Photo taken by Juliet Malik.
On the weekend of April 26 and 27, Shasta Environmental Alliance’s (SEA’s) hike leader, Juliet Malik, was joined by local naturalist and birder extraordinaire Ross Schaefer to guide a small but enthusiastic group of citizen scientists along trails in Whiskeytown National Recreation Area and the Sacramento River Trail. Our objective was to photograph and/or take audio recordings of as many living organisms as we could for the Shasta County City Nature Challenge. This is the first year that our region officially participated in this iNaturalist project, which was organized globally by the California Academy of Sciences and the Museum of Natural Sciences of Los Angeles County, and locally organized by Point Blue Conservation Science. SEA’s weekend bioblitz events yielded hundreds of observations and contributed to a vast database of species documentation. Many of our observations will be verified as “research grade,” and made available for use by scientists around the world.
For the Whiskeytown portion of this event, on Saturday, April 26, the weather was cool and cloudy and perfect for spending hours taking pics and discussing identifications, many of which were provided by Ross who shared his wealth of native plant and bird knowledge with the group. A special highlight of the trip for plant enthusiasts was the rose firecracker-flower (Dichelostemma x venustum). This is an uncommonly seen plant that is considered to be a natural hybrid between D. ida-maia and either D. congestum or D. multiflorum.
We also logged some gorgeous California snowdrop bushes, turkey-tails, California tortoiseshell caterpillars, several biscuitroot (Lomatium) species, prettyface, sulphur peas, a banana slug, mountain phacelia, and several western black-legged ticks that liked Ross’s exposed legs! (Always a good reminder to check yourself for ticks after spending time in the wilderness!)
Photo taken by Ren Redlich on April 26, 2025.
Photo taken April 26, 2025, by Juliet Malik.
The Sacramento River Trail, our Sunday destination, never disappoints in plant and bird diversity and the group logged many native species including blue elderberry, taw manroot, Oregon ash, maidenhair fern, red-seeded dandelion, and chokecherry. Ross identified several birds by ear, including western tanager, warbling vireo, and a black-headed grosbeak. The whole group delighted in getting eyes on a yellow warbler, a pair of mallards, spotted towhees, and a nesting pair of red-shouldered hawks.
Photo taken April 27, 2025, by Juliet Malik.
Photo taken by Juliet Malik on April 27, 2025.
The official bioblitz may be over, but anyone can continue to build up documentation of our region’s incredible biodiversity by uploading photos to iNaturalist of what you see when you’re out on the trail, in your neighborhood, or in a park. Springtime is a great time to get outdoors and share what you see and hear! ~Juliet Malik