Opuntia basilaris in Anza Borrego
The little Xmas tree at Carlee's restaurant in Borrego Springs
Artist's idea of the incredible Pleistocene giant vultures from the area. Aiolornis incredibilis, previously known as Teratornis incredibilis. This species is fairly poorly known; finds from Nevada and California include several wing bones and part of the beak. They show remarkable similarity with merriami but are uniformly about 40% larger: this would translate to a mass of up to 23 kilograms (51 lb) and a wingspan of about 5.5 metres (18 ft) for incredibilis. The finds are dated from the Pliocene to the late Pleistocene, which is a considerable chronological spread, and thus it is uncertain whether they actually represent the same species.
A vulture with an 18 ft. wingspan send me on my way south. At higher altitudes, overnight lows were in the high 20's, and my old sleeping bag has lost a little bit of loft, so I'm headed for more warmth. Last night, the low was about 40. Much better.
Wrangling my way across the border, headed down MX 5 to Laguna Chapala. Leaving the holidays behind. I had been trying to avoid holiday music, but this Starbucks in El Centro features the worst of the worst of course, except for that old Nat King Cole, for which I still have a soft spot.
Back to the States on Jan 3, two holidays down.
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