Gray Foxes, as photographed by Jan de Vries

It is always a treat to see Gray Foxes. The open meadows of The Sea Ranch are a great place to catch a sighting. Jan de Vries photographed a family of Gray Foxes recently near his Sea Ranch home.

Here the parents are enjoying the sun. Living lightly on the land is the motto of TSR and these Foxes have joined right in.

 Below Mom is feeding a rambunctious Kit.

 And here I think she looks a little worried - perhaps her Kit is nursing a little to enthusiastically.

 And Dad keeps a careful eye on his family.

Thanks to Jan de Vries for allowing me to share his charming photos with you here.

Fake Owl doesn't scare this bird!

Adrian Bennett put up a fake Owl in the hopes that it would scare off some of the numerous Jays that come to her feeder as she prefers to feed the smaller birds. You will see how well this worked.

This Western Scrub Jay is probably thinking, "Thanks, Adrian, for the nice perch."

There is a true pecking order at the bird feeder Rick and I have up. First the Acorn Woodpeckers, then the Jays - Western Scrub and Steller. After these bigger birds, the smaller ones feed. Some appreciate the seeds that were knocked to the ground by the Jays, particularly the Spotted Towhees. The birds seem to get along and know their place in this pecking order.

Thanks to Adrian for allowing me to share her funny photo with you here.

Tiger Lilies, as photographed by Irma Brandt

The last of this year's Tiger Lilies are blooming on the Mendonoma Coast. Also called Leopard Lilies because of the spots they sport, they are a treat to find. Irma Brandt recently photographed several of these native wildflowers.

You should never pick this wildflower, as the spent flower forms a seed pod. Inside this pod will be tiny black seeds. When the pod dries up, the seeds are released. Hopefully a few will find a suitable spot to thrive.

Tiger Lilies are found near water. There are several small groups on our road in Anchor Bay that are growing near a neighbor's spring box. To see a Western Tiger Swallowtail butterfly feeding on a Tiger Lily, here's the link: http://mendonomasightings.blogspot.com/2012/07/california-tiger-lilies-are-blooming-on.html

Speaking of not picking wildflowers, it is illegal to pick any wildflowers on public land in the State of California. So look but don't cut!

Thanks to Irma for allowing me to share her photo with you here.

Long-tailed Weasel, a rare sighting, as photographed by Walt Rush

A Long-tailed juvenile Weasel, a member of the family Mustelid,  was seen earlier this week but no photo was taken. Walt Rush had one appear outside his studio at Irish Beach a while ago and he did get a photo.

And below is the Weasel's burrow.

I'll be telling the story of this week's sighting in my Mendonoma Sightings column in the Independent Coast Observer. It's now available in an on-line edition. There is a fee but it's worth it! Here's the link to the ICO: http://mendonoma.com/

Long-tailed Weasels are carnivores, eating gophers, mice and other rodents. Their long, slender bodies allow them to follow rodents right into their burrows. They can climb trees and are good swimmers too. Owls and Hawks are predators of this short-legged animal with the big ears.

Other members of the Weasel family here on the Mendonoma Coast include Fishers, Badgers and River Otters.

To see a photo of River Otters - a mother with her pup - here's the link: http://mendonomasightings.blogspot.com/2011/08/river-otters-seen-in-gualala-river.html

Thanks to Walt for allowing me to share his photos with you here.

Brush Rabbit - one of the cuter critters on the Mendonoma Coast, as photographed by Coastal photographer, Craig Tooley

Rick and I occasionally see these cute Brush Rabbits, often affectionately called bunnies. They need bushes for protection so the native manzanitas and huckleberry bushes are important to them.

Brush Rabbits are a species of Cottontail Rabbits. They are vegetarians, nibbling on greens and bark. They do like berries too, so those nicely laden huckleberry bushes will be visited by these cute, little rabbits too. This species is only found on the West Coast from Oregon to Baja California.

Thanks to Craig for allowing me to share his photo with you. To see more of Craig's wonderful wildlife photography, here's his website: http://ruffimage.com/

Surfing off Arena Cove in Point Arena, as photographed by Michelle Schubert

Surfing is popular off of Arena Cove in Point Arena. Recently Michelle Schubert photographed someone enjoying the waves.

It's necessary to wear a wet suit as the water is always cold off the Mendonoma Coast.

Thanks to Michelle for sharing her photo with us here. To see a photo of surfing off of Black Point Beach on The Sea Ranch, here's the link: http://mendonomasightings.blogspot.com/2011/12/surfing-at-black-point-beach-and-day-of.html

A Raccoon mother carries her youngster...upright, as photographed by Coastal photographer Siegfried Matull

I'll let Siegfried tell the story:

“Every year we look forward to the moment when the animals and birds show up for the first time with their babies. Earlier in July it finally happened – a Raccoon mother and her tiny two babies came to our property. All of a sudden one of the little ones quickly ran away, but the mother followed immediately. We could not believe our eyes when she picked up the baby with her front legs and her teeth, and then returned it to the other baby, walking upright on her hind legs. We have never seen that before! When she reached the other baby she dropped her or him down, right next to the other sibling.”

Thanks to Siegfried for sharing his photo with us here. To see another of Siegfried's Raccoon photos, this one with a mom and four little masked bandits, here's the link: http://mendonomasightings.blogspot.com/2011/09/charming-photo-by-coastal-photographer.html