It is snowing at Crystal Cove…or so it seems.   How appropriate that in December, just like in so many other places in the world, the snow is falling.  But our snow is different, for although it is still white and fluffy, it is neither cold nor hard.  I just returned from a bike ride along the multi-use trail where I was “pelted” by snow, the coastal sage scrub kind of snow. Coyote brush, aka Bacchirus pilularis is blowing off the shrub and carpeting the paths.  I have it in my hair, and on my clothes, and after a few sneezes realized the fine tufts even got up my nose.
 
I also have a few mosquito bites.  In December, really?  I know it is not exactly polar in our parts, but sheesh, it’s still nearly winter in the northern hemisphere and mosquitos are supposed to give us a break.  Female mosquitos lay their eggs in the warm moist areas of bodies of water (including our creeks.)  That annoying whining noise caused by the wings of the female actually serves to attract the males who pick up the signals with their antennae which have thousands of tiny hairs that feel the vibrations.  Once they mate, the male dies and the female lays her eggs.  It is also the female who is solely responsible for feeding on “us” because they need the protein of blood to lay their eggs.  In order to slurp the blood a female chisels her way through our flesh until blood vessel walls are broken and then injects a blood thinning liquid which allows the blood to flow into her.  There is a fungi found within the blood thinner that causes the irritation on our skin and the resulting itch.   If it wasn’t for the fact that I am a magnet for mosquitos and therefore subject to their voracious hunger, I would think this all quite fascinating.
And then, again, there is the Western black legged tick.  I guess I have been fooled for years and thought that ticks were prevalent in the spring and summer, but according to Stephen Bennett from OC Vector Control the adult Ixodes pacificus are prevalent during the winter and will be “lying in wait” on cool moist mornings, in low vegetation and grasses, usually in the shade or on north facing slopes, waiting for a host. They may be particularly abundant after a rain when they attach to wild animals, pets, and people using mouthparts that look like harpoons. While they are attached, ticks suck blood for several days, dropping off once engorged. Ticks have sensory organs in their legs that detect carbon dioxide, odors, and heat given off by warm blooded animals, and since they can’t fly or jump, when an animal is detected they crawl to the tips of vegetation and use their barbed front legs to snag onto the animal in a behavior called "questing.”  I am not fond of ticks, nor mosquitos, but do find their adaptations intriguing.

When Crystal Cove Interpretive Association (CCIA) folded earlier in the year I took possession of a box of photo albums, slides, newsletters and other archival information.  I glanced with a sense of nostalgia at several newsletters, but one in particular from summer 1997 caught my eye.  In it I read an article about a mountain lion and cub which visitors reported seeing in the backcountry.  Apparently, the visitors told Supervising Ranger Mike Eaton that they “followed the cub to its hiding place, got down on their knees face to face with the animal and tried to feed it a Powerbar.”  These people were convinced that the cats were mountain lions, and that the mother was nearby, yet they still exhibited such irrational behavior.  Even back in 1997 the likelihood that these animals were actually mountain lions was unlikely, and as suspected, the cats turned out to be bobcats, the park’s true wild felines.  
CCIA had been a driving force primarily focusing on the interpretive needs of the backcountry for 25 years.  When they folded, Crystal Cove Alliance expanded its footprint and initiated a new Backcountry Council to coordinate conservation efforts across 50,000 acres of contiguous wilderness (which includes our neighboring parks.)  Amongst their additional accomplishments in 2011 was their tireless efforts to raise funds ($6.7 million dollars) and complete Phase II Restoration which added a new Education Commons; ‘Beaches’ Film and Media Museum; Crystal Cove Alliance headquarters; and two more historic cottages into the public overnight rental program.  They introduced 15 new educational programs serving over 800,000 K-12 and public audiences including innovative courses, such as: High School Ocean Acidification Lab; Dolphin Citizen Science ‘Shoebox Science Kits’; The Great Plein Air Art Experience; Braille Mobility and Beach Science Program.  Finally, CCA provided leadership so that Crystal Cove was listed as a Marine Protected Area when the new legislation goes into effect on January 1, 2012.  CCA will undoubtedly continue their successes in the new year with Open Houses scheduled in the Park & Marine Research Facility on January 14th and January 28th from 12 PM to 2 PM  and by debuting a new temporary exhibit in Cottage #46 called Weird Rocks which will feature Crystal Cove’s geology including the shoreline landscape, and concretions, those most unusual hamburger bun shaped rocks dotting the beach near the Historic District.   They are truly an invaluable cooperating association.
