17:09:00.000-07:00

There were 4 eggs in the clutch and as of today (July 16, 2011) there are none. The first and send hatched July 11-12, the third on July 14, and the fourth on July 16. Since the parents make a point of carrying off all the shell fragments, it is now really difficult to see the nest site.

Here is one of the parents as of July 12, sheltering the two remaining eggs and the first two chicks.

Peter Cottontail Makes Himself at Home

2011-07-16T16:53:00.000-07:00

Do you see the bobcat?

2011-07-16T16:25:00.001-07:00

2011-07-13T19:57:00.001-07:00

"Hide in plain sight" seems to be the rule when killdeer choose a nest site. Not for them are hidden places under bushes or rocks or up in tree branches or cavities. They prefer open spaces such as this nearly barren stretch of ground near the plant nursery, not far from the road. The red arrow points to the nest which even at a short distance is easy to pass by.

But, if the parent is there, it will do its level best to lead you away by going into its "broken wing" routine: tottering (but perhaps complaining in a loud voice), dragging a wing, flopping and toppling over but somehow still leading its unwelcome visitor away.

[Photos by Andy Honig]

Killdeer Eggs Begin to Hatch

2011-07-12T11:46:00.000-07:00

The first killdeer egg hatched sometime between yesterday evening and this morning (July 12). The parents were nowhere in sight. Killdeer remove the shell fragments after a hatching and this had already occurred. You can see the chick's fuzzy body, one leg, head, one eye and beak in this picture. It won't be long before it is up and running around.

Air-Conditioning Killdeer-Style

2011-07-11T17:37:00.000-07:00

This killdeer has just flown over to a nearby pond, taken a dip to wet its feathers, and returned to hover over its clutch of 4 eggs. The air temperature was 100 degrees on this particular afternoon.

2011-06-12T11:24:00.001-07:00

Hunting has been good on the Preserve for hawks and coyotes. We recently also spotted a juvenile red-tailed hawk flying off with a rabbit.

Western Kingbirds

2011-04-26T18:12:00.001-07:00

Western Kingbirds have been seen in great numbers this season, usually flitting about in the grass but occasionally posing on top of poles.

Bakersfield Cactus in Bloom

2011-04-26T17:38:00.001-07:00

The Bakersfield Cactus is now in bloom! Bees and other insects are having a field day.

Photographed Ap. 26, 2011 (A.H.)

Nuisance vandalization

2011-04-14T14:04:00.000-07:00

Someone is getting his kicks fooling with the locks on the west gate; two, one after another, disappeared altogether; the third replacement was removed the next day after its installation; this lock was found on the ground at the gate. It obviously was cut with a bolt cutter. The sheriff has been informed as have Chevron security, River Ranches neighbors and equestrians who ride the area; we appreciate their help when problems like this crop up.

Bakersfield Cactus and Succulent Society field trip

2011-04-06T19:15:00.000-07:00

On Sunday, April 3, members of the BCSS met in the parking lot and got a tour from Andy Honig. First stop, naturally, was a patch of Bakersfield Cactus. It was a shock to discover that a vehicle had gotten in illegally and had driven right over the cactus, one wheel grazing the clump, damaging several pads. (See photo). Perhaps the driver did not see the cactus although it is in a clear area, not in deep grass. In any case, it was a close call.

Otherwise, the cactus society members toured the nursery, learned about California sycamores (vs. the unwelcome London Planes that line the road into River Ranches), and walked over to lupines and whatever else was there to see. Lynn McDonald took these pictures of old fence posts, and a gigantic rotting log that has become home to a swarm of bees. It is not too smart to get too close to this log but later on the tour, Lynn was able to get a picture about a mile away of a bee -- maybe from this log?

Why did the snake cross the road?

2011-04-06T13:43:00.000-07:00

Bill Cooper saw a king snake crossing the road near the Chevron Grove and pulled out his trusty cell phone to get this picture. He and Andy estimate it was 2-3 feet long.

2011-03-30T13:12:00.000-07:00

A raccoon came to check out the Nursery

Bluebirds and Meadowlarks

2011-02-26T08:30:00.000-08:00

Feb. 25, 2011: Mountain Bluebirds were fluttering around and Meadowlarks were singing. These are new birds to add to the PVP bird list.

