Hi there I-Naturalists!
I'm a full-time I-Naturalist, avid hiker-traveler, plant-finder, bird-watcher, bug-seeker, herp-lover--which takes me to many interesting natural places where I enjoy taking WAY too many photos. I love nature and find all living things fascinating and worth studying. I appreciate all comments, corrections and confirmations to my observations, and I look forward to seeing your sightings in nature too. I-Naturalist tip: The more Projects you join that match your interests--the more expert eyes will see and confirm your observations.

As a former research/reference librarian, I'm always thrilled to find and share new learning tools.
Irene's (aparrot1 on INaturalist) Favorite Nature Resources: (sorted by author's frequency of use, in no particular order)

BIRDS
The Cornell Lab: https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/
Xeno-canto: Bird songs, sound recordings, bird range and migration map: https://xeno-canto.org/about/xeno-canto
Audubon Guide to North American Birds: https://www.audubon.org/bird-guide
Ebird with species description, range map and sound recordings: https://ebird.org/explore
National Geographic Field Guide to the Birds of North America, ed. Jon L. Dunn, 7th ed., 2017
National Geographic Field Guide to the Birds of Western North America, ed. Jon L. Dunn, 2008
Law's Field Guide to the Sierra Nevada, John Muir Laws, California Academy of Sciences, 2007
Monterey Birds, Don Roberson, 2nd ed., 2002, Monterey Peninsula Audubon Society
Merlin Bird ID: How to use/get the portable App (Bird ID help for 8,500+ species) https://merlin.allaboutbirds.org/
Found Feathers Resources (comprehensive list with links by INat featherenthusiast): https://foundfeathers.org/resources/
Found Feathers (worldwide) I.D. Tool: https://www.fws.gov/lab/featheratlas/idtool.php
How to Tell a Raven From a Crow (sound recordings, photos): https://www.audubon.org/news/how-tell-raven-crow
Birds of Colombia, Steven L. Hilty, March, 2021 (excellent index, color illustrations, species distribution maps, QR codes)
Irene's Ebird Profile: https://ebird.org/profile/MTIwNjIzMg and my worldwide checklists: https://ebird.org/mychecklists

HERPS: REPTILES AND AMPHIBIANS
Amphibians and Reptiles of California: https://californiaherps.com
Gopher Snake vs Rattlesnake: 5 Key Differences: https://a-z-animals.com/blog/gopher-snake-vs-rattlesnake/
California Snakes Range Maps: https://californiaherps.com/snakes/snakesmaps.html
Amphibians Amphibiaweb: https://amphibiaweb.org/site.html

BUTTERFLIES, MOTHS and CATERPILLARS
eButterfly: (2115+ species) https://www.e-butterfly.org/ebapp/en/observations/explore
Butterflies of Monterey County, Chris Tenney, 2023, and companion website: https://www.montereybutterflies.online/
Butterflies of the San Francisco Bay and Sacramento Valley Regions: A Field Guide, A. Shapiro and T. Manolis, 2007
Law's Field Guide to the Sierra Nevada, John Muir Laws, California Academy of Sciences, 2007
Butterflies Through Binoculars (field guide western North America), Jeffrey Glassberg, 2001
BugGuide: Butterflies and Moths (U.S. and Canada) clickable categories or search bar: https://bugguide.net/node/view/57
Field Guide to California Insects, by Kip Will, J. Gross, D. Rubinoff , J. Powell, 2nd ed., 2020 (Lepidoptera, pp. 347-426)
Butterflies and Moths of North America: https://www.butterfliesandmoths.org/species_search
Moth Photographers Group: https://mothphotographersgroup.msstate.edu/species.php?hodges=7872&state=CA
Geometer Moths (Geometridae family) in Monterey County, INat Kueda: https://www.inaturalist.org/check_lists/260565-Geometridae-of-Monterey-County--CA--US?page=2
Glossary of Butterfly (and Moth) Terminology by Art Shapiro: https://butterfly.ucdavis.edu/resources/glossary
Caterpillar Anatomy (simple diagram) and Lepidoptera Basics: https://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/butterfly/activities/printouts/caterpillarprintout.shtml

