Alioth overhead on May 11, 2024
- On return from Lake Ballinger, the clear blue skies made me want to observe a few stars tonight. I stepped outside around 10PM and found the Big Dipper almost directly overhead, upside down from my familiar view. Mary was calling for the cat, who quickly ran to the door. I stepped back and startled Narda, who did not expect anyone to be outside.
- Polystichum munitum (Wikipedia)
Polystichum munitum, the western swordfern, is an evergreen perennial fern native to western North America, where it is one of the most abundant ferns in forested areas. It occurs along the Pacific coast from southeastern Alaska to southern California, and also inland east to southeastern British Columbia, northern Idaho and western Montana, with disjunctive populations in northern British Columbia, Canada; the Black Hills in South Dakota, United States; and Guadalupe Island off of Baja California, Mexico. Western swordfern is known to have locally naturalized in parts of Great Britain and Ireland.