ben_hoffman's Identifications

Small, approximately 3/4 inch. Whitish, light yellow wings with two small black dots on each set of wings. Found hiding in leaves of similar color. The surrounding area was wooded, but the location had about 20% canopy cover. About 5 similar found in the area.

When I observed this butterfly, it was foggy/ overcast (the temperature was not over 75 degrees Fahrenheit). It was found in a grassland clearing on the edge of a Douglass fir forest. The butterfly landed on a stalk near the base of a grass stem (not sure what species of grass). The wingspan of the butterfly (horizontally from right tip to left tip) was approximately 5 inches. The body of the butterfly was thin, furry/hairy, and about 1- 1 1/2 inches in length. The butterfly was "lazy" and did not flutter away when the camera was placed very close (the camera was approximately an inch away from the organism) which may be due to the lack of sun during this observation. I believe this is a buckeye butterfly, but I am not sure if the buckeye is a common buckeye butterfly or a subspecies (Junonia coenia coenia). I also saw 1-2 other buckeye butterflies in the same area. The buckeye did not fully spread its wings, so the spots/ "eyes" on the top of the second wing were not entirely visible. The body of the butterfly is a medium/dark grey/brown. This coloring of the body continues onto the wings, but in a lighter hue. There are two orange stripes on the top of the top wing.

It was light yellow, really tiny eyes, small black marks between the front legs and white dots, approximately 3 1/2 in long, triangular head, big feelers.It was sunny. Found near the trails. The color of its body matched the color of its eyes.

This grasshopper is about 2.5 cm long with antennae of approximately the same length. It appears to have 2 long and thin wing-like things that stretch almost the length of its body. It is tan with alternating darker markings, ranging from dark brown to black. It has 6 legs but its back legs have symmetrical black marks that go in a vertical direction while its back has symmetrical diagonal markings. Its underside is segmented and lighter in color, more of a light beige. It has a black curved tail-like thing. It has two big yellow eyes and 4 mouth feelers. It was found in grassland that was about 2 feet high but had been recently inhabited by cows so much of the grass was stomped down and eaten at the top. The grasshopper was jumping around when captured and kept moving around and appeared anxious when it was captured while taking pictures. When released it quickly hopped away.

I used a wildflower field guide to identify this chicory flower. I believe it is Cichorium intybus, but the stamens of the flower are curled instead of straight (as seen in the field guide pictures). I am not sure if the plant I found is a separate species of flower or if it is a subspecies of Cichorium intybus. I found the flower in a grassland that was on the edge of a forest. There was only one plant within the small area. The plant had approximately 6-8 flowers and had many stems that branched off from the base of the plant. The leaves of the plant were only found at the base of the plant and towards the bottom of the stems (in other words the leaves were not found near the flowers, which were located at the top of the plant). There were grasses (not sure what species) and yellow flowers (not sure what species) around the Cichorium intybus plant. The plant was approximately 2 feet tall from the base of the plant (where the plant met the ground) to the flowers at the top of the plant. The flowers were a periwinkle blue in color, about 18- 27 inches in circumference and about 6-9 inches in diameter. Inside some of the flowers, at the base of the filaments, there were black ants (not sure what species) and a buckeye butterfly was found in the same area (less than a foot away from the plant). On the day I took this observation, it was foggy/overcast and the temperature was not more than 75 degrees Fahrenheit.

When I observed this butterfly, it was foggy/ overcast (the temperature was not over 75 degrees Fahrenheit). It was found in a grassland clearing on the edge of a Douglass fir forest. The butterfly landed on a stalk near the base of a grass stem (not sure what species of grass). The wingspan of the butterfly (horizontally from right tip to left tip) was approximately 5 inches. The body of the butterfly was thin, furry/hairy, and about 1- 1 1/2 inches in length. The butterfly was "lazy" and did not flutter away when the camera was placed very close (the camera was approximately an inch away from the organism) which may be due to the lack of sun during this observation. I believe this is a buckeye butterfly, but I am not sure if the buckeye is a common buckeye butterfly or a subspecies (Junonia coenia coenia). I also saw 1-2 other buckeye butterflies in the same area. The buckeye did not fully spread its wings, so the spots/ "eyes" on the top of the second wing were not entirely visible. The body of the butterfly is a medium/dark grey/brown. This coloring of the body continues onto the wings, but in a lighter hue. There are two orange stripes on the top of the top wing.

Small, approximately 3/4 inch. Whitish, light yellow wings with two small black dots on each set of wings. Found hiding in leaves of similar color. The surrounding area was wooded, but the location had about 20% canopy cover. About 5 similar found in the area.

This scat was found on a trail in chaparral near 2 other types of scat. It was about 5 1/2 cm long and 1 cm in diameter. Its color was various shades of gray and had pieces of fur within it. It was relatively cylindrical but came to a curved point at one end.