LOS ANGELES, CA – Take a stroll near Paramount Ranch and you are in for a botanical buffet. 

Unlike a super bloom that blankets a field in one type of flower, in the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area, there are many different species blooming at different times.  

Mark Mendelsohn is a biologist with the National Park Service and has been carefully studying the vegetation regrowth following the Woolsey fire. He hoped to see a strong recovery and so far, nature has not disappointed. With numerous winter rain showers there are now wildflowers galore.

“We were hoping for those well-spaced rains that were enough but not too much and they came just like that," Mendelsohn says. "It was just the right ingredients for this successful regrowth.”

Monitoring vegetation regrowth is actually a painstakingly precise process. So Mendelsohn was happy to put down his tools for a bit to go on a casual walk to show off this year’s bloom.

“This is a very exciting year for us," Mendelsohn said. "I’m very lucky to be doing what I’m doing.”

Along the way he spotted an owl’s clover and chaparral yucca – flowering a bit ahead of schedule.

“It usually blooms in May but I think it was kind of jumpstarted by the recovery from the fire," Mendelsohn says.

The real star of the show right now is Parry's phacelia with its bright purple petals. However, Mendelsohn found a rare white patch and had to examine it closely to make sure it was the same species.

“This is really cool," Mendelsohn said, peering at the petals.  "This is the first time I’ve ever seen it actually.”  

While he encourages everyone to come out and witness the wildflowers for themselves, he does have a request: stay on the trail.

“So many of these species are sensitive to trampling," Mendelsohn explains. "And some of these species this may be the only place that they occur in the mountains.”

Plant your foot where you shouldn’t, and Richard Rachman says the damage could be long lasting.

“You could be stepping one what could one day become a shrub or one day become a tree,” said Rachman.

If you are going to post pics on social media, Rachman, who works with Mendelsohn on vegetation monitoring, says consider using hashtags that promote ethical nature viewing. He suggests #stayonthetrail or #noflowerswereharmed.

Hopefully your followers will follow your lead and help keep the wildflowers alive and Instagram-worthy.