Bat House Project

2011-02-25T20:37:00.000-08:00

On February 21, 2011, Girl Scout Marissa Krolnik and her crew put up 5 wooden bat houses in 3 different locations around the Preserve; 1 at the plant nursery, 2 in an old barn structure on the northern edge of the property, and 2 near Rocky Point Weir. Now we sit back and wait for the bats to notice!

Bobcat Sighting

2011-02-02T08:42:00.001-08:00

February 1, 2011

Bat House Project

2011-01-31T12:02:00.000-08:00

Garces High student Marissa Krolnik has designed a project for putting bat houses on the Preserve and last week she and bat expert Andy Kraus toured the Preserve to pick out the best places to put them. She has around a dozen bat houses ready to go. Marissa is working on her Girl Scout Gold Award with the project and she has a website on the importance of bats and a lot of other neat stuff. Bat houses are expensive and so far she has financed this project herself but go to her website if you would like to help out and see what is happening.

2011-01-31T10:19:00.000-08:00

On Jan. 28, 2011, Claire Thorp of the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (out of San Francisco) presented the Kern River Corridor Endowment with a check for $40,000. This will go toward the ongoing revegetation project begun last year in a 30 acre plot near the western end of the Preserve. Funds for the Foundation are provided by PG&E and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Representatives from the Bakersfield Californian and the 3 network TV stations recorded the event while volunteer workers, President Carolyn Belli, Board member Andy Honig, Scott Frazer of the federal Fish and Wildlife Agency, and Rich O’Neil and Bill Cooper of the Kern River Parkway looked on. Eagle Scouts were represented by Aaron and Andrew Levins and Scott Stone, while the Girl Scouts were represented by Marissa Knolnik, who will be doing a project on the Preserve this spring. After the ceremony, volunteers headed into the field to plant more tree cuttings.

2011-01-09T14:39:00.000-08:00

2011-01-09T14:18:00.001-08:00

According to Mark Schnaidt of Chevron, the California Department of Fish and Game is satisfied with Chevron’s re-vegetation project (the “Chevron Grove”)’ on Jan. 8, he met with Andy and Carolyn to begin the transition process whereby the Endowment will be responsible for maintainance of the grove. Four years ago Andy and Steve Hampson gathered approximately 8 red willow and about 100 cottonwood cuttings which they then planted. Chevron put in and maintained an irrigation system. The trees are now well-established; a few perished during a temporary glitch in the watering system but the remainder look very healthy.

2010-12-21T13:54:00.000-08:00

More photos from Dec. 19 and Dec 20. The water was running high on the 20th, kicking up lots of foam. Where does the foam come from?

2010-12-21T13:47:00.001-08:00

We are having record rains, the most in December (mainly in the last 2 days) since the 1930s. The river has risen significantly since Dec. 19 even though no water has been released from Isabella Dam. The hyacinth mats that choked the water have been swept away and trees along the banks are getting their feet wet for the first time in a long time. One can only imagine how it would have been before Isabella Dam!

PV Volunteers--Thanks!

2010-11-19T10:24:00.000-08:00

The Panorama Vista Preserve Volunteers Appreciation BBQ (Nov. 6) was a great success despite the windy weather. Of course, PV volunteers are used to adverse weather conditions, so what if the wind blew salad off a plate, a plate into a lap or tattered the paper “tablecloths?” We had a good time! Thanks to Lauren Franconi for putting it together, Carolyn Belli for salad, Bob Rutlege for the deep pit beef and salsa, Sparkletts for bottled water, Pyrenees Bakery for rolls, Lisa Borda of Borda Petites for wonderful cookies, Rich O’Neil for paper goods, and Kathi Parks for tables.

Salt grass

2010-10-17T10:25:00.000-07:00

A native salt grass is starting to appear in the 30-acre grove.

Bakersfield Cactus patch

2010-10-09T14:17:00.000-07:00

PV friend Larry recently spotted this previously unknown patch of Bakersfield Cactus on an out-of-the-way northern portion of the Preserve.

