Redux

We may move and become part of another place, but none of us can change where we're from. In my case, that's Lake Michigan's eastern shore of sugar sand beaches and dunes. I doubt I'll ever return to my salmon stream to stay. I would be unhappy leaving San Diego's leopard sharks, mountains and desert to move back. But I do still enjoy visiting the lake and friends who are excited to see me. I stay on top of conservation issues related to the Great Lakes and pick up trash on the beaches and in parks while I'm there. I swam my laps along the buoys in Ludington. It was somewhat surreal not having to do the stingray shuffle to get out there like I do at home. My subconscious has merged pods of pilot whales I've seen just south of the U.S./Mexico border and my hometown lighthouse. I’ve even seen killer whales pass it while I slept.

A lone gull off of Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. I’ve been asked here in California if one can see across Lake Michigan. Yes and no. I’ve certainly seen Chicago’s skyline from Grand Mere State Park near where I grew up, but that’s a short distance away. The lake is about 118 miles (190 km) across at its widest point.

Sandhill cranes before they descended to Arcadia Marsh Nature Preserve. A relative by marriage lamented to us during our visit that they tear up lawns. I prefer wildlife to manicured sod and can hear the Anna’s hummingbirds squeaking in the California fuchsia planted where grass used to be as I type here.

We spotted this doe at dusk in Ludington State Park. Her fawn was nearby and we felt bad putting them on guard even as we quietly padded through.

My snake senses are finely tuned and I knew roughly what I’d heard before I looked over my shoulder and saw this beautiful eastern hognose going about its business in Ludington State Park.

This ruby-throated hummingbird was working Impatiens capensis in Arcadia Dunes Marsh Preserve, as were quite a few others. It didn’t surprise me to see them chasing much larger birds—the hummingbirds pretty much rule the yard here. I used to ride my bike over to the Kennedy Forest portion of Forest Park in St. Louis to watch the hummingbirds visiting these plants. I’d be growing an enormous bank of them if I lived in the region to attract and nourish these birds. Clean feeders are a great addition to a wildlife-friendly garden, but helpful (often native) plants and insects provide better nutrition.

The Lost Lake Trail at Ludington State Park is sublime.

I was lucky to see orange-fringed orchids (Platanthera ciliaris) growing in a small, west Michigan preserve from the vantage point of a boardwalk. This species is endangered in Michigan and threatened in other locations as well. Minimal land has been spared for them to thrive in because wealth extraction of land and our fellow humans seems to make more sense to a lot of people. Argentine ants and plagues may have the last laugh.

Sphagnum moss in the bog supporting the orchids and wild blueberries.

Ghost plants (Monotropa uniflora) can be missed easily if the light isn’t hitting them just right.

A monarch butterfly caterpillar (Danaus plexippus) feeds on a common milkweed (Asclepias syriaca). This plant species throws quite the pollinator party and is wonderfully fragrant.

Here’s an adult monarch working common boneset (Eupatorium perfoliatum) at Arcadia Marsh Nature Preserve.

This American red squirrel and I watched each other for awhile at Ludington State Park.

American white waterlily (Nymphaea odorata) at Ludington State Park.

Flow.

A side of sauce. This shot could have been taken anywhere. My exhibition as a senior in art school studying photography with Pulitzer Prize-winning photographer Taro Yamasaki was a series of aesthetically pleasing prints I shot of plastic pollution in the Ann Arbor River.  It bothered me then and more so now. The situation has worsened as our convenience culture continues its conquest.

This white sage is thriving in my alma mater's botanical garden and in various spots in the yard. I love Salvia apiana and so do my animal buddies. The arid house at Matthaei struck a chord with me the first time I saw it. It was my first exposure to the Agaves, Aloes and Haworthias I grow too many of.

Arcadia Dunes is protected, owned and managed by the Grand Traverse Regional Land Conservancy.

Lightning overhead and raindrops on my forehead.

A bouquet of southern California wildflowers.

