I really have been fortunate to see the island in such a lush green stage. The winter and spring apparently had a number of storms come through bringing rain. Further in the last six weeks, we've had a fair amount of additional water too. Which has meant lots of various flowers and grasses. Pictured here is one of the most common native flowers and plants on the island, maritime goldfields.
In honor of walking in the shoes of various biologists who did the same work out here as I am doing now, I took a number of sepia-esque colored images through my other lenses. Since 1965 PRBO has been studying and monitoring the islands. Which, is remarkable given that seabirds are in general very long lived creatures and I'm currently studying and monitoring the same birds. Although perhaps the ocean wilderness around the Farallones is not typically considered pastoral, there is a certain radiating beauty surrounding the island's many flora and fauna.
Certainly Elephant Seals and Western Gulls would be emblematic of the continuity here. Even with changing management regimes from the Navy, to the Coast Guard, to the Fish and Wildlife Service, these animals have persisted. In fact, they have thrived.
The houses here have been around since 1878 and 1880 (some modifications of course). Not ancient, as far as culture is concerned, however for a wind and swell beaten island, certainly impressive.
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