Before and After

2010-09-19T18:01:00.001-07:00

The 30 acre plot was a barren field when the top picture was taken before Christmas, 2009. The second and third pictures were taken in mid-September, 2010 of Section F in the western end of this same field. Bill is making a plant inventory. Cuttings averaged 8-12 inches high when we planted them last spring; many are now taller than Bill, Phil, or Andy.

2010-09-19T17:43:00.000-07:00

Spring and Summer 2010 have been busy with the planting of approximately 3000 trees and shrubs on the 30 acre plot. The well and pump are working well, the Natural Resources Conservation Service has given us the first part of its grant money, and the plantings flourished with regular water in the summer heat. We're also excited to see Nature starting to revegetate on its own-- a stand of native California Indian tobacco (in the foreground with yellow flowers) has popped up in the field.

Flooded Out

2010-09-19T16:27:00.000-07:00

This soggy looking gopher did himself out of his own home by gnawing through a nearby dripline which then flooded his burrow and forced him up to the surface. Critters like him (her?) find dripline very tasty and snack on it all too frequently. "Walking the line" and repairing leaks is routine maintenance.

2010-06-03T11:28:00.000-07:00

Bill mowed the 30 acre field in mid-March (see pictures below) after which the well was readied for use, drip lines laid for irrigation, and 6000 holes augured for the plants. We waited in eager anticipation for P.G. & E. to hook up the power for the pump. One postponement followed another (it was not until May 17 that the power company was able to get here!) Since Mother Nature generally waits for no man, not even a P. G. & E. electrician, Preserve volunteers started planting anyhow and rented a diesel generator for the pump. Luckily, M. Nature was a little off her rocker and sent unusually cool weather through April and May, good for the little plants. Higher temperatures (only in the high 80s) arrived only this week and the new plants are generally looking healthy. So far so good. These photos are from the same area shown in the March 21 blog . Thanks to the many volunteers who are helping make this happen. Much more remains to be done, however, so don’t hang up your shovel yet!

2010-03-24T15:24:00.000-07:00

S. A. Camp has finished installation of the 10,000 gallon tank which will provide water for the 30 acre grove. The water comes from a well originally dug in the 1940s or 1950s for a cattle feedlot operation that was nearby; S. A. Camp refurbished it for Preserve use.

Mowing the 30 acre plot

2010-03-21T12:13:00.000-07:00

The 30 acre grove is getting closer to being planted. The tall grass has to be mowed in order to see where to plant and put the drip lines. River Partners has visited and brought supplies. P.G.&E. still has not hooked up power for the pump.

Old areas where dredged mud has been dumped

2010-03-09T21:54:00.000-08:00

The mound you see here is dredged dirt dumped there at some unknown time in the past. A solitary nanus lupine and a few weeds are the only plants growing there.

Care needed when canal is dredged

2010-03-09T21:34:00.001-08:00

Periodically the city of Bakersfield has the Carrier (Kern Island) Canal dredged out and the bottom dregs (muck) dumped haphazardly nearby.

Contrary to common belief, this dirt or is not rich with nutrients; as the silt builds up in the canal, the lower layers become oxygen-deprived and lifeless.

So, instead of fertilizing the land on which they are dumped, they smother it. Eventually, enough bacteria may infiltrate the dirt and bring it alive, but only over the passage of time. The thinner the spread, the less time that will take.

Care needs to be taken that the city dredging contractors know this. They also need to know they should not dump the muck into historic river channels. Such care has been lacking.

Recent Bird Sightings

2010-03-08T10:55:00.000-08:00

This Great Horned Owl has its head turned 180 degrees and is looking over his back at us. It is perched in a cottonwood tree. The Kildeer was out for a stroll.

2010-03-07T10:06:00.000-08:00

Good working conditions on Saturday-- cool although overcast. Predicted rain never materialized. Good volunteer turnout, including CSUB students from Carl Kloock's class; they fanned out and picked up trash. Other volunteers stayed at the nursery and potted native blackberry cuttings or worked on the shade cloth's recent "wardrobe malfunction." Greg took these pictures-- thanks! Meanwhile, Andy drove around and supervised everyone.

2010-03-03T12:08:00.000-08:00

A few small lupines have appeared on the side of a bank near the nursery.

Shade cloth goes on

2010-03-02T16:38:00.000-08:00

Yesterday the guys installed shade cloth over the native plant nursery! (3/2/10)