Firefighters are battling a wildfire near Yosemite that has grown to more than 1,000 acres as of Wednesday, according to Cal Fire.
— Read on www.nbcbayarea.com/news/local/dome-fire-near-yosemite/4144249/
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 17, 2026
Dome Fire burns more than 1,000 acres near Yosemite – NBC Bay Area
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 17, 2026
Costa Rica’s Wild Capuchin Monkeys Are Using AI Touchscreens
Tico Times reported
Wild white-faced capuchin monkeys in Costa Rica are learning to use a touchscreen in the middle of the forest, giving researchers a new way to study animal intelligence without taking the monkeys out of their natural environment. The system, called CapuchinAI, combines artificial intelligence, cameras, a touchscreen and an automatic food dispenser at the Taboga Forest Reserve in Guanacaste.
Posted in Animals | Tags: Costa Rican Capuchin Monkeys
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 16, 2026
Los Padres ForestWatch Upcoming Events
See Upcoming Los Padres ForestWatch Upcoming Events at Home | Los Padres ForestWatch
Posted in Birds, Talks | Tags: Los Padres ForestWatch Upcoming Events
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 16, 2026
Armadillos are in Ohio.
Dnuz reported
The leathery mammals, mostly associated with dry, sweltering locations like Texas, have been creeping northward over the last century or so. But last week researchers collected a dead armadillo by the roadside four miles east of Oxford, Ohio, near the Indiana border — the first formally documented armadillo to have migrated to the state.
Read more at armadillos are in Ohio.
Posted in Animals | Tags: Armadillos
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 16, 2026
Why The Ocean Cleanup Hasn’t Solved the Plastic Pollution Crisis
The Revelator reported
The Ocean Cleanup is a social-media and fundraising powerhouse. So why hasn’t the nonprofit been similarly successful in removing much plastic from the ocean — and how many marine animals have been killed along the way? David Shiffman examines why some so-called big ideas fail.
Read more at Why The Ocean Cleanup Hasn’t Solved the Plastic Pollution Crisis
Posted in Environment | Tags: Marine Plastic Pollution
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 15, 2026
The healing power of of birdwatching
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Posted in Birds, Talks | Tags: the healing power of of birdwatching
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 15, 2026
East Bay Regional Parks Upcoming Events
See the calendar of upcoming events for the East Bay Regional Parks at https://www.ebparks.org/calendar
Posted in Park, Walks & Hikes | Tags: East Bay Regional Parks
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 15, 2026
Anza-Borrego Foundation Upcoming Events
Anza-Borrego Foundation hosts a variety of events and educational programs, including hikes, botany walks, photography workshops, and more. See the schedule at Events | Anza-Borrego Foundation
Posted in Talks, Walks & Hikes | Tags: Anza-Borrego Foundation Events
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 15, 2026
BIRDING FOR EVERYONE FELLOWSHIP 2027
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Posted in Birds | Tags: Birding for Everyone Fellowship
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 15, 2026
Endangered Blackburn’s Sphinx Moth caterpillars found for first time since 1940s
The Pulse reported
Wildlife crews found 10 endangered caterpillars in Lānaʻi City, then discovered the same giant Hawaiian moth on Molokaʻi for the first time since the 1940s
Read more at Endangered caterpillars found for first time since 1940s
Posted in Animals, Butterflies | Tags: Blackburn’s Sphinx Moth
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 14, 2026
Anza-Borrego Foundation Upcoming Events
Anza-Borrego Foundation hosts a variety of events and educational programs, including hikes, botany walks, photography workshops, and more. See the schedule at Events | Anza-Borrego Foundation
Posted in Talks, Walks & Hikes | Tags: Anza-Borrego Foundation Events
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 14, 2026
Mexico in bloom: 5 wildflowers to look for
MND contributor Bel Woodhouse takes us on a tour of Mexico’s spectacular wildflowers, from vibrant sunflowers and cosmos to delicate poppies.
