Favoritos de anne1167

Friend sent photos of a ”sluggish,” 3ft long, slender snake they encountered while hiking at Henry W. Coe State Park today for I.D. Photo credit: A. Skinlo.

Pacific Gopher Snake (Pituophis catenifer ssp. catenifer) A poisonous snake can hurt you if you eat it.
A venomous snake can hurt you if it bites you. This snake species is totally harmless.
"Adults range in size from 3–7 feet. They are "active in the daytime, and at night in hot weather. They are one of the most commonly seen snakes on roads and trails, especially in the spring when males are actively seeking a mate, and in the fall when hatchlings emerge. They are a good burrower, climber, and swimmer.
When threatened, a gopher snake will do several things, sometimes one after the other, including: crawling away quickly to escape or hide; freezing up - making the body rigid and kinked up so it won't be noticed or perceived as a snake; and striking at the threat to scare it off. Gophersnakes also use a more dramatic defensive behavior - sometimes a snake will elevate its body and inflate it with air while flattening its head into a triangular shape, hissing loudly, and quickly shaking its tail back and forth to make a buzzing sound."

A Guide to the Amphibians and Reptiles of California
https://californiaherps.com/snakes/pages/p.c.catenifer.html

Pacific Gophersnake - Pituophis catenifer catenifer (range maps and more)
http://www.californiaherps.com/snakes/pages/p.c.catenifer.html

Key to California Gophersnake Subspecies http://www.californiaherps.com/identification/snakesid/gophersnakessubspecies.html

Colubrid Snakes (Family Colubridae) Most colubrids are non-venomous, or have venom that is not known to be harmful to humans, and are mostly harmless. Some colubrids are described as opisthoglyphous "rear-fanged," meaning they have elongated, backward-facing grooved teeth in the back of their upper jaws.

The Reptile Database: https://reptile-database.reptarium.cz/species?genus=Pituophis&species=catenifer&search_param=%28%28search%3D%27pacific+gopher+snake%27%29%29

Description, info about Pacific Gopher Snake (Pituophis catenifer ssp. catenifer)
https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/51440-Pituophis-catenifer-catenifer

https://a-z-animals.com/blog/gopher-snake-vs-rattlesnake/

Mountain-mahogany Moth, 1cm long, pale gray with black spots resting on underside of Woolly Yerba Santa leaf. There is one species of Mountain Mahogany shrub that grows in Pinnacles National Park: Birchleaf Mountain Mahogany (Cercocarpus betuloides).
Link to host plant Woolly Yerba Santa observation: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/204059701

Mountain-mahogany Moth (Ethmia discostrigella) is a small flying insect in the Flat-bodied Moths (Depressariidae) family. There are several subspecies. https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/219583-Ethmia-discostrigella

BugGuide: https://bugguide.net/index.php?q=search&keys=Ethmia+discostrigella

Butterflies and Moths of North America (includes photos of adults and caterpillars)
https://www.butterfliesandmoths.org/species/Ethmia-discostrigella

Moth Photographers Group (excellent photos and species distribution map): https://mothphotographersgroup.msstate.edu/species.php?hodges=980&state=TX

Caterpillar anatomy diagram: https://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/butterfly/activities/printouts/caterpillarprintout.shtml

Caterpillars: INaturalist Project https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/california-caterpillars

Wagner's Caterpillars of Western North America "last we heard 1450 species accounts were in progress" thebals 6/6/23.

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References for Butterflies (not moths):

Butterflies of Monterey County: A comprehensive guide to finding and identifying 91 species of butterflies in Monterey County, Chris Tenney and Jan Austin, August 2023

Butterflies Through Binoculars: The West: a field guide to the butterflies of western North America, by Jeffrey Glassberg, 2001

Coming soon: Companion website to Butterflies of Monterey County: https://www.montereybutterflies.online/

Glossary of butterfly terms: https://butterfly.ucdavis.edu/resources/glossary

Butterflies of Central and Northern California: a guide to common and notable species, Jim Brock, laminated pamphlet, 2023

Butterflies & Their Favorite Flowering Plants: Anza-Borrego Desert State Park & Environs, Lynn and Gene Monroe, 2004

Southern California Butterflies http://socalbutterflies.com/index.htm

Common Butterflies of California, Text and Photographs by Bob Stewart, 1997

Kaufman Field Guide to Butterflies of North America. Brock and Kaufman, 2003

We saw several clusters of Oneflower Broomrape plants, each about 3 inches tall, growing along the trail mixed in with grasses, Goldfields, and California Saxifrage. Link to California Saxifrage observation: (pending)

Oneflower Broomrape (Aphyllon purpureum) Formerly called Naked Broomrape (Orobanche uniflora) or Naked Broom Rape. It has a variety of names in different references. It is a native, small, pubescent, root-parasitic plant in the Broomrape (Orobanchaceae) family that grows 3.5–18cm (up to 7 inches) tall in moist soils. It is parasitic on members of sunflower and saxifrage families. There are no leaves on single stem that bears one purple flower with orange filaments. Peak bloom time: April-July.

