Diario de adorapitcock

I haven't made many new observations because I reached the 25 research-grade mark but I am still out looking for more mushrooms in hopes of them being identified. I think so far I've made 3 or 4 different mushroom observations and some lichen observations but they haven't been identified yet so that is a bit stressful. I have really enjoyed the project so far and liked focusing more on finding and identifying different species instead of sticking to what I knew. I am glad that I have been able to explore more places near my house that I can visit whenever I want to. With the weather getting colder there haven't been many other people out which is nice.

We recently got a dog so I've been walking her this week around my neighborhood. I was finally able to find some different species of mushrooms which I'm hoping will get identified to bring me to my 10 different phyla for the taxonomy table. It's been nice going out for walks around midday when there aren't a lot of people out so I can find more species to observe. I'm near the 25 identifications mark and I am now waiting for some more to be identified. I went to Camino over the weekend and saw a really cool insect that I uploaded onto iNaturalist. Other than that, I didn't find much else to make observations of in Camino because there were a lot of dead plants from foot traffic and weather change.

Because of the negative tide today I was able to walk pretty far out on the tidepools. Using the geography feature I was able to find some species pretty fast. I don't think I've ever seen a negative tide before so it was pretty cool. I went around 5 pm so there was just enough light that it was easy to take pictures of the species I observed. Also, by going out at 5 there weren't as many people which made it easier to get around. Going to the marine reserve was really helpful because it brought me closer to the 10 different phylum that I need for the end of the project and the 25 different observations. And, I was also really lucky because I saw some Lace Lichen on the walk back to my car which is the first species from the Fungi kingdom I've seen which helps my taxonomy table.

I went out to Mori Point with my little sister today in hopes of finding some mushrooms but I was able to observe some other species which are helping me to get towards the needed 25 research-grade observations. I have found out how to use the geography feature on iNaturalist which makes it easier to find some needed observations in my area. Because it was rainy out we were able to go in the afternoon without there being much foot traffic. It was nice because I was able to find a lot of garden snails and plants. I plan to use the geography feature when I go out to the tide pools later this week.

Today I drove to San Francisco with my family for an hour in the morning. I made an observation of a shrub-looking plant but I wasn't able to add it to iNaturalist. I am learning that sometimes iNaturalist will sometimes generate species that are similar nearby, but are not correct so I have to do a bit of digging myself. It is a little hard to identify a plant on my own sometimes but I am learning to do it and becoming more adjusted to the iNaturalist mobile version. After we left in the city we drove to Moraga to watch a football game for my cousin. While there I was able to observe a European Earwig which was the second insect I have observed for this project so far. I think since it was damper out in the morning it gave me more of a chance to spot the insect. I'm nowhere near the needed observations right now, so I'll need to get out more in these last few weeks.

I made it out to Fitzgerald Marine Reserve this weekend, but I completely forgot to check the tide tables, so of course, when I arrived it was high tide so I wasn't able to get out to the tide pools. It ended up working out in the end though because we drove back to Pacifica and I was able to make an observation of two different bird species at Rockaway Beach which is a new phylum I can add to my taxonomy table at the end of the project. The next day, I went out with some friends to Frontierland Park in Pacifica. We found some cool steps there that led to a trail near the park. While going up the trail I was able to find two different species of fern and some moss. I think we went at a good time in the day because there weren't many people out and it was a good temperature. Next week I want to go out on Devil's Slide Trail and make some more observations. Also, this coming week I will go on some walks around my neighborhood in hopes of finding some worms or fungi.

Today I made it out for a run which is something I haven't done since June. I ran from my house to Sharp Park Beach and was able to make some quick observations along the run. I observed silver beachweed, a European Searocket plant, Chilean sea fig, and a tree I believe is called Pōhutukawa. The run was a little disappointing since I only ran about 0.88 miles, but we all have to start somewhere. If I could redo the run I probably would've gone out earlier in the day since I went out at 5 o'clock and it was super hot and crowded with people walking to Mori Point. Next week I plan to go to Fitzgerald Marine Reserve with my family and hopefully make a few observations there.

This past weekend we went to a pumpkin patch and I saw some baby Juliana pigs that I took some pictures of. I don't believe that can be included as a species observation since they were captive animals instead of wild.

This weekend we went up to Lake Siskiyou to celebrate my brother's 21st birthday. I was hoping to make a lot of observations of the different kinds of species up in this area but there weren't many out. When we got up to Lake Siskiyou we found out that almost the whole lake was emptied out so there weren't many animals around during the daytime. I was able to take a picture of a Chinese Mystery Snail I found while walking out towards where the middle of the lake used to be. I was able to take some photos of the dried-out lake and bear tracks and possibly elk tracks ( I'm not sure if elks reside in that area but the prints resembled that). It's interesting to see how the fires in California and climate change have affected the lowering water levels of lakes and how it is affecting species' environments in the area with them coming out at different times. Hopefully, the water levels will slowly start rising in lakes again.

Unfortunately, I didn't go out this week at all due to a super bad cold. My sister has been going back to school in person which means she's also bringing back colds she's been getting. I've been staying home and quarantining just so I don't spread it to the rest of my family. In the meantime though, I have been working more on iNaturalist and learning how to use it, and finally downloading the app on my phone to make uploading photos while out a lot easier. iNaturalist has helped me to make a list of places I want to travel to in the coming weeks to observe different phyla. Next week I am going further up north and hope to make more observations there.