Tag: Utah

Utah, a state in the western United States, is renowned for its stunning natural landscapes and unique geological formations. It is characterized by vast deserts, towering red rock formations, and the dramatic peaks of the Rocky Mountains. Home to five national parks—Zion, Bryce Canyon, Capitol Reef, Canyonlands, and Arches—Utah attracts outdoor enthusiasts and nature lovers from around the world. Its capital, Salt Lake City, is a hub of culture, history, and outdoor recreation, famously hosting the 2002 Winter Olympics. Utah’s diverse terrain offers opportunities for skiing, hiking, mountain biking, and exploring ancient Native American petroglyphs and archaeological sites. The state’s Mormon heritage is also evident in its history, architecture, and the world-famous Salt Lake Temple.

 Albert Mussey Johnson – Death Valley Ranch Owner

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Albert Mussey Johnson
Albert Mussey Johnson

Albert Mussey Johnson (1872 – 1948) was a businessman and investor who received notoriety as the millionaire, who built “Scotty’s Castle” in Death Valley, California. He was born into a Quaker family n Oberlin Ohio and attended Cornell University to study engineering.

Johnson borrowed a sum of $40,000 from his father and invested in some mining operations in Joplin, Missouri. This initial investment returned five hundred percent dur to a zinc boom. Albert travelled across Utah and Colorado, in December if 1899, with his father looking for investment opportunities in power production or mining ventures. While on this trip, the father and son team are involved in a rail accident which kills his fater and leaves Albert bedridden with a broken back.

Johnson eventually recovered from his broken back but he suffered with chronic medical issues and walked with a noticeable limp. This injury caused Johnson to focus his professional efforts in economic investment pursuits. He pursue relationships with his fathers partners and soon built up a career as a vice president of the Arkansas Midland Railroad and later the president of the North American Cold Storage Company.

In 1904, Walter Scott AKA Death Valley Scotty ran into Johnson while Scotty is looking for new investors for his gold mines in Death Valley, California. Scott was a conman who would defraud investors of this infamous gold mines. Despite no return on is investment, Johnson continued to send Scott’s ventures.

Death Valley Scotty and the Johnsons
Death Valley Scotty and the Johnsons

Johnson first visited Death Valley in 1906 to tour Scott’s Gold Mines. The two became embroiled in the Battle of Wingate Pass, where Scott’s brother is shot in the groin. This injury forced a retreat from Death Valley. Johnson did not return to Death Valley for another three years. In 1909, he returned to the valley seeking to visit the mines in which he invested. It is said the dry air was a benefit to Johnson’s health. For whatever the reason, Johnson began purchasing land. Johnson purchased about 1500 acres of land. The Steininger Ranch was the most important parcel. Nestled in a spring-fed verdant valley, this was soon to be the site of the Death Valley Ranch.

Scotty's Castle located in Grapevine Canyon in Death Valley.
Scotty’s Castle located in Grapevine Canyon in Death Valley.

In 1922, Johnson started building Scotty’s castle as a vacation home.  When the size and scope of the property was realized, people assumed Scotty used the proceeds for his gold mine to pay for the Ranch.  Scotty, ever the promoter did nothing to correct the record and soon The Johnson’ vacation home.

Due to its remote location, the Death Valley Ranch needed to maintain its own power station and water supply and evaporation cooling system. Despite the conditions, Scotty’s Castle boasts a 1,121 pipe theater organ, fountains, clock tower and a massive unfinished swimming pool.

The stock market crash impacted Johnson’s fortune. He was not able to complete the Death Valley Ranch.

References

Raven ( Corvus corax )

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The Raven ( Corvus corax ) is one of eight subspecies of Ravens distributed throughout the world. Also known as western or northern raven, this large black bird is a member of the Corvidae family of birds which also contains crows, jays and magpies. This bird is a rather large and features solid black feathers which offers a dramatic and ominous appearance.

Raven ( Corvus corax ) sitting on a coral fence at the Grand Canyon Western Ranch.
Raven ( Corvus corax ) sitting on a coral fence at the Grand Canyon Western Ranch.

The raven is a large bird, known to average 25 inches in length and 2.6 pounds in weight and heaviest of the passerine or perching birds. This species is renowned for its intelligence and commonly used to test animal problem solving ability. This species has a world wide distribution and can thrive in a large variety of climates. The bird is an opportunistic omnivore finding sources of nutrition, feeding on carrion insects, grains, berries, fruit, small animals, other birds, and food waste. The are common features around campgrounds for the food sources left by human activity.

Range map of the Common Raven
Range map of the Common Raven

The raven has a long history with man in culture, literature and superstition. Many Native American tribes cultures regard the bird as a trickster or a cosmic messenger. Edgar Allen Poe’s infamous poem forever linked this bird with ominous overtones and symbolism for in western culture. The National Football Team even has a football team named for this special mischievous bird.

