Sunday, December 12, 2021

Some Random California Photos-Animals Mostly

 Hi everyone. I hope your weekend is going well, and that the sun is shining for you. Yesterday it rained and was once again cloudy here in New Hampshire, but today the sun is coming back. And it is suppose to be a bit warmer this week ahead too. I think a few longs walks outside will need to be put on the agenda. 

I'm taking an art break today and thought I would share some random photos from my California trip. Today's theme is mostly animals.

Our day trip to Channel Islands National Park was a banner photo day for me, so here's some birds and animals we spotted, starting with these pelicans. (I think they are all brown pelicans.)


I've never seen so many pelicans all together at once.




And these California sea lions (Zalophus californianus)  found a good place to take a morning nap in the sun.


If you didn't know, sea lions have external ears (well really an external ear flap) and seals do not. They both have internal ears like we do, although we obviously have an external ear "flap" (called the pinna).  

You can clearly see the ears here on a couple of these sea lions in this first photo.


We saw a few of other sea lions. Some were in swimming, and one guy was lounging back on a dock in the harbor before we even left for Santa Cruz island.



I also liked these raven silhouette photos I took on the island too. 



And there were even more pelicans when we returned  to shore in the evening.


And while driving north along the coast



we came to an elephant seal beach. These are northern elephant seals (M. angustirostris).

I've only seen these creatures in films, and it was pretty exciting to come across a whole beach of them. This is one place where they come onto the shore to breed. Not that they were breeding when we were there.


It was more like afternoon nap time. 


They reminded me of Maddie taking her afternoon nap. Smile.

For those unfamiliar with elephant seals, the big ones are males. They are much larger than the females. They also have a rather bulbous snout and nose, especially the males.

Occasionally one got up and rearranged themselves or relocated while we were there. 


But mostly they were snoozing and enjoying the sun.





We saw a few flip some sand on themselves to stay cool. Elephant seals spend most of their life in the water, not on the beach.





And finally, my husband and I each picked one thing we really wanted to do when we were in Los Angeles. We originally had planned on traveling for a few more days than we ended up actually being gone. Thanks to my chronic hives and my allergist thinking I had better stay on shots every 2 weeks, we cut a few days off our trip.

My pick was the La Brea tar pits. (And I am ignoring the Google note that once again tells me I spelled bear wrong-smile). Here's a few shots, but I can show more if people are interested.


A reconstructed model of a saber tooth cat.

And my husband next to a model of a giant prehistoric bear. I wouldn't want one of these at my bird feeder.


The museum was really fascinating. If we'd had more time I would have also visited the Natural History Museum. And a few other places too. I guess that  means we need to plan another trip to LA sometime in the future.


They'd pulled mammoth and mastodon skeletons from the tar pits.


As well as giant sloths too. 


And very large wolves called dire wolves.


Here's some of the wolf skulls they removed from some of the pits. You can also see my husband.


And finally a little  tar pit (which was behind a fence).  It was a fascinating place to visit.

Thanks for looking. Hope you enjoyed the photos,  and enjoy what's left to your weekend also.


















15 comments:

Valerie-Jael said...

Oh my, what wonderful places you visited, I am a bit jealous! i think I would never have been able to stop photographing those pelicans. I have only seen pelicans in the zoo, so lovely to see them in nature, and so many of them! Amazing! And the sea lions are fantastic, all lounging in the sun and enjoying life. The crow silhouettes are beautiful, too. You really had a wonderful trip, hope you still have photos to show. Hugs Valerie

Angie's Recipes said...

Fascinating! Those elephant seals are super adorable.

CJ Kennedy said...

A day at the beach. Sounds perfect. The seals and sea lions looked like they were enjoying themselves. I like the silhouettes of the ravens against the sky. Tar pit museum looks cool. I thought dire wolves was something made up on Game of Thrones. Who knew? Maybe not a beach day, but warmer temps all week to enjoy. Take care.

pearshapedcrafting said...

It looks like an amazing trip you made. The museum looks interesting. Do the tar pits smell? Hugs, Chrisx

craftytrog said...

Wow! Such wonderful photos of the birds, sea lions and elephant seals. I would love to visit those places. The museum looks really interesting too.
Happy Sunday!
Alison

kathyinozarks said...

Wow Thank you for sharing your trip with us-I really enjoyed seeing all the birds and animals. we have white pelicans that come to visit here for awhile at the lake-mostly as the lake drops down allot in the coves-they easily find lots of food.
the museum was pretty awesome too. Happy Sunday Erika

DVArtist said...

Wonderful photos. Enjoy your break.

Jeanie said...

What a terrific trip for a photo shoot -- everything is magnificent, all the pelicans and seals and even the stationary exhibits at the tar pits! Beautiful work, Erika!

Bleubeard and Elizabeth said...

Where do I begin. You have given me a wonderful trip down memory lane. If you ever decide to return to LA (and the county), let me know and I will give you info on all the "tourist" sites, and some that are NOT tourist sites.

Pelicans are everywhere there is an ocean, but the most I saw were near San Diego. I like that you chose National Parks, which I had not even heard of when I was staying out there (for my company). These are amazing and beautiful birds, but they make a mess wherever they land (grin).

I saw sea lions on similar bell towers when I took whale watching tours. I think they are so cute, too.

I've been to the town of Seal Beach on the PCH, but not the elephant seal beach That was truly fascinating, and I loved the signs. It's the LAW!

I was also incredibly fascinated by La Brea tar pits. I found the museum incredibly fascinating and I remember that exhibit the dire wolf skulls. There were several panels, as I recall.

One of my favorite things to see was the methane gas bubbling up in the tar pit. I could have stayed there all day long. Thanks for sharing these. I'd definitely LOVE to see more of this museum, as my photos are long gone.

Mae Travels said...

The La Brea tar pits were on my list of things to see in this life. I think it’s at least 20 years since I finally got there and like you I was not disappointed! And since then I’ve been back often. I love the co-located LA County Museum of Art as well. Your trip to CA sounds just great. I’ve seen the seals and sea lions in the same places and loved them too.

best… mae at maefood.blogspot.com

Anne (cornucopia) said...

Great photos. I didn't know about the ear flaps. Fascinating. I especially liked the tar pits ones at the end. Teddy said to tell you he liked the bear. ;-)

Iris Flavia said...

Uh-oh! In Monkey Mia (Western Australia) a Pelican thought I have food - I did not, but the fella chased me! BOY, are they BIG! Ingo certainly laughed his head off....

Henry says hi to the sea lions :-)

On an island near Husum we saw seals, too, and rescued ones on a farm, babies, so cute (and a sad sight, somehow - Friedrichskoog, it was).

HUH! That bear gives one goose bumps! Either your Hubby is very small... OK, forget that thought!
Oh, my! Frightening animal!

Aren´t we lucky to live so safely today? OK, different and maybe scarier threats, invisible to the eye.

Beatrice P. Boyd said...

Those seals look like they know how to relax, Erika.

David M. Gascoigne, said...

What an amazing wildlife adventure you had. I am quite green with envy, of course. There is so much that I would have wanted to do, so you must remember to take me with you next time! I promise to be a good companion! Hugs, David

Lowcarb team member said...

Such a fabulous selection of photographs here.
I did enjoy seeing the birds, sea lions and elephant seals ... amazing.

All the best Jan