western king bird

 Found this western king bird cruising from perch to perch on the spring greens along a seasonal stream fluttering up and down in between each spot chasing the numerous bugs. the kingbird is part of the flycatcher family and stands its ground against certain raptors, allaboutbirds lists the redtail hawk and kestrel which coincidentally both live in this same area.

Horned Lizard

coast horned lizard

In the northern most section of san luis Obispo county a horned lizard other wise known as a horny toad is not a common sight so I relished in the encounter when an ordinary hike up a steep chapparal covered hillside was intersected by this little bugger crossing the trail right in front of me. these photos were taken last spring but a busted laptop and the daily grind kept me from keeping up with this blog. this guy is no doubt underground right now as they bury themselves and go into a hibernation state for the winter. the lizard was in a perfect location for its diet which consists almost entirely of ants this area is riddled with large red fire ants and carpenter ants along with the common army ants. 

phrynosoma coronatum