Sunshine has been a bit of a stranger here in coastal San Diego as of late. Our typical May gray and June gloom months have brought moisture that we typically only see in the form of heavy fog at this time of year. It’s a perfect evening to gather together a few of my favorite wildflower photos from this spring and summer as the bloom continues, albeit in a more subtle way than that which made national news. The desert “super blooms” attract large crowds, but there are always plants present to be appreciated no matter the time of year, particularly if you enjoy the hunt as I do.

California poppies (Eschscholzia californica), beach sand verbena (Abronia umbellata) and common phacelia (Phacelia distans) overlook the Pacific Ocean at Torrey Pines State Natural Reserve in La Jolla.

Ground pink (Linanthus dianthiflorus) growing in Los Peñasquitos Canyon Preserve in San Diego.

Desert or Ajo lily (Hesperocallis undulata) is both beautiful and wonderfully fragrant. I spotted this one growing in the Coyote Canyon area of Anza-Borrego Desert State Park in Borrego Springs.

Desert five-spot (Eremalche rotundifolia) is a favorite desert sight of mine and one I got to enjoy during multiple trips to Anza-Borrego Desert State Park this spring. Unfortunately, my attempts at growing it from seed myself weren’t as successful as they were last year due to wildlife interference. I’ll sow more seed when winter rains arrive.

Rays of sunshine and Parish's poppies (Eschscholzia parishii) are framed by the ever sculptural and graceful ocotillo (Fouquieria splendens) along the Cactus Trail at Anza-Borrego Desert State Park.

California centaury (Zeltnera venusta) glow in the setting sun on Del Mar Mesa Preserve near my studio.

Giant coreopsis (Leptosyne gigantea) blooming on Santa Cruz Island, part of Channel Islands National Park off of the coast of Los Angeles.

The citrusy fragrance of Sacred Datura (Datura wrightii) blends with the scent of ocean air at Torrey Pines State Beach just after dawn.

A splended mariposa lily (Calochortus splendens) glows in Los Peñasquitos Canyon Preserve.

Calico cactus (Echinocereus engelmannii). Mojave National Preserve between Las Vegas and Los Angeles.

I watch for the emerging leaves and developing buds of Weed's mariposa lily (Calochortus weedii) every spring in nearby Los Peñasquitos Canyon Preserve, Del Mar Mesa Preserve and at Torrey Pines State Natural Reserve, the latter being where I took this photograph.

I believe the featured cactus here is Mojave prickly pear (Opuntia erinacea). A strangely cool for late May day that was mostly cloudy made for a memorable walk in Mohave National Preserve. It was exploding with colorful desert flowers and I wish I’d had many more hours there to explore.

Switching gears a bit, two of my mixed-media paintings inspired by California wildflowers I admired in situ were featured in “The Art of the Wildflower,” an exhibition during Wildflower Week at the Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden in Claremont, California. From their website: “Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden is the largest botanic garden dedicated to California native plants, promoting botany, conservation and horticulture to inspire, inform and educate the public and scientific community about California's native flora. The Garden is a living museum with curated collections of more than 22,000 California native plants, some of which are rare or endangered. Spread across 86 acres in Claremont, California, the Garden is located approximately 35 miles east of Los Angeles. The Garden displays about 2000 taxa of California plants and includes those native to the California Floristic Province.”

As with the wildflower photographs above, you will find prints of these paintings for purchase in a wide range of sizes and on different surfaces by clicking on the images. Please email me if you’re interested in owning one of the original paintings.

Thanks for supporting living artists.

—Robin Street-Morris

Weed’s Mariposa Lily (Calochortus weedii). 2019. Transparent watercolor and powdered soft pastel on 300lb hot press paper. 13" x 19" (33 x 48cm).

California Poppy (Eschscholzia californica ). 2018. Transparent watercolor and powdered soft pastel on 300lb hot press paper. 19" x 13" (48 x 33 cm).