Local Birds III

Some pics of the scrub jay and swallow. Swallows build these special nests of mud and can attach them to man made dwellings or dams. Yours truly has seen them dart in and out of dam holes diving for flying insects. They seem to be in constant motion. They have the "swello...swello...swello...sweet...sweet" sound done over and over. Jays can be seen looking for "worm grub" on the ground and can squack at your domestic cat, ground squirrels or people.

Local Birds II

Here are some pics of waterfowl. Even in the Los Angeles River, one can find many ducks, pigeons, pipers, cranes, swallows, and the like. Often the ducks will fly in small cliques. The land birds can be seen joining them on occasion EG sparrows, scrub jays, finches, swallows, mockingbirds, black birds, crows, robins and so forth.

Local Birds I

Here's the great horned owl and red tailed hawk. The owl can turn its head almost 360 degrees and it's sense of sight at nite is impeccible. The hawk is often seen in hiking in the day. It will glide hundreds of feet above valleys with the wind or in little wind. They are often calling to each others. Occasionally one can see them with a meal picked up.

Old City Buses

Here are some of the older buses. These had real deisel engines and real power...unlike today's methanol weaklings. You pulled the line chain and a "buzz" would occur. Also here's an L.A. yellow car and the old PE trolley early 1900s.

California native plants

Here are the Lord's Candle yucca, chamise, ceanothus, and elderberry. The yuccas seen in the city at 1000 feet and can be seen well up to 7000 feet above the sea. Chamise very well suited to the drought climate, storing water for years and years. They have a yellowed/white appearance in the spring and distinctive browning in the early fall/late summer. Whole mountain ridges can have this browning type color...these are the chamise. Ceanothus (lilacs) offer groves of blue flowers on mountain ridges...very beautiful in the springtime. Elderberry offers a distinctive blue berry locally and is edible. These are often bright green with yellow "bouquets" of flowers in the spring.

Local woodpecker

Here is a rough drawing of it. Often you will hear it knocking at telephone poles and trees trying to find grub. It has a distinctive gutteral chirp to it. Nuttals woodpecker down in this area...maybe 5 other types as well flying in and out of Los Angeles basin.

Euclid Belly Dumps and older power shovel