Monterey County Wildflowers:
"Naked Broomrape – Aphyllon purpureum (formerly Orobanche uniflora) grows in "moist places, parasitic on members of sunflower and saxifrage families. It is a true parasite, without photosynthetic leaves. It has 1-3 beautiful, small bluish-purple flowers, on pedicels 3–12 cm long. Most of the plant’s stem is underground. This species generally has pale purple (occasionally deep violet) to yellowish flowers.
[Note: All native California members of the Orobanche genus have been moved to the Aphyllon genus (see Jepson eFlora Revision 5, December 2017). It is now considered that A. uniflora is not found in California and that California plants previously treated as Orobanche uniflora did not belong to that species.]"
Monterey County Wildflowers https://montereywildflowers.com/orobanchaceae-xcastilleja/

Jepson eFlora with botanical illustration: https://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/eflora/eflora_display.php?tid=103312

Calflora https://www.calflora.org/entry/observ.html?track=m#srch=t&lpcli=t&taxon=Aphyllon+purpureum&chk=t&cch=t&cnabh=t&inat=r&cc=MNT and CA distribution: https://www.calflora.org/app/taxon?crn=13529

Monterey County Wildflowers: a Field Guide, Yeager and Mitchell, 2016, p. 110.

Flora of North America (still uses older name as of 3/29/24) http://beta.floranorthamerica.org/Orobanche_uniflora_subsp._occidentalis

Jojoba (Simmondsia chinensis) A.k.a. Goatnut. Native, perennial, long-lived, stiff-branched shrub that grows 3-6 ft tall in desert canyons, Creosote-bush scrub, desert wash scrub, chaparral, and coastal scrub habitats. Leaves are dull green, ascending, opposite, simple, leathery, oblong-ovate, and minutely hairy on both sides. It produces both staminate and pistillate yellowish-green flowers. Peak bloom time: March-May.
Jojoba is grown commercially in Arizona for its quality oil in the seeds. It is made into body oils, shampoos and other cosmetic preparations. Indigenous people, like the Cahuilla, (near Palm Springs, CA), used parts of the the plant for food, beverages and dermatologic aides. The 3-angled nuts, almost 1" long, were prepared and eaten. http://naeb.brit.org/uses/search/?string=Simmondsia+chinensis

Baja California Plant Field Guide, Jon P. Rebman, Norman C. Roberts, 3rd. ed, 2012, p. 383-384.

Anza-Borrego Desert Wildflowers https://borregowildflowers.org/?type=search&searchtype=S&family=&name=Simmondsia%20chinensis

Jepson eFlora https://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/eflora/eflora_display.php?tid=44601
Jepson Botanical Illustration: https://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/images/illustrations/f1251-09.png

Flora of North America with Botanical Illustration: http://beta.floranorthamerica.org/Simmondsia_chinensis

Shrubs and Trees of the Southern California Deserts. Jim W. Dole and Betty B. Rose, Foot-loose Press, 1996, pp. 116-117.

California Desert Wildflowers, Philip A. Munz, 1975, pp. 72-73.

Temalpakh: Cahuilla Indian Knowledge and Usage of Plants, Lowell John Bean and K. Saubel, Malki Museum Press, 1972, pp. 139-140.

A Database of Foods, Drugs, Dyes and Fibers of Native American Peoples, Derived from Plants http://naeb.brit.org/ and http://naeb.brit.org/uses/search/?string=Simmondsia+chinensis

CalFlora's Southern California Plant Communities http://www.calflora.net/botanicalnames/plantcommunities.html

Plants of Southern California: Regional Floras http://tchester.org/plants/floras/#abdsp (comprehensive website)

Native and Introduced Plants of Southern California by Tom Chester http://tchester.org/plants/index.html

Friend sent photos of mature gilled mushroom growing on Coast Live Oak (Quercus agrifolia) host. Photo credit: A. Skinlo.

