In July of 2002 I produced an episode about the summer monsoon and spadefoots. It was so much fun to write and record. In July of 2013 I re-recorded it and this is the newer version from that year. There had been so much chatter about spadefoots this monsoon, that I thought it would be fun to make the 2013 version available. I don’t know if it’s as good as the original…ain’t that always the way, but here you go.
The photos are mine of a tiny spadefoot hopping across the page of a favorite field guide. I did return it to its puddle afterwards. Oh, and any mistakes with names or natural history in this episode are of course mine.
Corvus cryptoleucus is the Chihuahuan Raven. Corvus is Latin for crow and is the scientific name Linnaeus gave crows and ravens. Cryptoleucus is from...
The photos are mine and of the plant Pseudognaphalium leucocephalum. It sure is nice to have some white flowers mixed in with the oceans...
Mentzelia pumila is in the family Loasaceae. Kearny and Peebles in Arizona Flora note that “the family is remarkable for the diversity and peculiar...