sand

 

 

Still trying to get the two birds shown here figured out in my head. The sleek head of the crow on the left contrasts with the square "jaw" and surliness of the raven on the right. The easiest way so far is to know the ravens are usually on the ground and the crows like the trees.

This American kestrel is a small raptor that is common in open areas with abundant sparrow, but I think these guys are also interested in the chipmunks, mice, and lizards in the area. Out of the sand dunes below the Intel plant those prey species are currently very active and abundant.

there is a lot of young lizard species still out and active. This one last long it's tail in some mishap. because of this, the chances are poor he will make it to next year. Lizards need their tails for many things, like courtship and fat storage during the winter. They can jettison the tail in a predator emergency using specialized breakable bones, but it costs them future success.

Normally, sand is a poor material to burrow into because it moves around so much, but plants such as this desert shrub have shallow spreading roots that anchor the soil and moisture in place and allow burrows underneath for most desert dwellers to live in, such as lizards and rodents. Obviously if humans remove the pants, most of these burrows fill in and the animals have to move on.

This large wolf spider was sitting under the lights outside the house in temperatures just above freezing. Once brought into the house, it quickly warmed up and was very active. You can see it also also is missing one leg. Spiders can also sacrifice limbs to escape predators, but just like the lizards there is a heavy penalty to pay in future life in not having all it's legs. In spiders their legs function as sensors, and are often specialized for mating, manipulating their environment, capturing food, signalling, and many other things