Update of 9/2 observation of Artichoke gall-like observation found on Quercus agrifolia.
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/181449885
Larvae preserved in 40% ethanol and refrigerated.
Larvae measure ~2.5mm in length.
Parasitoid of Rhopalomyia californica.
@graysquirrel @merav @norikonbu @nancyasquith @megachile @garth_harwood
This is a fun one!
On Quercus berberidifolia, California scrub oak
https://www.gallformers.org/gall/3746
Gall on a nonnative pine in a park? I am looking at the brown thing on the green cone. I am not sure if this is a gall. I will remove it from the gall project if it is not.
this obs is for the Usnea growing out of the Cladonia
Found by @graysquirrel. See her observation at https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/160694737
Unknown acorn gall according to @graysquirrel
Similar observation here:
Tomatoes in the middle of the creek
Found by @graysquirrel on dead wood of Douglas Fir
Galled berries on greenleaf manzanita
(See how enlarged they are compared to normal berries: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/178311006)
on blue blossom ceanothus
got pictures of the glabrous anthers to compare with ptilota
hope this is not an emergent nuisance plant in our neighborhood ditches
Found by @graysquirrel in a garden in Sacramento, on redwood needles. Focus stack of 178 images using a 10x microscope objective adapted to a Sony a7r2 camera.
an odd-looking form. why so red, bruh?
Galled manzanita berries? I can't find anything similar. Every berry had exit holes--I was trying to find one that was intact to bring home and see what happens. I had to go a ways before finding a few. Photo 3 has a couple of views of a wasp that was on an adjacent berry. I didn't see it until I looked at the photos at home or I would have tried for a better shot.
Photos include habitat (under a rock) and a Garrya (host plant). This was on serpentine
First flowers on new inflorescences. One with a prominent female structure, one without. If anyone knows why this variation occurs, please advise!
Hybrid of White Globe Lily and Yellow Star-Tulip
Fruiting on Liriodendron tulipifera bark in a moist chamber. Photographed with a 10x objective lens.
On a thin stick, probably manzanita.
leucistic (a touch albino) common raccoon in a gaze. ML for INat wasn't able to ID this little pink button nose.
Originally I had no idea what this was. I thought it was a cordyceps as it has erupted from the body of a katydid or grasshopper. Someone has suggested pin mold, another has suggested slime mold.
Found positioned on a decaying log in subtropical rainforest next to a creek. We have recently had lots of rain and high humidity.
Via a cordyceps identification page on Facebook, Nigel Hywel-Jones commented "It is indeed spectacular, and rare. In 35+ years and over 20,000 collections in 12 countries I have found it once. On an adult moth. That is how rare it is. It is in the genus Sporodiniella and is a Zygomycete. It looks similar to Sporodiniella umbellata."
So I have now listed it as such.
Leafminer on Coast Live Oak. I thought that it was a leafminer, but it is a gall.
this observation is for the possible fungal parasite on Niebla cephalota observation: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/5181345
This obs is now for the gall-former. (Previously ID'ed for the plant)
With a Pathogen?
On Eriogonum sp. Not sure if this is part of the plant, or a gall, or some form of fungus.
This is a follow-up post to some odd growth on manzanita (Arctostaphylos manzanita ssp. manzanita) branches. Morgan Stickrod suggested that it might be a "disturbance response," which does occur in various types of Arctostaphylos. In this case, the disturbance seems to be woodborers. All of the burl-like growths on the outside of branches had woodbores underneath, inside the stem. However, this conclusion is based on a pretty small sample--I only opened up 3 or 4 sections of one small branch. (Manzanita wood was too hard for most of my available tools.) I found two types of woodborers; one I believe is Agrilus sp, possibly Agrilus arbuti which has been documented in manzanita in California. The second might be Lyctus sp, but there really isn't much to compare either borer to online, especially larvae or eggs. Photos 5-10 show the possible Agrilus bores, etc, and 11-12 are the possible Lyctus.