Field Guide Description

“Large with a long, heavy bill and long wedge-shaped tail. Most common call is a low drawn-out croak. Larger than the Chihuahuan Raven; note thicker, shaggier throat feathers, and that nasal bristles to not extend as far our on the larger bill. Range: Found in a variety of habitats, including mountains, deserts, coastal areas. Numerous in western and northern part of range; uncommon and local, but spreading in Appalachians.”

Field Guide to the Birds of North America, Third Edition, pg 318

Classification

KingdomAnimalia
PhylumChordata
ClassAves
OrderPasseriformes
FamilyCorvidae
Genus Corvus
Speciescorax

References

Stellars Jay ( Cyanocitta stelleri )

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The Stellars Jay ( Cyanocitta stelleri ) is a common character found in the forests of the western half of the United States. The bird is an opportunistic omnivore and closely related to the Blue Jay. The Stellars Jay has a black crested head and a vibrant blue body which is commonly about between eleven and twelve inches long. This bird has a lot of variations depending on location.

Stellars Jay ( Cyanocitta stelleri )
Stellars Jay ( Cyanocitta stelleri )

The Stellars Jay is commonly, mistakenly, called a “Blue Jay” in the Pacific Northwest. The Stellar, however, is a distinct species from the Blue Jay ( Cyanocitta cristata ). The major differentiating characteristic is the Blue Jay does not have a crest.

Steller's Jay (Cyanocitta stelleri), version 2.0. In The Birds of North America (P. G. Rodewald, Editor). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA.
Steller’s Jay (Cyanocitta stelleri), version 2.0. In The Birds of North America (P. G. Rodewald, Editor). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA.

This bird commonly feeds upon seeds, nuts and acorns. Speaking from first hand information, they also love unsalted peanuts. The will also eat insects and other small invertebrates, including mammals. They are also known to raid other birds nests and can be very aggressive with other birds.

Stellars Jay breed in monogamous pairs and a clutch of eggs is typically 3 – 5 in number. Both parents are active is feeding the young.

Distribution

The Stellar’s Jay is a common bird located primarily in pine-oak woodlands and coniferous forests. The dark blue and black coloring of the species helps aid in camouflage in the shadows of the forest.

The species is fairly bold and aggressive in its behavior and it is quite common to encounter them around campgrounds and picnic areas.

This animal is found across most of the western states. The bird is known to cross breed with the Blue Jay when their ranges overlap.

The range of this bird is as far north as Alaska and to the south in Nicaragua. The Eastern boundary in the United States for this bird is Colorado and New Mexico.

A Stellar's Jay ( Cyanocitta stelleri ) stealing peanuts in Big Bear, California
A Stellar’s Jay ( Cyanocitta stelleri ) stealing peanuts in Big Bear, California

Field Guide Description

“Crested; dark blue and black overall. Some races, including nominate from coast to northern Rockies are darker backed; have blueish streaks on forehead. Central and southern Rockies race, C.s. macrolopha, have long crest, paler back, white streaks on forehead, white mark over eye; largest race, carlottae, resident of Queen Charlotte Island off British Columbia, is almost entirely black above. Where ranges overlap in the eastern Rockies, Stellar’s Jay occasionally hybridizes with Blue Jay. Calls include a series of shack or shooka notes and other calls suggestive of Red-tailed Hawks. Range: Common in pine-oak woodlands and coniferous forests. Bold and aggressive; often scavenges at campgrounds and picnic areas. Casual winter visitor of lower elevations of the Great Basin, southern California and southwestern deserts.”

Field Guide to the Birds of North America, Third Edition, pg 312

Classification

KingdomAnimalia
PhylumChordata
ClassAves
OrderPasseriformes
FamilyCorvidae
Genus Cyanocitta
Speciescristata

References

Western Wallflower (Erysimum capitatium)

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A member of the mustard family, the Western Wallflower ( Erysimum capitatium ) is a brightly colored yellow flower which is quite common across the western United States, including Arizona, Utah and Nevada.. In European countries, the wallflower earned its name from a habit of growing on… you guess it, walls. More specifically stone, masonry or wooden fences. The name was transposed to the American species despite the fact the plants have no preference for walls.

