Favoritos de rjadams55

Mostly hidden in the deep grass, this small morning glory was the only one noted along this stretch of trail. This was separated from C. macrostegia by the presence of bracts far below the calyx and its small, narrowly triangular leaves.

A scattered patch of these coral fungi were found growing out of the remains of a mostly decomposed log. They were identified by their upright stature, gray-tan coloration with pale branch tips, and lack of rapid discoloration when handled.

The second photo is brightened to show the red or red/black malar stripe better. This bird was farther south when we first heard it. Then it called and flew upstream. We later found it near the junction of the Bench Trail with the dirt road.

These unusual looking mushrooms were found in a patch of disturbed lawn surrounded by Douglas Firs and pines. Their stipes were oddly misshapen, appearing both swollen and deflated. They also left a white spore print.

Female Western Spotted Orbweaver (Neoscona oaxacensis) spider with brightly colored swirling markings on the abdomen. Those bulges below the spider in picture two are egg sacs. She constructed a vertical web inside a red bucket in a grassy meadow near cattle trough. It looks like she caught a winged insect. She is well camouflaged on her "trashline-of-debris" web.

Field Guide to Spiders of California and the Pacific Coast States, RJ Adams and Tim Manolis, 2014, pp. 113-114, plate 20.

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

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NOT

Metepeira spinipes is a member of Typical Orbweavers, Subfamily Araneinae
"M. spinipes is one of the very few semi-colonial spiders in the US. Each individual builds its own orb web with a retreat made of leaves and silk suspended inside a surrounding tangle web. A line connects the retreat to the center of the orb while the tangle webs of the different spiders are interconnected."

Great local observation of this species: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/3976674. Thanks @rjadams55!
Field Guide to Spiders of California and the Pacific Coast States, RJ Adams and Tim Manolis, 2014, p.117-118, plate

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