May 5: The volunteer work party known as the "Weed Warriors" will meet from 9 am to about noon. Anyone is welcome to join in and help pull obnoxious invading weeds and work on projects to reduce erosion. Wear comfortable shoes, long pants and sleeves, and park at the north end of 15th Street in Los Osos.
Moro Blue
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May 19, 9:30 a.m. Wildflowers: Dirk Walters will take us on a delightful tour of almost everything that's in bloom in the Elfin Forest. There will be the bright yellows of fiddlenecks, rush-roses, deerweed, golden yarrow, and, of course, California poppies. White popcorn flowers, pearly everlasting, and yarrow plants are in abundance too, as well as pink cobwebby thistles and blue wild hyacinths. The silver dune lupines at Bush Lupine Point should be covered with pale blue blossoms and alive with honeybees and moro blue butterflies. Treat yourself to a springtime experience in nature's own garden.
Besides docent-led events, visit the Elfin Forest any day to experience the quiet natural beauty of this small wilderness area. Park at the north end of any street from 11th through 17th streets off Santa Ysabel in Los Osos and take a sand path to the boardwalk or the wheel-chair accessible boardwalk entrance at 16th Street.
Coming Up in the Elfin Forest
Silver Dune Bush Lupines
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May is one of the most abundantly colorful months in the Elfin Forest year. Wildflowers are blooming everywhere while butterflies and birds are flitting among them.
Silver dune bush lupines are thriving around Bush Lupine Point with lots of tall spikes of blue flowers. They have been much destroyed elsewhere on the coast by urban development. Their survival here is good news for the moro blue butterfly as this plant species is the host for their caterpillars. Look for these small blue flying gems around the bush lupines this month and next.
 Cobwebby Thistle
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Among other blue butterflies in flight this month look for acmon, silvery blue, and western tailed-blue. Other butterflies you might see include either anise or pale swallowtails, and both Gabb's and variable checkerspots. Three hairstreaks to look for are coastal bramble, gray, and hedgerow.
Yellow to orange flowers blooming in this month include California poppies, coastal dudleya, deerweed, fiddleneck, golden yarrow, and sticky monkey-flowers. Cobwebby thistles and California hedge nettles have pink flowers. Indian pinks should be beginning to show their red blossoms looking as if cut by pinking shears.
 Junco
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White flowers to look for against the green backdrop include California sagebrush, chamise, and popcorn flowers while flowers of black sage can appear white to light lavender. California blackberry and poison oak may still have small white flowers with three leaves now, with thorny stems distinguishing the blackberry plants.
Most of our year-round birds are actively nesting or raising young now. Especially likely to be seen and heard are the bright blue Western Scrub Jays, orange and black Spotted Towhees, chattering flocks of tiny fuzzy gray Bushtits, several species of sparrows, large brown California Thrashers with down-curved beaks, and even larger California Quail with silly dark plumes on their foreheads who seem to call for "Chi-CA-go." Warbling Vireos, Hooded Orioles, Black-headed Grosbeaks, and Townsend's and Wilson's Warblers are here only to raise their young and will retreat to southern winter quarters at the end of summer.
The gorgeous colors on flowers swaying in the sea breezes and on wings of butterflies and birds flashing by enliven a May walk around the Elfin Forest.