Western Wallflower (Erysimum capitatium)
Western Wallflower (Erysimum capitatium)

Scientific Taxonomy and Categorization

  • Kingdom: Plantae
  • Clades: Tracheophytes, Angiosperms, Eudicots, Rosids
  • Order: Brassicales
  • Family: Brassicaceae (mustard or cabbage family)
  • Genus: Erysimum
  • Species: Erysimum capitatum (Douglas ex Hook.) Greene (binomial name)

The species belongs to the tribe Erysimeae within Brassicaceae. It is a dicot angiosperm (eudicot) herb. Flora of North America recognizes two main varieties: E. c. var. capitatum (often called western or sanddune wallflower) and E. c. var. purshii (Pursh’s wallflower). Numerous synonyms exist due to high morphological variability and past taxonomic confusion with E. asperum (prairie rocket). Chromosome number is 2n = 36. The plant is categorized as a biennial or short-lived perennial herb (sometimes behaving as a winter annual in southern deserts), with a taproot and variable growth form depending on elevation and habitat.

Detailed Plant Description

Erysimum capitatum is a highly variable, taprooted herb that produces one to several erect, leafy stems (0.5–12 dm / 1.5–12 ft tall) arising from a basal rosette. Stems are often branched distally, coarse, and covered in stiff, appressed, forked or branched (malpighiaceous/dolabriform) hairs. The plant leaks a pungent, watery juice when damaged.

Basal leaves are simple, alternate, spatulate to narrowly oblanceolate or linear (2–27 cm long × 3–30 mm wide), with prominent midribs and margins ranging from entire to dentate or denticulate. Stem leaves are smaller, sessile, and angled upward. Leaves are typically deep green and hairy (rayed hairs vary by variety: mostly 3–7-rayed in var. capitatum; 2–3-rayed in var. purshii). Plants develop short to elongate caudices clothed in old leaf bases.

Growth habit and life cycle show plasticity: low-elevation plants are often taller, less branched biennials and more drought-resistant; high-elevation (alpine) plants are dwarf, multi-stemmed perennials. The species is early-seral, thriving in disturbed sites, and exhibits semelparity (single reproductive event) in dry lowlands versus iteroparity (multiple events) in moist high-elevation habitats.

Detailed Flower Description

Flowers are perfect, arranged in congested terminal racemes that elongate in fruit. Each flower is 2.5–3.8 cm wide with four distinct, rounded petals arranged in a cross shape (typical of Brassicaceae). Petals are usually bright yellow to orange (occasionally lavender, maroon, red, white, or purple in certain populations or high elevations); var. capitatum tends toward orange-yellow, var. purshii toward yellow. Flowers have four sepals, six stamens (tetradynamous: four long, two short), a stout style (up to 3 mm), and a superior ovary. They are fragrant and bloom primarily April–August (as early as January in southern ranges or to September).

Fruits are linear, narrow siliques (3.5–15 cm long × 1.3–3.3 mm wide), upright or nearly parallel to the stem, four-sided or slightly flattened, with prominent midveins. Each valve contains 40–80 seeds; siliques dehisce at maturity. Seeds are small, oblong (~1.5 mm), lightweight, and winged in var. capitatum. Pollination is required for full seed set; visitors include bees, flies, butterflies, and beetles.

Habitat

The western wallflower occupies diverse dry, open sites from valley bottoms to alpine summits. It prefers well-drained, sandy, gravelly, or rocky soils with low organic matter and fertility. Substrates include sandstone, granite, basalt, limestone, serpentine, dunes, and talus. It occurs in desert grasslands/shrublands, chaparral, pinyon-juniper woodlands, aspen groves, montane meadows, forest openings, sagebrush flats, and alpine tundra. Elevation range is sea level to 13,120 ft (4,000 m), with var. capitatum generally lower (0–5,600 ft) and var. purshii higher (3,280–13,120 ft). It tolerates full sun, drought, and disturbance (roadsides, burns, grazed areas).

Range and Distribution

Erysimum capitatum is one of the most widespread native North American wallflowers. Its range spans western North America from Alaska and Yukon Territory south through British Columbia, Washington, Oregon, California, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, Utah, Colorado, Nevada, Arizona, New Mexico, and into northern Mexico (Chihuahua, Sonora, etc.). It extends eastward across the Great Plains to the Great Lakes region (Illinois, Indiana, Missouri, etc.) with scattered disjunct populations as far as Ohio and Tennessee. Var. capitatum has the broadest distribution; some California varieties (e.g., var. angustatum) are narrowly endemic and endangered. It has been introduced in parts of New England. Overall, it is considered secure (NatureServe).

This adaptable species plays ecological roles as a nectar source for pollinators (including butterflies), larval host plant, and early colonizer of disturbed or post-fire sites. It also provides forage for wildlife such as elk, deer, bighorn sheep, and small mammals.

Other Names

  • Coast wallflower
  • Douglas’ wallflower
  • Sanddune wallflower
  • Prairie rocket

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Notch-leaved phacelia ( phacelia crenulata )

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Notch-leaved phacelia ( phacelia crenulata ) is a lovely little purple wild flower which grows across the desert southwest from California to Texas. The plant is typically between three to twenty-four inches in height. The flower is also known by several different names including, notch-leaf scorpion-weed, notch-leaved phacelia, cleftleaf wildheliotrope, and heliotrope phacelia.

