Wildflower Mount Diablo Wild Radish, yellow Invasive Scientific Name: Raphanus sativus Family: Brassicaceae (Mustard Family) Blooms: Mar - Jun Color: Yellow-Orange Annual or biennial herb Introduced Can be found in both pink, white and yellow forms. Jump to Blooming Now Blue / Purple Red / Pink White Yellow / Orange Invasive Plants Stephen Smith Yellow form Stephen Smith Color variations

Weird and Wonderful: Button's Banana Slug by Dan Sandri June 1, 2024 Dan Sandri Did you know, as you hike or bike Mount Diablo in the rainy season, you may encounter a truly strange and imperiled mollusk underfoot? They are not at all common, but we recently found one on our monthly MDIA BioBlitz hike on Mitchell Canyon Road. The Button’s Banana Slug (Ariolimax buttoni), the banana slug found on and around Mount Diablo, has a status of Globally Imperiled, meaning it is at high risk of extinction or collapse due to restricted range, few populations or occurrences, steep declines, severe threats, or other factors. The Button’s Banana Slug is a fascinating creature! The species has a yellowish-tan hue and can be either spotted or unspotted. It is a detritivore that eats dead organic matter, but also eat plants (they are herbivores), as well as animal feces and mushrooms. Its mouth is on the bottom of its head with a tongue called a radula that is covered in microscopic teeth to help break down food. Get this: the slug excretes waste through the anus located on the side of its head! Banana slugs are simultaneous hermaphrodites—meaning it has male and female sexual organs at the same time. However, sexually mature individuals can have no male reproductive organs, reduced male reproductive organs, or normal male reproductive organs. Those with normal male reproductive organs can mate either as a male or a female, or can perform both roles at the same time if mating as a pair. Or it can self-fertilize. Speaking of truly strange: during reproduction, Ariolimax buttoni may engage in apophallation (no details here - you can look that word up if you like strange and can stomach it!). When looking for food or a mate, Ariolimax buttoni moves via a foot on its underside that contracts and relaxes. It can glide over surfaces by producing a slime layer that aids in combating friction. The slime it produces deters predators because it is toxic and causes numbing to the mouth of organisms that attempt to ingest it. So, next time you see a Button’s Banana Slug, you will be looking at a rare, exceptional slug! -Dan Sandri BACK TO LIST

Wildflower Mount Diablo Flaccid Cryptantha Scientific Name: Cryptantha flaccida Family: Boraginaceae (Borage Family) Blooms: March Color: White Annual herb Native Jump to Blooming Now Blue / Purple Red / Pink White Yellow / Orange Invasive Plants Daniel Fitzgerald Flower detail Daniel Fitzgerald Leaf detail Daniel Fitzgerald

Pale Swallowtail Papilio eurymedon Papilionidae Swallowtails Flies March to August Host Plant Coffee Berry, California Lilac Nectar Plant California buckeye Daniel Fitzgerald Male Arnold Joe Underwing Daniel Fitzgerald

California Mountain Digger Bee Habropoda depressa Apidae Habropoda Describe your image Describe your image Describe your image Describe your image Describe your image Describe your image Description Habropoda depressa are stout, gray bees, with brownish appressed hair covering the top of their abdomen. They have white scopae on their outer hind legs, and a broad, flat head (vs. Diadasia ). In Habropoda the first recurrent vein terminates at or near the apex of the second submarginal cell (see arrow; versus near the middle in Anthophora ). Their 3rd submarginal wing cell is narrowed anteriorly (vs. Anthophora ). Nectar/ Pollen Plants These bees are generalists. Commonly visit manzanita blossoms. Habits These ground nesters make just one cell for their egg at the end of the burrow. Male bees emerge from nests first and wait for nearby female bees to emerge. Some bees remain un-emerged for years, perhaps awaiting heavier rainfall. Season February - early June

Blue-Gray Gnatcatcher Wrens, Kinglets, and Gnatcatchers Blue-Gray Gnatcatcher Polioptila caerulea Summer Wrens, Kinglets, and Gnatcatchers Daniel Fitzgerald This active insectivore is blue-gray above and whitish below with a narrow white eye ring. Its longish tail is mostly white underneath.

Wildflower Mount Diablo Gumplant, Great Valley Gumplant, Gumweed Scientific Name: Grindelia camporum Family: Asteraceae (Sunflower Family) Blooms: Color: Yellow-Orange Perennial herb Native, endemic to California Jump to Blooming Now Blue / Purple Red / Pink White Yellow / Orange Invasive Plants Mike Woodring

Lindsey's Skipper Hesperia lindseyi Hesperiidae Skippers Flies April to June Host Plant Bunchgrass Nectar Plant Coyote mint, Mustards (sinapis and brassica) Kevin Hinsta

Wildflower Mount Diablo Hedge Mustard Scientific Name: Sisymbrium officinale Family: Brassicaceae (Mustard Family) Blooms: Apr - Jun Color: Yellow-Orange Annual herb Introduced Per Ertter & Bowerman, naturalized from Europe Jump to Blooming Now Blue / Purple Red / Pink White Yellow / Orange Invasive Plants Kevin Hintsa

Wildflower Mount Diablo Woolly Morning Glory, Sierra False Bindweed Scientific Name: Calystegia malacophylla Family: Convolvulaceae (Bindweed Family) Blooms: May - Jun Color: White Perennial herb Native, endemic to California Jump to Blooming Now Blue / Purple Red / Pink White Yellow / Orange Invasive Plants Daniel Fitzgerald Daniel Fitzgerald Daniel Fitzgerald Daniel Fitzgerald

Wildflower Mount Diablo Chaparral Sunflower, Slender Sunflower Scientific Name: Helianthus gracilentus Family: Asteraceae (Sunflower Family) Blooms: May-Sep Color: Yellow-Orange Perennial herb Native, found only slightly beyond California borders Growing in abundance along Knobcone Point Road in a clearing in the chaparral. Jump to Blooming Now Blue / Purple Red / Pink White Yellow / Orange Invasive Plants Daniel Fitzgerald Daniel Fitzgerald Daniel Fitzgerald

Anna's Hummingbird Hummingbirds Anna's Hummingbird Calypte anna All Year Hummingbirds Daniel Fitzgerald Daniel Fitzgerald Found in a wide diversity of habitats, ranging from open woodlands to brushy chaparral habitats. Upperparts greenish in color, dusky white below with greenish wash. Note red throat and crown in male. Learn the squeaky, insect-like song; at first, it is easy overlooked, but once learned it becomes a valuable aid in identification. Nests in trees or shrubs. Nest is a cup-shaped structure built from plant down and spider's silk. Feeds on flower nectar, small insects and spiders.