— Read on mexiconewsdaily.com/lifestyle/mexico-wildflower-season/
Posted in Wildflowers and Other Plants | Tags: Wildflowers of Mexico
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 14, 2026
Ocotopus Tool Use
SpaceDaily reported
The eight-armed engineers of the ocean floor may be more clever than we thought—this one just invented mobile shelter.
An octopus was filmed carrying two halves of a coconut shell across the seafloor to reassemble themlater as a portable suit of armour, one of the only clear cases of a wild invertebrate using tools.
Read more at Octopus Tool Use
Posted in Animals | Tags: Ocotopus Tool Use
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 13, 2026
White Storks Make Historic Return to the English Midlands After 600-year Absence
Good News Network reported
The storks have now arrived as part of an effort to establish a healthy, wild, breeding colony on the River Trent.
Read on www.goodnewsnetwork.org/white-storks-make-historic-return-to-the-english-midlands-after-600-year-absence/
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 12, 2026
All hail the horsetail, a plant that could survive anything
The Guardian reported
It looks like a toilet brush yet predates the dinosaurs. I can’t help but give it a stroke by the roadside, even if I get strange looks.
Equisetum arvense, or field horsetail, looks fluffy, but it is wiry and rough. One could serve effectively as a toilet brush. The bristles are rich in abrasive silicon, which gives the texture of sandpaper. This explains another of equisetum’s common names, scouring rush, from when it was used to clean wood and polish metal. If you are careful, a hollow jointed stem can be separated at its junction and then rejoined like children’s tubular pipes for building, slotting back in a satisfying way.
Read more at All hail the horsetail, a plant that could survive anything
Posted in Wildflowers and Other Plants | Tags: Equisetum arvense, Horsetails
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 11, 2026
Trump Admin Reportedly Nixes $25 Million in National Park Projects
Yahoo News reported
The Trump administration has reportedly rejected more than 130 planned projects at national parks, putting at least $25M in previously secured funding on hold.
Read on www.yahoo.com/news/politics/articles/trump-admin-reportedly-nixes-25-231505017.html
Posted in Park | Tags: National Parks Funding Cuts
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 11, 2026
Pacific gray whales facing ‘catastrophic’ die-off as climate crisis hits food supply
The Guardian reported
Climate change is driving a gray whale “catastrophic mortality event” in the Pacific Ocean as melting sea ice depletes food sources and the animals starve, environmental groups warn.
Read more at Pacific gray whales facing ‘catastrophic’ die-off as climate crisis hits food supply
Posted in Uncategorized
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 10, 2026
California confirms rare sighting of gray wolf in Mendocino national forest
The Guardian reported
Officials say sighting a sign species – driven to extinction in state before reintroduction in 2011 – expanding its range
A gray wolf has recently been seen in California’s Mendocino national forest for the first time since the species returned to the state 15 years ago, state wildlife officials confirmed.
Officials in Lake county, which is about two hours north of San Francisco, said last week the California department of fish and wildlife (CDFW) had received reports of sightings in the forest in late August. The agency verified the presence of a wolf in the far north end of the county, county supervisor Brad Rasmussen said in a statement on social media.
Read more California confirms rare sighting of gray wolf in Mendocino national forest
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 10, 2026
The Many Faces of iNaturalist
Bay Nature reported on the difference and some of the history of iNaturalist and Seek
Once a Berkeley student project, iNaturalist is a social network—and a scientific database. Now, the public departure of its cofounder highlights the challenge of balancing the two.
Read more at The Many Faces of iNaturalist
Posted in Uncategorized
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 9, 2026
Sonoma Land Trust Events
Check out the latest events and news for Sonoma Land Trust at OUTINGS & EVENTS
Posted in Talks, Walks & Hikes
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 9, 2026
Photos of Regional Parks Botanic Garden 9/7/26
Photographed in the East Bay Regional Parks Botanic Garden in Tilden Park in Berkeley, CA on September 7, 2026.
