October 1, 2026
1300 – 1530; Sunny and warm (~79° F), with a mostly clear sky.
I was going to frame this as the first off-campus field trip with my Organismal Biology class, but it’s not really off-campus, since we went to Indian Valley. We were originally supposed to go to Roy’s Redwoods, but I didn’t realize I needed to apply for a permit to bring more than 15 people, so we pivoted today to come to Indian Valley instead (which was also on our field trip list, later in the semester).
When we arrived, I was happy to run in to Tealy, who runs the Organic Farm. She didn’t have time to give us a tour of the farm, but graciously unlocked the gate so I could take the students in and show them around. In addition to giving them an overview of the farm, right away, we started seeing some interesting wildlife. A Turkey Vulture soared overhead, and a Great Egret hunted amongst the rows of vegetables. A Pallid-winged Grasshopper flew/hopped past and landed in the path to give us a good view. The first excitement of the day was a tiny Western Fence Lizard who crawled up the leg of one of my students. I was able to get it in hand, so everyone was able to take a closer look. Throughout the day, we saw several fence lizards – mostly pretty small, but a couple of medium sized ones. I’d estimate that we saw at least a dozen during our time in the area.
Another fun sighting was a Black-tailed Jackrabbit near the back fence. We also saw a pretty Field Skipper on our way out of the farm. As we regrouped outside the gates, a couple of my students spotted an Emerald Moth resting on the side of one of the college buildings. Around this time, a California Scrub-jay flew past.
Next, we made the short hike to Pacheco Pond. Along the way, we saw lots of characteristic California woodland/riparian vegetation: lots of Coast Live Oak, Coyote Brush, California Bay, Common Manzanita, and more Pacific Madrone than I remember ever seeing before at one site. There was a large stand of Armenian Blackberry, and quite a lot of Pennyroyal throughout the area, and just a few Poison Oak plants. I also spotted a Gray Buckeye and Mylitta Crescent near the trail.
At the pond, we found a Great Blue Heron perched on a log in the middle of the pond, and lots and lots of Western Mosquitofish. (Didn’t find any tadpoles, but it seems a bit late in the season for them). Scrub-jays were heard in the nearby trees, and a Black Phoebe was hunting at the far side of the pond, which was ringed by some sort of cattail or bulrush. (I need to get more familiar with these plants).
We spotted some turtles swimming in the pond, and sure enough, they were Northwestern Pond Turtles! In addition to the swimmers, we also found the empty carapace of a NWPT near the edge of the pond. I asked my students to explore a bit and make some observations, and a couple of them spotted a juvenile Western Skink which was sheltering in a hollow at the base of a small tree.
After walking back from the pond, I decided that we’d take a look at the Amphibian Restoration Project area. The swale and all nearby ponds were completely dry, and we didn’t see any amphibians, but one of my students gave a great overview of the project. In this area at the far side of the ball fields, I saw a couple of (Red-shafted) Northern Flicker, a Black Phoebe, and a Golden-crowned Sparrow. Oh, and I took a little break while Lily was explaining the amphibian project, all the while accompanied by a smallish Western Fence Lizard who was sitting on a rock about 2 feet away from where I chose to sit.
After visiting the amphibian site, we were all a bit warm and tired, so I let everyone head home. A couple of my students stayed longer to do some butterfly surveying, and found a gorgeous Ceanothus Moth (which I wish I’d stayed to see).
Species List
Turkey Vulture (Cathartes aura), Pallid-winged Grasshopper (Trimerotropis pallidipennis), Western Fence Lizard (Sceloporus occidentalis), Great Egret (Ardea alba), California Poppy (Eschscholzia californica), Black-tailed Jackrabbit (Lepus californicus), Borage (Borago officinalis), Field Skipper (Atalopedes campestris), Emerald Moth (Dichorda illustraria), California Scrub-Jay (Aphelocoma californica), Purple Star-Thistle (Centaurea calcitrapa), Armenian Blackberry (Rubus armeniacus), Gray Buckeye (Junonia grisea), Yerba Buena (Clinopodium douglasii), Pacific Madrone (Arbutus menziesii), Mylitta Crescent (Phyciodes mylitta), Pennyroyal (Mentha pulegium), Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias), Black Phoebe (Sayornis nigricans), Coyote Brush (Baccharis pilularis), Western Mosquitofish (Gambusia affinis), Coontail (Ceratophyllum demersum), Northwestern Pond Turtle (Actinemys marmorata), Coast Live Oak (Quercus agrifolia), Pacific Poison Oak (Toxicodendron diversilobum), Common Manzanita (Arctostaphylos manzanita), Western Skink (Plestiodon skiltonianus), Northern Flicker (Colaptes auratus), Golden-crowned Sparrow (Zonotrichia atricapilla)
Let me know what you think!