On a walk up into the Lime Ridge Open Space in Walnut Creek I was lucky to capture a picture of a lizard before it darted under the rock. It had rough-looking skin that camouflaged with the surrounding rock landscape. Its long toes must help it grip onto rough, uneven surfaces such as rocks and trees. I also discovered a handful of new plants with interesting features. One had a large round leaf that wrapped around the thin stem. Another had long spiky-looking buds popping out of the top. Additionally, an abundance of moss was growing on most oak trees I walked past. The purple flowers had delicate petals with about 6 petals per stem. A few days prior I spotted a wild turkey, whose large talons and long neck must help it to catch prey. Lastly, I have spotted an abundance of squirrels around Berkeley campus, some of which I noticed had a particularly prominent black mark on their faces.
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Lime Ridge is a pretty cool spot. It's one of the only places in the Bay Area where you can still see horned lizards (e.g. http://www.inaturalist.org/observations/89873), so keep an eye out next time you're there. They like hot, rocky chaparral and sort of look like scuttling rocks.
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