The Regional Parks Botanic Garden is a California native plant garden. It is located within Tilden Park in the hills above Berkeley, California, It is a 10-acre garden includes many of the state’s rare and endangered plants and a place for visitors to wander among trees, shrubs, flowers, and grasses from plant communities throughout the state. There are free weekend and holiday tours. Admission and parking are free. For more information about the garden visit the Friends of the Regional Parks Botanic Garden.
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 9, 2026
Introducing the Plants for Monarchs Tool
from Xerces Society
| The Xerces Society’s new Plants for Monarchs allows anyone to generate a list of native host and nectar plants that support monarch butterflies where they live. Use the filters to match your preferences and site conditions, and create a shopping list with your local and online plant suppliers. Learn more |
Posted in Butterflies, Garden, Wildflowers and Other Plants | Tags: Plants for Monarchs
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 8, 2026
SANDHILL CRANE FESTIVAL TOUR REGISTRATION OPENS September 8, 2026 at 9:00 AM
Lodi Sandhill Crane Festival November 6-8, 2026
The 28th Lodi Sandhill Crane Festival will feature a full weekend of festivities, with guided crane tours offered throughout the event.
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Posted in Bird Festivals, Birds | Tags: Lodi Sandhill Crane Festival
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 8, 2026
Amazing Turtle Journey
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 7, 2026
Upcoming UC Berkeley Botanical Garden Events
See the events calendar for the UC Berkeley Botanical Garden at Garden Events
Posted in Class/Workshop, Garden | Tags: UC Berkeley Botanical Garden Events
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 7, 2026
Photos of Regional Parks Botanic Garden 9/5/26
Photographed in the East Bay Regional Parks Botanic Garden in Tilden Park in Berkeley, CA on September 5, 2026.
The Regional Parks Botanic Garden is a California native plant garden. It is located within Tilden Park in the hills above Berkeley, California, It is a 10-acre garden includes many of the state’s rare and endangered plants and a place for visitors to wander among trees, shrubs, flowers, and grasses from plant communities throughout the state. There are free weekend and holiday tours. Admission and parking are free. For more information about the garden visit the Friends of the Regional Parks Botanic Garden.
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 7, 2026
There’s One Creature of The Deep That Can Scare Even Orcas Away
Science Alert reported
Then scientists discovered that these fearsome predators had a nemesis of their own: the mighty orca (Orcinus orca), sleek and cunning, hunting white sharks for their tender, nutrient-rich livers.
Just the hint of a squeal from a pod of long-finned pilot whales (Globicephala melas) can send orcas packing.
Read more and see video of Pilot Whales chasing Orrcas at There’s One Creature of The Deep That Can Scare Even Orcas Away
Posted in Animals | Tags: Orcas, Pilot Whales
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 6, 2026
Tejon Ranch Upcoming Events
See All Upcoming Tejon Ranch Events at Events
Posted in Walks & Hikes | Tags: Tejon Ranch activities
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 6, 2026
Plants may be evolving the wrong traits for a warming world | ScienceDaily
ScienceDaily reported
Morning glories may be getting caught in an evolutionary tug-of-war between surviving climate change and attracting increasingly scarce pollinators. Over just nine years, researchers found that the plants’ rate of adaptation plunged by 96%, even though they still had plenty of genetic diversity to evolve.
Read on www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260901010719.htm
Posted in Class/Workshop, Wildflowers and Other Plants | Tags: Plant Adaptation
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 6, 2026
Unbelievable Record Dive by Beaked Whale
Space Daily reported
In 2020 scientists tracking a beaked whale logged a dive that seemed physically impossible: 3 hours and 42 minutes underwater on a single lungful of air, by far the longest dive ever recorded in any mammal on Earth.
The whale’s body plan suggests it should suffocate within half an hour, yet it vanishes into the deep for nearly four hours—a biological contradiction that challenges everything we thought we knew about mammalian limits.
Read more at Record Dive
Posted in Animals | Tags: Beaked Whales
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