America's State Parks announced that all 50 state park systems will sponsor free, guided First Day Hike Programs on New Year's Day with the ultimate goal of promoting outdoor recreation to address obesity, especially among children. Getting kids outside and unplugged from video games and other electronic media creates a unique connection with nature that promotes physical and mental well-being and encourages creativity and stewardship.  From California to Maine, hikers can climb hills and mountain tops, walk along ponds and beaches, and traverse trails through forests, fields and prairies.  Crystal Cove State Park is proud to collaborate in this nationwide effort and is hosting a “First Day Hike” at 9am when Professor Mert Hill and State Park Interpreter Rick Connella will conduct a public hike along the beach and shore cliffs.  See http://www.americasstateparks.org/first-day-hikes for other parks.
Park visitors are rarely privy to behind-the-scenes of state parks and so, most don’t know the intricacies associated with managing such a place.  One of the big projects just completed by our maintenance crew was the installation of two new sewage lift stations at Pelican Point and one at Reef Point.  Each year more than $30,000 has been poured into maintaining the aging sewer system and so now, after years on State Parks deferred maintenance wish list we have state of the art equipment rather than old and rusted pipes.  In addition to avoiding inevitable malfunctions we will now be able to ensure that the restrooms will stay open, are in compliance with state law, and according to Maintenance Chief Brian Carlson should be in good shape for the next 25 years ultimately making great steps towards fulfilling our mission of protecting the park.
Last month I mentioned a fascination with the nocturnal world.  Coincidentally, a few days later I read an article about tidepooling at night.  It had never occurred to me (not a very appealing thought to walk on slick, slippery, jagged rocks in the dark,) but my fascination was peaked and so, along with CCA Sue, volunteer Tim Aerhart and his son Ted, we headed down to Rocky Bight after the sun had set and the tide was really low.  The darkened coast and the sounds and smells of the ocean were enticing enough, but once we started studying the creatures inside the pools, illuminated only by our flashlights, it was like a new world.  Tim brought an ultra violet light which allowed us to see some otherwise undetectable colors.  For example, when we flashed the light in certain pools, dozens of Starburst anemones glowed fluorescent, possibly from a species of green algae that lives, symbiotically, within their tissues.  We also saw that same vibrant green on clumps of mussels that was invisible when we used our regular lights.  Aside from this psychedelic light show, it was the behavior or activity of the creatures we observed that was different from what we see during the day. Big, purple shore crabs were all over the rocks whereas during the day they are generally snug inside cracks and crevices or hiding underneath rocks.  Not at night though, in fact if we didn’t have flash lights we would have heard a lot of crunching as we stepped on and crushed these active nocturnal crustaceans.  It was also the time for chitons and owl limpets to be active.  During normal tidepooling these camouflaged mollusks attach themselves firmly to the rocks with a muscular foot, but when darkness falls they begin moving in search of food, usually returning to the same spot night after night.  Finally, we saw some miniscule shrimp-like organisms which I have never seen before.  It was a brief, somewhat risky, but exciting adventure that I look forward to experiencing again for as Harry Emerson Fosdick wrote: I would rather live in a world where my life is surrounded by mystery than live in a world so small that my mind could comprehend it.
Here’s to a healthy, happy holiday and festive New Year