An iNaturalist Introduction to Mushrooming, 6-minute Utube video by Christian Schwartz (leptonia on INat) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LKF_pIY0Zpc

Western Jack-O'-Lantern (Omphalotus olivascens)
Mycoweb: https://www.mykoweb.com/CAF/species/Omphalotus_olivascens.html
"Omphalotus olivascens is interesting in that the fruiting bodies are luminescent, at least when fresh, though to appreciate this quality requires sitting for many minutes in a completely dark room before the greenish glow becomes visible. In fresh specimens this glow is sometimes bright enough to read a newspaper!"
Omphalotus olivascens is a Gilled mushroom: Cap is 6-18 cm wide, convex, broadly convex at maturity. Margin is incurved at first, expanding and becoming wavy, upturned in age. Surface is smooth, moist, dull orange to orange-brown, developing olive green tones. Flesh is thin, pliant, and the same color as cap.
This mushroom is Not edible, toxic, and causes severe gastrointestinal upsets.

California Mushrooms Descriptions and Photographs https://www.mykoweb.com/CAF/species/Omphalotus_olivascens.html

California Mushrooms: the Comprehensive Identification Guide, D. Desjardin, M. Wood, and F. Stevens, 2nd printing 2019, p. 161.

Mushrooms of the Redwood Coast: A Comprehensive Guide to the Fungi of Coastal Northern California, N. Siegel and C. Schwarz, 2016, p. 394.

INaturalist Project: UV fluorescent organisms https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/uv-fluorescent-organisms

Fungi of California: Home page https://www.mykoweb.com/index.html and https://www.mykoweb.com/CAF/ and https://mykoweb.com/CAF/skey.html and https://www.mykoweb.com/CAF/keys/index.html

Lavender-purple mushroom, measuring 4.5-5 inches wide, found growing in shaded mixed woodland leaf litter. Friend sent the photos for I.D. Photo credit: A. Skinlo.

An iNaturalist Introduction to Mushrooming, 6-minute Utube video by Christian Schwartz (leptonia on INat) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LKF_pIY0Zpc

Blewit (Lepista nuda)
Mycoweb: calls it Clitocybe nuda,
Synonym: Lepista nuda
https://www.mykoweb.com/CAF/species/Clitocybe_nuda.html
"Cap is 4-14 cm (up to 5.5 inches) broad, convex, becoming nearly plane in age, margin inrolled, wavy, sometimes upturned at maturity; surface smooth, moist, violet to lilac, fading to tan; flesh soft, pale-lilac; odor fragrant, taste mild.
Gills are adnexed, notched to subdecurrent, close, moderately broad, violet to lilac, fading in age to tan or light-brown.
Stipe is 3-6.5 cm long, 1-2.5 cm thick, equal to enlarged or bulbous at the base, the latter frequently with adhering lilac to purple mycelium; surface fibrillose to slightly scaly, colored like the cap, veil lacking.
Habitat: Fruiting singly, gregariously, or in fairy rings under a variety of hardwoods and conifers; appearing from late fall to mid-winter; depauperate fruitings are occasionally seen along the coast during the summer, the result of fog drip.
Edible and considered good by many, but lacking somewhat in texture. Local material varies greatly in its taste, from quite good to very poor. Known to cause gastrointestinal upsets if eaten raw.
Comments:Clitocybe nuda is probably the Bay Area's most common edible mushroom fruiting abundantly in urban parks and to a lesser extent in natural habitats. It is recognized by a purple to lilac, smooth, almost waxy, wavy-margined cap which fades to tan, the lack of a veil, a faint fragrant odor, and pale pinkish-buff spore print. Lilac-colored mycelium is often found at the base of blewits. Those collecting for the table should be aware of several other lilac to purple mushrooms that occur locally: Laccaria amethysteo-occidentalis which can be told by its distinctly fibrous stipe, Mycena pura, a smaller mushroom with a striate cap margin and white spores, and Inocybe geophylla var. lilacina, also a small mushroom, which has brown spores and a green-corn odor. In addition, there are several violet to lilac-colored Cortinarius species, but all of these have a cob-web type of veil and rusty-brown spores." https://www.mykoweb.com/CAF/species/Clitocybe_nuda.html

Mushrooms of the Redwood Coast: A Comprehensive Guide to the Fungi of Coastal Northern California, N. Siegel and C. Schwarz, 2016, p. 359.

California Mushrooms: The Comprehensive Identification Guide, D. Desjardin, M. Wood, and F. Stevens, 2nd printing 2019, p. 153-154.

