Animals

Ladybugs and Ladybug larvae are beneficial insects for your garden because they eat aphids. Ladybugs are known by several other names: lady beetles, ladybug beetles, and ladybird beetles. Regardless of what you call them, these beetles belong to the family Coccinellidae. All ladybugs progress through a four-stage life cycle known as complete metamorphosis. Embryonic Stage (Eggs) The ladybug life cycle …

Behavior: Orb weavers are very docile, non-aggressive spiders that will flee at the first sign of a threat (typically they will run or drop off the web). They are not dangerous to people & pets, and are actually quite beneficial because they will catch and eat a lot of pest-type insects. Range Prolific throughout entire continental United States, Canada, Alaska, …

Arboreal Salamander – Aneides lugubris This salamander is commonly seen in moist shaded yards and gardens in Northern California, especially around the Bay Area. It also occurs along the coast through southern California, and north to Humboldt county along the coast and northern coast ranges, as well as in the central Sierra Nevada foothills. These salamanders can be seen walking …

Dragonflies are predators, both in their aquatic larval stage, when they are known as nymphs or naiads, and as adults. Several years of their life are spent as a nymph living in freshwater; the adults may be on the wing for just a few days or weeks. They are fast agile fliers, sometimes migrating across oceans, and are often but …

Our resident hummingbird appeared to be enjoying the rare spring rain