(Photos by Christy Solo for the Illinois Valley News) California sister butterfly (Adelpha californica) This week we’ll meet another pretty flitter who only lives close to home. Meet the California sister butterfly (Adelpha californica).Their limited range starts in Baja, Mexico and goes up to Portland, Ore. Rarely one is found[Read More…]
Author: Christy Solo
Crawlies with Cri: Pacific clubtail dragonfly
Pacific clubtail dragonfly (Phanogomphus kurilis) This week we’ll meet a crawly with quite an accurate common name. Meet the Pacific clubtail dragonfly (Phanogomphus kurilis).Pacific clubtails can only be found close to the Pacific Ocean. The largest populations can be found in Central California, and right here in southwestern Oregon. There[Read More…]
Crawlies with Cri: Bristletail (Order Microcoryphia)
Bristletail (Order Microcoryphia) (Photos by Christy Solo for the Illinois Valley News) Don’t panic. This week’s crawly is not a silverfish. This week we revisit the bristletail (Order Microcoryphia) who we briefly met in 2016. It’s time to take a deeper look at these awesome, ancient critters.At about one inch[Read More…]
Crawlies with Cri: Clark’s nutcracker and whitebark pine
Clark’s nutcracker (Nucifraga columbiana) and whitebark pine (Pinus albicaulis) (Photos by Christy Solo for the Illinois Valley News) In honor of the whitebark pine (Pinus albicaulis) receiving endangered species status Dec. 14, this week we’ll revisit the whitebarks’ keystone species; Clark’s nutcracker (Nucifraga columbiana).If you’ve ever been to Crater Lake,[Read More…]
Crawlies with Cri: Black-headed grosbeak
On Dec. 7 the Intermountain Bird Observatory at Boise State introduced a world record -breaking black-headed grosbeak (Pheucticus melanocephalus). So this week seems like the perfect time to learn more about these beautiful Southern Oregon birds.First, what record did IBO’s bird (pictured left) break? At 15 years old, he’s the[Read More…]
Crawlies with Cri: Fairy moth (Adela trigrapha)
Fairy moth (Adela trigrapha) “When the first baby laughed for the first time, its laugh broke into a thousand pieces, and they all went skipping about, and that was the beginning of fairies” ~James M. BarrieDid you know those laughter-born fairies still live in the Upper Rogue? Meet the fairy[Read More…]
Crawlies with Cri: Pileated Woodpeckers
This week we’re going to meet a rare bird and learn what made her so unique. Warning: science content ahead!Both birds in our collage photo are juvenile pileated woodpeckers who were born in 2015 (they may or may not be siblings). The one on the right is a female; the[Read More…]
Crawlies with Cri: The Inchworm
Inchworm (Family Geometridae) This week we’re going to meet a group of crawlies with a singular name. Meet the inchworm (Family Geometridae).Inchworms aren’t worms; they are caterpillars of geometridae (AKA geometrid) moths. The family got their name from the caterpillars. “Geometridae” is from the Greek geo, meaning earth, and metron,[Read More…]
Crawlies with Cri: Mountain beaver
Mountain beaver Aplodontia rufa, temperate rain forest, British Columbia, Canada This week we’re introducing you to a bonus PNW critter outside of Crawlies. First, because these critters are super cool; second, because Crawlies is all about critters I’ve personally met, and this featured critter is elusive, to say the least.Let’s[Read More…]
Crawlies with Cri: Speckled gall wasp
Speckled gall wasp (Cynips mirabilis) – Photos by Christy Solo If you have white oak trees, and there’s a good chance you do, you’ve probably seen this week’s crawly. Meet the speckled gall wasp (Cynips mirabilis).Let’s get the “don’t panic” portion out of the way. While galls on plants and[Read More…]