Fungi of California: Home page https://www.mykoweb.com/index.html and https://www.mykoweb.com/CAF/ and https://mykoweb.com/CAF/skey.html and https://www.mykoweb.com/CAF/keys/index.html

Squacco Heron (Ardeola ralloides) is a small, stout heron, 44–47 cm (17–19 inches) long, and with a wingspan of 80–92 cm (31–36 inches). It favors freshwater marshes, lakes, and ponds with reeds and other surrounding vegetation. It tends to hunt rather sluggishly, hunched quietly at the edge of the water. At rest, it appears buffy brown overall, but in flight transforms to mostly white when the white wings and tail are revealed. Breeding adult has a rich buffy neck; nonbreeding and immature have a streaked neck.

E Bird https://ebird.org/species/squher1 and https://ebird.org/explore

Bird songs, sound recordings, and species range map: https://xeno-canto.org/species/Ardeola-ralloides

Small orange disks with black, bristly hairs on margins and underside (4th photo), growing on wet log in a fast-moving shaded stream. Some of the discs were on submerged logs, others were in the splash zone.

An iNaturalist Introduction to Mushrooming, 6-minute Utube video by Christian Schwartz (leptonia on INat) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LKF_pIY0Zpc

Common Eyelash (Scutellinia scutellata) A.k.a. Eyelash Cup, Scarlet Elf Cap, Eyelash Fungus, or Eyelash Pixie Cup. It is a small, sessile, 5-10mm fungus in the (Pyronemataceae) family. It is a cosmopolitan fungi that is found on rotting wood in damp habitats, typically growing in small groups, sometimes forming clusters. Of more than a dozen species of Scutellinia, S. scutellata is the most common and widespread, though a microscope is often required to differentiate between some of them. It is differentiated from most other Scutellinia by its larger size, and its distinctive "eyelashes".

"Common Name: Eyelash Cup Fungus
Synonym: Patella scutellata
Sporocarp: Fruit body 0.5-1.5 cm broad, at first nearly round, becoming disc-shaped, the margin reflexed, sometimes wavy, with long (1-2 mm), stiff, dark-brown to black hairs; hymenium (upper surface) red to orange, smooth; lower surface colored like the hymenium but duller, also hairy, but not so conspicuously as the cup margin; stipe absent; flesh thin.
Habitat: Gregarious to grouped on moist, well rotted wood, less commonly on soil; fruiting from late winter to spring.
This brightly colored cup fungus is a harbinger of spring, often fruiting after the majority of mushrooms have disappeared. It is recognized by long, stiff, dark-colored marginal cup hairs and a red to orange hymenium. Other Scutellinia species, told apart by hair length, substrate preference and spore morphology may also occur in our area."
Fungi of California https://www.mykoweb.com/CAF/species/Scutellinia_scutellata.html

Mushrooms of the Redwood Coast: Comprehensive Guide to the Fungi of Coastal Northern California, Siegel and Schwarz, 2016, p. 567.

California Mushrooms: The Comprehensive Identification Guide, D. Desjardin, M. Wood, and F. Stevens, 2nd printing 2019, pp. 520-521.

Fungi of California: Home page https://www.mykoweb.com/index.html and https://www.mykoweb.com/CAF/ and https://mykoweb.com/CAF/skey.html and https://www.mykoweb.com/CAF/keys/index.html

What appeared to be 3 pinecones from a distance, was actually a parasitic, 11 cm tall Broomrape plant. It was growing in dry, sandy, inhospitable soil on a road cut slope of a fire road. There was Manzanita growing next to it.

California Groundcone (Kopsiopsis strobilacea) formally called Boschniakia strobilacea. Native, perennial, parasitic plant in the Broomrape (Orobanchaceae) family that grows 1-3 dm (4-12 inches tall). It is native to California and southern Oregon, where it grows in chaparral or on wooded slopes. It is parasitic on Manzanitas (Arctostaphylos) and Madrones, which it parasitizes by penetrating their roots to tap nutrients. Stems are erect and simple. It has no leaves. The inflorescence is spike-like, generally reddish-brown to brownish-purple. Bracts are densely overlapping. Flowers emerge from between the overlapping bracts.

Jepson eFlora https://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/eflora/eflora_display.php?tid=93802

There are 4 observations in Monterey County as of 7/9/23 on Calflora: https://www.calflora.org/entry/observ.html?track=m#srch=t&lpcli=t&taxon=Kopsiopsis+strobilacea&chk=t&cch=t&cnabh=t&inat=r&cc=MNT

Plants of Monterey County: an Illustrated Field Key, 2nd edition, Matthews and Mitchell, 2015, pp. 223-224.

