Tag Archives: Gualala

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A group of subadult Gray Whales that didn't migrate to the Bering Sea has been seen off of the Mendonoma coast regularly this summer. Paul Brewer photographed a few off his home in Gualala.

You see a tail, a flipper, and the head and back with the remnants of the blow.

Thanks to Paul for allowing me to share his photos with you here. To see much more of Paul's nature photography, here is his website: http://www.capturingnatureswonders.com/

We are having autumn-like weather, with lots of clouds scurrying across the sky. It's quite lovely.

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When you install a motion detector camera, you open a new window to the world of nature. In Pat Sorensen’s case, he has three outdoor cameras at his place on the Gualala Ridge. He has many nocturnal sightings, including Gray Foxes who sometimes drink out of his birdbath. On July 7, and again on July 17, his cameras picked up the sighting of a huge Black Bear. The photos are a little blurry, but you can see it's a big bear!

Pat said, “The bear did no damage and left no ‘calling cards.’ He walked by the shed and headed east into the brush.” The territory of a female Black Bear is typically 2.5 to 10 square miles. A male Black Bear’s range is between 10 and 59 square miles.

It’s not surprising to have a Black Bear sighting, especially with huckleberries ripening up. Pat noticed American Robins, in particular, were in berry-laden bushes, and Deer are eating the berries too.

Thanks to Pat for allowing me to share his photos with you here!

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Doreen Clay looked over a bluff in Gualala and found a family of River Otters entering the Pacific Ocean.

She wrote, “I was quite excited! The otters moved quickly and disappeared into the sea. We love Gualala, and its wild creatures.”

There is a family of River Otters that lives at the mouth of the Gualala River. They are fascinating to observe. The mother raises her family; the father is long gone. River Otters have been seeing playing with each other and in the waves. These otters can't abide pollution in the water, so their presence here is a testament to the health of our rivers, streams and ocean.

Thanks to Doreen for allowing me to share her photo with you here.

Breezy, cooler weather is the order of the day close to the ocean today.

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It's pretty rare to see one of these birds on the Mendonoma coast, but Gail Jackson spotted this Yellow-headed Blackbird in the parking lot of Surf Supermarket.

Their call is described on allaboutbirds.org: Males sing a few musical notes followed by a screeching buzz, rather like a heavy door swinging on a very rusty metal hinge. You can hear it at this link - it's pretty funny to hear: https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Yellow-headed_Blackbird/sounds

Thanks to Gail for allowing me to share her photo with you here. We had fog this morning but it has given way to blue skies and very mild temps.

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On May 9th, John Wall caught the magic!  He photographed a fogbow stretching over Gualala Point Island. We had fog with very high water content. Normally fogbows are completely white, but this one had a little hint of color.

Gary Curtis also photographed a fogbow that day, and his shows even more color.

These were both taken from The Sea Ranch. But fogbows were seen that day off Gualala and off Anchor Bay. Yes, I saw one that day too. It's rare to see a fogbow, so we are always excited about seeing one.

Thanks to John and Gary for allowing me to share their photos with you here.