Notch-leaved phacelia
Notch-leaved phacelia

The Purple Notchleaf Phacelia, scientifically known as Phacelia crenulata (also called Notch-leaf Phacelia, Notch-leaf Scorpion-weed, or Cleftleaf Wild Heliotrope), is one of the most iconic annual wildflowers of the Mojave Desert. In Death Valley National Park—the hottest and driest place in North America—this species transforms barren landscapes into vibrant purple carpets during years with sufficient winter rainfall. It is especially prominent in “superbloom” events, where it blooms alongside bright-yellow Desert Gold (Geraea canescens) to create striking color contrasts on alluvial fans and valley floors.

As of March 2026, Death Valley is experiencing one of the best superbloom displays in a decade, with P. crenulata contributing heavily to the purple displays visible from areas like Badwater Road and Furnace Creek.

Taxonomy

  • Scientific Name: Phacelia crenulata Torr. ex S. Watson
  • Family: Hydrophyllaceae (Waterleaf family; sometimes placed in Boraginaceae)
  • Order: Boraginales
  • Higher Classification: Angiosperms (flowering plants), Eudicots, Asterids

The species includes several varieties that intergrade:

  • var. ambigua (rangewide, larger purple flowers)
  • var. crenulata (California to Utah)
  • var. minutiflora (smaller flowers, sometimes lavender-blue with white throats).

Morphological Description

Phacelia crenulata is an aromatic annual herb, typically 7–60 cm tall (up to 80 cm or ~30 inches in favorable conditions), with erect stems that are sparsely to densely covered in stiff, glandular hairs.

Leaves: Oblong, 2–12 cm long, with wavy, lobed, or distinctly notched/scalloped (crenulate) margins—giving the plant its common name “Notchleaf.” The basal leaves are largest; upper leaves become smaller and more reduced.

Flowers: Arranged in coiled cymes (scorpioid inflorescences) that uncoil as they bloom, resembling a scorpion’s tail. Individual flowers are bell-shaped, ½–1 cm long, with deep violet-to-purple petals (sometimes blue) and a white or pale throat. Stamens and style protrude prominently from the corolla.

Fruit: A small, rounded capsule containing several seeds.

The entire plant is glandular-hairy and emits a distinctive (sometimes unpleasant) scent.

Habitat and Distribution

Phacelia crenulata is native to arid regions of the southwestern United States (Arizona, California, Colorado, New Mexico, Nevada, Texas, Utah) and northern Mexico. It has a rare antitropical (disjunct) distribution, also occurring in parts of South America (southern Peru, western Bolivia, northern Chile).

In Death Valley National Park, it prefers open, sandy, gravelly, or rocky soils on alluvial fans, foothills, and low-elevation desert washes. It commonly appears from mid-February to mid-April at lower elevations (below ~1,000 m), often in disturbed areas or alongside other desert annuals.

Ecology, Life Cycle, and Adaptations

As a desert annual, P. crenulata is an “ephemeral” species whose life cycle is tightly linked to winter precipitation. Seeds lie dormant in the soil for years and germinate rapidly after adequate rain, allowing the plant to grow, flower, set seed, and die before the extreme summer heat and drought return.

Key adaptations:

  • Glandular hairs that may reduce water loss and deter herbivores.
  • Coiled inflorescences that protect developing flowers.
  • Rapid phenology synchronized with brief windows of moisture.

It is highly valuable to native bees as a pollen and nectar source.

Note on human interaction: Like many phacelias, the plant can cause contact dermatitis (skin rash similar to poison oak) in sensitive individuals due to its glandular secretions. Avoid handling if you have sensitive skin.

Conservation Status

Phacelia crenulata is considered “Secure” by NatureServe and faces no major conservation threats. In Death Valley, it benefits from the park’s protection but remains sensitive to off-road vehicle traffic, climate-driven changes in rainfall patterns, and invasive species competition. It is a flagship species for public appreciation of desert biodiversity during superbloom events.

Summary

The Purple Notchleaf Phacelia exemplifies the resilience and beauty of Mojave Desert flora. Its vivid purple blooms, triggered by rare wet winters, turn Death Valley’s harsh landscape into a temporary floral paradise—reminding observers of the delicate balance of water, temperature, and life in one of Earth’s most extreme environments.

Key Viewing Tips for Death Valley (March–April 2026): Look along low-elevation roads and washes near Furnace Creek, Badwater, and the East Entrance for the best displays of purple P. crenulata mixed with yellow desert gold.

This report is based on botanical records from the National Park Service, botanical databases, and field observations during active bloom periods.

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