Bee Colony Gone

We first photographed this bee hive, located high up on a dead tree, in 2011 but it may have been there some time before. It was still active in April of 2013 but it is dead and falling apart as of April 2014. We hope the bees might simply have migrated elsewhere and not fallen victim to Colony Collapse Disorder.  A beekeeper friend says new bees may eventually take up residence.  We will be keeping an eye out.

Native Plant Propagation at the Preserve

People sometimes wonder where the plants being raised in Panorama Vista's native plant nursery come from. With few exceptions, stock (such as these potted willows) have been propagated from cuttings or seeds collected on Preserve property. Volunteers hand-water them in the nursery so they will be ready to plant. Many thanks to these volunteers!

 

Great Blue Heron Keeping an Eye on Things

Dick Adams (1940-2013) was the Program Chairman for the Kern Audubon Society and to reflect his love for birding and to honor his memory, Audubon members chose to plant an elderberry, whose berries are a prime source of food for birds.

Here we see Harry Love driving in a post with a plaque to Dick Adams and in the middle of the cleared space is a young elderberry enclosed in chicken wire;  by this time next year it should be 5 feet tall.

After all eggs are hatched, the nest is abandoned and looks as if nothing had ever happened there.

Killdeer parents do not allow shell to remain in the nest.

KILLDEER CHICKS ARE PRECOCIOUS