A couple of days ago, the wind finally went down, it seemed like a good time to drive up to Government Hill. It is a good place to look for hill-topping butterflies. It is a couple of miles north of where I’m camped. I have searched the internet trying to find out how it got named Government Hill but there seems to be no information. It may be because of a USGS survey marker on top. Elevation is 3624 ft. There were plenty of common butterflies and lots of flowers, but nothing very noteworthy.
Last night a thunderstorm came up around 2 AM. I wasn’t expecting any severe weather so I was just waiting for it to pass so I could go back to sleep. Suddenly, wham! Lightning hit and thunder roared. The shock wave rocked the Scamp. I thought maybe one of the big trees on the edge of the cliff got hit. I hoped it wasn’t the truck. This morning I found where the strike was, about 50 ft. south of the Scamp. Too close for comfort.
The lightning strike. It blew out large chunks of wood from the pine. Why it hit this tree and not others that are taller I have no idea. Lightning does what it does, just glad it didn’t hit me!I cannot even find a photo of Government Hill on the internet. No information other than elevation, 3624 ft. It is nice hike, especially on a nice day. This is a panorama of three images taken at 100mm from where I parked. As always, right click on the image and open in a new window for a larger view. Boisduval’s Blue, common in the area. Every time I’ve gone up on Government Hill in the summer I find Coral Hairstreaks hill-topping. This year was no exception. This is the first time I’ve seen a Gorgone Checkerspot up there. Only one. Other species I saw but didn’t photograph: Two-tailed Swallowtail, Variegated Fritillary, Checkered White, and some other fritillary I couldn’t identify. A pair of Nuttall’s Blister Beetles on lupine flowers. Lupine is their preferred food plant. Yet another Red Admiral.
2 replies on “Government Hill and Lightning”
Yikes! That was a close call!
It’s nice to see the butterfly and moth pictures. Those blister beetles are colorful. I figured with that name they must be toxic, so looked them up. The article I read said “The male blister beetle secretes cantharidin and presents it to the female after mating. The female beetle applies the chemical to her eggs to protect them from predators.” Pretty interesting.
Way too close for me! The world of insects is so complicated and full of mysteries and interesting facts, just like that one. I should have put out the black light again last night, but was too tired. Maybe tonight….
2 replies on “Government Hill and Lightning”
Yikes! That was a close call!
It’s nice to see the butterfly and moth pictures. Those blister beetles are colorful. I figured with that name they must be toxic, so looked them up. The article I read said “The male blister beetle secretes cantharidin and presents it to the female after mating. The female beetle applies the chemical to her eggs to protect them from predators.” Pretty interesting.
Way too close for me! The world of insects is so complicated and full of mysteries and interesting facts, just like that one. I should have put out the black light again last night, but was too tired. Maybe tonight….