Oregon Flora https://oregonflora.org/taxa/index.php?taxon=5890
(good photos of the plant)

(The) Monterey Pine Forest: Coastal California's Living Legacy, 2nd. ed, The Monterey Pine Forest Watch, 2018. (excellent book).

Link to fast-moving Arachnid on Mariposa Lily observation: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/166339101

Mariposa lilies growing on open open, mountainous grassland near the coast. I don't know much about soil composition, but the soil appears hard packed, silty, clay-like, with some serpentine soil, now covered by mostly grasses. In ancient times this area was a marine terrace.

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Clay Mariposa Lily (Calochortus argillosus) Similar in appearance to Butterfly Mariposa Lily (Calochortus venustus) but:

WITHOUT the maroon blotch/spot at outer end of petal.
Nectaries at base of petals are rectangular not square.
Hairs on nectary are long, dark purple-maroon, not short-yellow-hairy like C. venustus.

Calflora C. argillosus in Monterey County: https://www.calflora.org/entry/observ.html?track=m#srch=t&lpcli=t&taxon=Calochortus+argillosus&chk=t&cch=t&cnabh=t&inat=r&cc=MNT

Jepson eFlora: Clay Mariposa Lily (Calochortus argillosus)
"Stem: 40--60 cm, simple, bulblets present. Leaf: basal 20--30 cm, withering; cauline reduced upward. Inflorescence: +- umbel-like; flowers 1--4, erect; bracts 2--8 cm. Flower: perianth bell-shaped; sepals 20--40 mm; petals 20--40 mm, +- rounded, white to purple or pale yellow, central red spot within pale yellow, sparsely hairy; nectary 1 crescent or chevron, not depressed, densely short-hairy; filaments not dilated at base, anthers purple, pink to yellow-white. Fruit: erect, 4--6 cm, lanceolate. Ecology: Hard clay from volcanic or metamorphic rocks; Elevation: < 800 m. Peak bloom: April-June. Note: Flowers highly variable, generally showy."
Jepson eFlora: Clay Mariposa Lily (Calochortus argillosus) https://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/eflora/eflora_display.php?tid=76542

Monterey County Wildflowers: a Field Guide, Yeager and Mitchell, 2016--not listed
Plants of Monterey County: an Illustrated Field Key, 2nd edition, Matthews and Mitchell, 2015--not listed.
Flora of Fort Ord: Monterey County, California, David Styer, 2019--not listed
Monterey County Wildflowers, Trees & Ferns--not listed

See interesting discussion/comments re the Clay Mariposa Lilly growing in this area by Morgan Stickrod, helianthelsa and others:

https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/116355161

https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/49858393
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/6185354

We came to the Pinnacles to look for this tiny Monkeyflower, and found 12+ growing on gravelly slopes and in the flower-filled meadows, near the creek, on the North Wilderness Trail. Mouth looks like tiny orchid.

Purple Mouse Ears (Diplacus douglasii) A.k.a. Chinless Mouse-ears. Native, annual, hairy, small plant in the Lopseed (Phrymaceae) family and Monkeyflowers (Diplacus) genus. It grows only 0.3--4 cm (up to 1.5 inches) tall in moist gravelly, serpentine, or granitic soils, generally along the upper banks of small creeks. Calyx is 8-14mm and hairy. Flowers are magenta to purple, with gold -streaked throats. It has a long flower tube on a short pedicel. Peak bloom time February-April.

Per Jepson: "pedicel 2--4 mm; calyx 8--14 mm, hairy, lobes unequal, 0.5--2 mm, obtuse; corolla tube-throat 20--41 mm, tube gradually to +- abruptly widened, throat long, boldly mottled, striped gold and purple, limb magenta, upper lobes 4--5 mm, lower lobes < 1 mm."
Jepson eFlora https://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/eflora/eflora_display.php?tid=99051

Per FON: "leaves usually basal, reduced distally. Leaf blade is obovate to elliptic, margins entire or crenate, apex obtuse, surfaces: proximals glabrate, distals glandular-pilose adaxially."

Flora of North America http://floranorthamerica.org/Diplacus_douglasii

Calflora (with species distribution map in CA) https://www.calflora.org/app/taxon?crn=13428
and sightings in San Benito County: https://www.calflora.org/entry/observ.html?track=m#srch=t&lpcli=t&taxon=Diplacus+douglasii&chk=t&cch=t&cnabh=t&inat=r&cc=SBT

Plants of Monterey County: an Illustrated Field Key, 2nd edition, Matthews and Mitchell, 2015, pp. 232-233.