PLANTS
Wildflowers of California: A Field Guide, California Native Plant Society, 2024 (color photos, 600+ pages)
Calflora (includes species distribution map in CA): https://www.calflora.org/search.html
Jepson eFlora: https://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/eflora/
Plant Identification Terminology: An Illustrated Glossary, 2nd ed., by James Harris and M. Harris, 2022
Leaf Terminology: Diagrams/Definitions: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e8/Leaf_morphology.svg
Native American Ethnobotany: Traditional Native Plant Uses (medicines, foods, fibers, tools): http://naeb.brit.org/
Anza-Borrego Desert Wildflowers: https://borregowildflowers.org/
Baja California Plant Field Guide, Jon P. Rebman, Norman C. Roberts, 3rd. ed, 2012
Southern California Plant Communities: http://www.calflora.net/botanicalnames/plantcommunities.html
Desert Strawhouse Native Plant Nursery (specialize in native plants to attract pollinators in the Coachella Valley, CA): https://www.desertstrawhouse.com/plant-nursery
California Desert Wildflowers, Philip A. Munz, 1975
Cacti of California, E. Yale Dawson, 1966, 3rd printing, 1975
Plants of Monterey County: an Illustrated Field Key, 2nd edition, Matthews and Mitchell, 2015 (2300+ species)
Monterey County Wildflowers: https://montereywildflowers.com/index/
Monterey County Wildflowers: a Field Guide, Yeager and Mitchell, 2016 (950+ species)
Flora of Fort Ord: Monterey County, California, David Styer, 2019 (includes peak bloom times)
Flora of North America: http://beta.floranorthamerica.org/
Field Guide to Manzanitas: California, North America, and Mexico, 2nd edition. M.E. Kauffmann, T. Parker, and M. Vasey, Photographs by Jeff Bisbee. 2021.
Field Guide to Grasses of California, James P. Smith Jr, 2014
Law's Field Guide to the Sierra Nevada, John Muir Laws, California Academy of Sciences, 2007
Wild Roses: Comparison Charts, INat truthseqr: https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/99682-wild-rose-comparison-charts
Geranium Leaf Comparison Chart, INat truthseqr: https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/69454-geranium-leaf-comparison-chart#summary
Lupine I.D: Terminology/Characteristics, Tom Chester: http://tchester.org/plants/analysis/lupinus/identification.html
Thistles (non-native), INat cwarneke: https://www.inaturalist.org/journal/cwarneke/61995-thistles-with-white-in-their-leaves
UC Oak Tree Species I.D. and Ecology, University of California: https://oaks.cnr.berkeley.edu/oak-tree-species-id-ecology/
Oaks of California by Bruce M. Pavlik, P. Muick, S. Johnson, and M. Popper, 1991
Conifers of Western North America:https://www.conifers.org/topics/W_NA_trees.php
Cal-IPC: Invasive Plants in CA (400+ species): https://www.cal-ipc.org/plants/profiles/#
Endangered Species Fact Sheets (85+ species in Monterey County): http://www.elkhornsloughctp.org/factsheet/
Plant natives! https://www.cnps.org/gardening/choosing-your-plants/native-planting-guides
CNPS Calscape--7934+ Native CA Plants for Gardens: https://calscape.org
CalPhotos: 809,764 photos of plants, animals, fungi worldwide https://calphotos.berkeley.edu/
Coastal California's Living Legacy: The Monterey Pine Forest, 2nd. ed, Nikki Nedeff, et. al. The Monterey Pine Forest Watch, 2018

INSECTS AND SPIDERS
Field Guide to California Insects, by Kip Will, J. Gross, D. Rubinoff, J. Powell, 2nd ed., 2020
BugGuide: Arthropods: Photos of Insects, Spiders & Their Kin (US & Canada): https://bugguide.net/node/view/3/bgpage
Lady Beetle Key for North America: https://www.discoverlife.org/mp/20q?guide=Ladybug&cl=llp
Beetle Anatomy: simple diagram of external parts: https://animalcorner.org/beetle-anatomy/
Field Guide to Spiders of California and the Pacific Coast States, RJ Adams and Tim Manolis, 2014
Spider Eye Arrangements (for each family), Lynette Elliott: https://bugguide.net/node/view/84423
Dragonflies and Damselflies of the West, Princeton Field Guides, 2009, by Dennis Paulson
Odonata Terminology by Dennis Paulson: https://www.pugetsound.edu/puget-sound-museum-natural-history/biodiversity-resources/insects/dragonflies/glossary
The Fly Guide--Fly Families https://sites.google.com/view/flyguide/species-guides
BugGuide - Diptera of USA/Canada: Photos of 5 groups in Diptera order: https://bugguide.net/node/view/55/bgpage
Native Bees of the Santa Cruz Mountains, Obi Kaufmann. May 6, 2020: https://openspacetrust.org/blog/native-bees/

MARINE LIFE
Beachcombers's Guide to Seashore Life of California, J.D. Sept, Rev. ed. 2009
SEANET Hopkins Marine Station: "Nearshore Plants and Animals of the Monterey Bay" https://seanet.stanford.edu/

MUSHROOMS/LICHENS/SLIME MOLDS
An iNaturalist Introduction to Mushrooming, 6-minute Utube video by Christian Schwartz (leptonia on INat) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LKF_pIY0Zpc
Mushrooms of the Redwood Coast: Comprehensive Guide to the Fungi of Coastal Northern California, Siegel and Schwarz, 2016.
California Mushrooms: The Comprehensive Identification Guide, D. Desjardin, M. Wood, and F. Stevens, 2nd printing 2019.
Fungi of California: Simple Key: https://mykoweb.com/CAF/skey.html and Keys to California Fungi: https://www.mykoweb.com/CAF/keys/index.html
A Field Guide to California Lichens, Stephen Sharnoff, 2014.

GALLS
Plant Galls of the Western United States, Ronald A. Russo, April 2021.
Gallformers: Identify Galls by name or by host plant https://www.gallformers.org/id

OTHER, MISC
iNaturalist--worldwide, citizen-science Nature website to identify, record, and share observations: https://www.inaturalist.org
INaturalist's FAQ page (lots of good tips): https://www.inaturalist.org/pages/help#mapsymbols
How to Start and Administer a Project on INat: https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/new
Irene's (aparrot1) Profile Page on INaturalist listing Nature Resources (includes online references with links) for Plants, Birds, Fungi, Lepidoptera, Arachnids, Reptiles, Amphibians, Marine Life, Plant Galls, and more: https://www.inaturalist.org/people/3188668

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