For me, the last few weeks have been characterized by a general sense of being unproductive.  Much of my work area at the Bufferlands is still under water due to the extremely wet March and early April, and the high waters in the Delta are not allowing the water to recede.

On the plus side, our friends Len and Sue came up from Los Angeles, and we spent a very nice day in San Francisco—a place, despite its proximity, I haven’t visited in a few years.  We also saw the movie, Thank you for Smoking, which was quite good.

Migrant songbirds have been moving through, though access to the bottomland forest has been limited.

The flooding has also resulted in increased access to our restored forests by beavers.

The damage can be a little discouraging.

This female Mallard sitting in a stick nest was quite odd.  She wasn't actually nesting, but it was a novel sight.

This Pied-billed Grebe was on a nest too, but not just hanging out like the Mallard.

There were several Wood Ducks on a pond at Sutter's Fort in Sacramento.

A co-worker found this impressive beetle larva.

It is apparently a water beetle.

This pale kingsnake was another highlight.  It was found under a board with a large gopher snake and a more typical (black and light) kingsnake.

On one of the clear days, it was warm enough for these meadowhawks.

Near home along the American River, Kimya and I saw this western tiger swallowtail.

Then this past Sunday, we headed to Table Mountain near Oroville.  We try to visit every year, and the late rains allowed for a good late season visit.

It has wonderful vistas and great wildflowers, like this Lewisia.

And this violet.

Not to mention the falls.

In the pond just above the falls, we usually find California newts, and sometimes their eggs.  The water was very cold and a little murky, but with patience, we saw them coming up for air.

And going back down.

Then there were these tiny grasshoppers.  They were the size of ants.