Monterey County Wildflowers: a Field Guide, Yeager and Mitchell, 2016, p. 113.

Monterey County Wildflowers– a photographic guide https://montereywildflowers.com/phrymaceae/

Oregon Flora (nice photo) https://oregonflora.org/taxa/index.php?taxon=4581

A pair of coyotes in the distant green meadow.

Coyote (Canis latrans) is a canine native to North America. Primarily carnivorous, its diet consists mainly of deer, rabbits, hares, rodents, birds, reptiles, amphibians, fish, and invertebrates, though it may also eat fruits and vegetables on occasion. Humans are the coyote's greatest threat, for example, if Coyote eats a rodent that was poisoned by human. Coyote tracks can be distinguished from those of dogs by their more elongated, less rounded shape.

LIFE SPAN: 10-18 yrs. TOP SPEED: 64 km/h. WEIGHT: 7-20 kg. HEIGHT: 53-61 cm. LENGTH: 1-1.4 m

Coyotes are medium-sized dog-like animals with small feet, slender legs, a narrow pointed muzzle, and erect pointed ears. There are four toes on each foot, with claws, and a smaller fifth toe with a dewclaw, which does not come into contact with the ground. Its color is reddish, grayish, or yellowish-brown streaked with black, with paler underparts. There is a black patch at the tip and base of the tail, and on the front of the ankles. The upper parts of the feet, nape, muzzle, backs of the ears, and outer surfaces of the legs are reddish-brown or tan.
https://animalia.bio/coyote

Looks like a patch of small “cups with tiny discs inside” clustered on an old fire road, amongst woody debris.

Field Bird's Nest Fungus (Cyathus olla) A.k.a. Gray-egg Bird's Nest. "Eggs" 1-10, generally fewer than 5.

Mushrooms of the Redwood Coast: Comprehensive Guide to the Fungi of Coastal Northern California, Siegel and Schwarz, 2016, p. 535.

California Mushrooms: The Comprehensive Identification Guide, D. Desjardin, M. Wood, and F. Stevens, 2nd printing 2019, 466-467.

Fungi of California: Home page https://www.mykoweb.com/index.html and https://www.mykoweb.com/CAF/ and https://mykoweb.com/CAF/skey.html and https://www.mykoweb.com/CAF/keys/index.html and https://www.mykoweb.com/CAF/species/Cyathus_olla.html

Salmon-Eggs (Hemitrichia decipiens) is a species in the kingdom of Protozoa and in the class of True Slime Molds and the Trichiaceae family. . .

The Curious Observer's Guide to Slime Mold: of Santa Cruz and Beyond, Carrie Niblett, 2nd ed. 2021, pp. 54-55.

Slime Molds: 27 references and tools compiled by @ regularslimeguy https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/169310771

Large, brown, hairy, 8-legged Tarantula walking across the trail. It's the time of year when males are on the move searching for females. They are gentle creatures and do not bite unless provoked.

Desert Tarantula (Aphonopelma iodius) Native species of spider in the Tarantula (Theraphosidae) family. This species is found in a wide variety of dry habitats, not only in deserts. It lives in silk-lined burrows under the surface. Females obstruct the entrance to their burrows with a silk and dirt plug to protect against heat and predators. Males are often seen in the fall when they travel in search of females who are waiting in their underground dens. They are gentle creatures and do not bite unless provoked.

Historically, every year, there has been the Tarantula Fest at Henry Coe to celebrate and educate the public about local tarantulas. This year (2022) it was on the 1st of October. Here is a video about the event from November 2005 on Huell Howser's California Golden Parks: https://blogs.chapman.edu/huell-howser-archives/2005/11/08/tarantulas-californias-golden-parks-128/

Kaufman Field Guide to Insects of North America, Eaton and Kaufman, 2006, p. 22.

https://bugguide.net/index.php?q=search&keys=Aphonopelma+iodius

Field Guide to Spiders of California and the Pacific Coast States, RJ Adams and Tim Manolis, 2014, pp. 28-32.

Spiders in Your Neighborhood: A Field Guide, Revised and Expanded Paperback, 2022, Patrick Stadille, pp. 51-52.

Spider Eye Arrangements (for each family) Lynette Elliott: https://bugguide.net/node/view/84423