Nature and wildlife

Murietan Paul Anderson knew he had taken the perfect Valentine's Day picture when he captured this shot at Lake Chesbro a couple of weeks ago. Read more » about And happy Valentine's Day to you!

Craig Sheumaker shares these shots of the Cosumnes from midday Saturday and midday Sunday.  See any difference?  The Community Services District started diverting from the river despite its muddy condition after river flows skyrocketed past the diversion flow threshhold Saturday.  Paul Siebensohn, director of CSD field operations, said they're diverting to Lake Calero, where the sediment should settle out.

Read more » about Cosumnes: What a difference a day makes

The downpour between 3 and 4 p.m. Saturday taxed the community's drainage system, as you can see on Puerto Drive, where a drainage ditch briefly flooded part of this yard.  We're getting reports of flash flooding on Scott Road in places where it doesn't usually flood.  Please share any reports of your own in the comments. Read more » about Intense downpour taxes drainage, Scott Road

The Deer Creek Hills conservancy outside Rancho Murieta will offer a range of outings on Saturday, Feb. 21 -- a guided equestrian ride, a bird-watching walk and one hike that takes in the birding, geology and history aspects of the land. Read more » about Three outings at Deer Creek Hills Feb. 21

Jude Gaither shares this shot of Lake Calero, taken Thursday morning, and adds, "I never take beautiful Rancho Murieta for granted."  The springlike warmth we've enjoyed is supposed to continue into next week, with highs in the 60s (but no rain). Read more » about A January morning on Lake Calero

Every winter, these paperwhites pop up at the corner of Rio Blanco Drive and Fuente De Paz, promising the spring that can seem far away on a frosty January morning.  The flowers have their own way of saying happy new year. Read more » about Nature's own happy new year

Two groups of homeowners were honored by the Rancho Murieta Association for having the best holiday lights in Rancho Murieta.  This group is the multi-year winners.

[News brief published Dec. 16] The Rancho Murieta Association board was urged at its monthly meeting Tuesday night to take action against those who break the rules when fishing in community lakes, threatening to damage the lakes for years to come.  The board honored the winners of the RMA’s holiday lights contest and declined to relocate the “Alah” holiday decoration to a spot where it can be monitored around the clock. Read more » about Story: New fishing rules go to community

We never get tired of the photos of bald eagles submitted every winter by RanchoMurieta.com members. Here are the first of this season, taken last week by Nick Burton. While we've never taken a decent photo of a bald eagle ourselves, we have SEEN a bald eagle twice in recent weeks without even trying -- in the open space north of Puerto Drive and sitting on an island in the Cosumnes near the pedestrian bridge. Maybe next time we'll be carrying a camera. Read more » about The first bald eagle photos of this season

In advance of Thursday's rain, neighbor Bill Gengler photographed some of Rancho Murieta's fall color.  "Thought it might be nice to take photos of some of those trees for residents to see before they spend the week raking the leaves off their lawns," he writes. Click here to see a gallery with 13 more of his shots of fall color. Read more » about Splashes of color on our landscape

A flock of swans paddled gently around Lake Chesbro Sunday afternoon.  With temperatures in the 80s, the afternoon felt more like a Sunday in May than one approaching Thanksgiving. Read more » about Swans spend the afternoon at Chesbro