Original post: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/140753976
Follow-up 2 observation: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/143517527
Coleoptera Observation 1: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/143513192
Coleoptera Observation 2: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/143513486
Host: Catsear (I think - other opinions welcome.) Note brown gall body within a rosette gall composed of clustered leaves showing swollen petioles/ midribs. Not represented in Russo's field guides. @nancyasquith, @megachile, @kemper
Spotted knapweed (Centuarea stoebe) and star thistle (Centuarea solstitialis) hybrid. Centuarea stoebe X solstitialis. Growing among the two parent species. ID confirmed by Genevieve Walden at CDFA plant pest diagnostic lab via morphology. Molecular analysis by Patrick Woods and Monica Negrete turned up partial reads with hits on analyses to ribotypes for Centuarea solstitialis and to Centaurea stoebe.
Mud dauber nest?
On grand fir. White columns, not orange.
Galls on the plant
Found on zucchini
On dead adaxial leaf of Arctostaphylos tomentosa ssp. bracteosa
Possible galling along leaf veins in distinctive pattern.
The focus of this observation is not the plant (Plantago lanceolata), but whatever is causing the malformation. Instead of an inflorecense developing it seems to be producing a rosette of leaves and a white feathery looking texture at the base of those leaves.
drippy canyon live oak acorns. Is it a different infection on canyon vs. interior and coast live oak?
Fantastic linear gall on Gutierrezia sarothrae flower head! Ridged surface, pinkish coloration.
Found on Arundo donax near an area where this wasp is being used for biological control of said plant. GPS location approximate
Strolled through my backyard, 7:05 a.m. I'm no expert, but one person suggested that this is a young, healthy, pregnant female.
On California Rose.
Doesn't look like Diplolepis polita to me.
I think it may be Dimargaris? Found on unknown carnivore dung along cataract trail at mount tamalpais.
Thin, light material seen floating around, almost like a spider web
on Eucalyptus camaldulensis. I'm not sure if this is caused by an insect or a plant disease.
On Eucalyptus
On Monterey pine
Host = Sarcobatus vermiculatus
(Arceuthobium littorum) Coastal Dwarf-Mistletoe is a Native parasitic mistletoe that only grows on native Monterey Pine and Bishop Pine; endemic to the coastline of northern California where these trees grow. Main stem is 3--14 cm, with segmented offshoots that are yellowish brown to olive green, with fragile, jointed stems. Only a tiny part of the plant is visible; most is parasitizing beneath the bark. Parasitic specifically on Pinus radiata (Monterey Pine) and Pinus muricata (Bishop Pine). Peak bloom time:
July-November. Fruits are clusters of pale green, spherical-shaped balls in the fall. An example observation of fruiting: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/93928981
See Fred Watson Journal Post discussion of Arceuthobium littorum vrs A. campylopodum: https://www.inaturalist.org/journal/fredwatson/69693-coastal-dwarf-mistletoe-arceuthobium-littorum-taxonomic-history
TREATMENT FROM THE JEPSON MANUAL (1993)
https://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/cgi-bin/get_JM_treatment?7836,7837,7845
A search on Jepson's eFlora of Arceuthobium littorum-- Jepson calls it a "synonym" and takes you to A. campylopodum. https://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/eflora/eflora_display.php?tid=13881
These 3 local references call it Arceuthobium littorum, Coastal Pine Dwarf Mistletoe:
Arceuthobium littorum (Pine/Dwarf Mistletoe) "Habitat: Coastal. This species is found only near the coast, on Monterey and Bishop Pines (Pinus radiata and Pinus muricata). It is wholly parasitic, using specially modified roots called haustoria to draw water and nutrients from its host plant. Although Jepson combines this species with two others under Arceuthobium campylodum, more recent literature suggests that differences in form and host plants justify keeping the three species separate."
Monterey County Wildflowers, Trees and Ferns https://montereywildflowers.com/viscaceae/
These 2 local references also call it Arceuthobium littorum (Coastal Pine Dwarf Mistletoe):
Monterey County Wildflowers: a Field Guide, Yeager and Mitchell, 2016, p. 407.
Plants of Monterey County: an Illustrated Field Key, 2nd edition, Matthews and Mitchell, 2015, pp. 308-309.
Cultivated hedge. Interesting decision
@damontighe @chyroptera apparently there’s one at every campsite now