ScienceDaily reported
Oak trees keep absorbing carbon dioxide long after their annual growth has ended, revealing that photosynthesis and wood production are not as closely linked as scientists once believed. The finding could reshape forecasts of how much carbon forests will be able to store in a warmer future.
Read on www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/07/260708022210.htm
Posted in Environment, Uncategorized, Wildflowers and Other Plants | Tags: Carbon Absorption, Oak Trees
I asked Google’s Gemini and here is what it came up including its sources
California is a world-renowned biodiversity hotspot, boasting the highest total number of native species and the highest rate of endemism of any state in the U.S.
California Native Plant Society
When looking at the numbers, botanists generally track them by taxa (which includes distinct species, plus subspecies and varieties) or strictly by species.
Here is the breakdown according to data from the California Department of Fish and Wildlife and the Jepson Flora Project:
Native Plant Species vs. Taxa
California State Parks Foundation
Endemic Plants (Found nowhere else on Earth)
The Global Perspective: The California Floristic Province
It is worth noting that nature doesn’t respect state lines. Botanists often focus on the California Floristic Province(which excludes the eastern deserts and Great Basin but extends slightly into southwestern Oregon and northern Baja California).
California Native Plant Society Yerba Buena Chapter
Within this specific geographic zone, the concentration of unique flora is even more striking:
Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund (CEPF)
This exceptional diversity is driven by California’s complex topography, its rare Mediterranean climate, and unique geological features like serpentine soil pockets, which act as evolutionary islands for specialized flora.
Posted in Wildflowers and Other Plants | Tags: California native plants
See Upcoming Los Padres ForestWatch Upcoming Events at Home | Los Padres ForestWatch
Posted in Birds, Talks | Tags: Los Padres ForestWatch Upcoming Events
Audubon reported
The Swainson’s Warbler is prized by birdwatchers and difficult for scientists to study because of the dense habitat it occupies across South Carolina and the southern U.S. Think lowland swamps, canebrakes, and mountainous rhododendron ravines.
Even if you bushwhack close enough, you’re more likely to hear the bird’s sweet, ringing song than catch a glimpse of it flitting through the understory.
That secrecy has left the species relatively understudied. But a recent research paper by Audubon and partners, published in Ornithological Applications, used new technology to map the warbler’s movements to their wintering grounds in Latin America.
Read more at Beidler Forest to the Bahamas: New Tech Reveals Hemispheric Journey of Secretive Songbird
Posted in Birds | Tags: Swinson's Warbler
Space Daily reported
When a honeybee colony outgrows its hive it makes a genuinely democratic decision: scout bees fly out, inspect possible new homes, and ‘campaign’ for their favourite with waggle dances, lobbying harder for better sites — and only once enough scouts have converged on the same spot does the whole swarm lift off together, almost always choosing well.
Posted in Uncategorized | Tags: Honey Bee Decision Making
NPR reported
By altering the interpretation of a single word in the Endangered Species Act, the Trump administration has made what could be a sweeping change to how wildlife is protected in the United States.
That word is “harm.” For more than 50 years, the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service defined harm to refer to anything that injures or kills a protected organism, including “significant habitat modification or degradation” that might impact a species’ ability to feed, reproduce or seek shelter.
But now, the federal government has officially rescinded that definition — a move that is already being challenged in court.
Read more at Environmental groups sue government to stop a big change to the Endangered Species Act
Posted in Uncategorized
The Pulse reported
On a steep volcanic cliff on Robinson Crusoe Island — 420 miles off the coast of Chile — a single tree clings to the rock face, held in place by ropes. It is the last known wild individual of Dendroseris neriifolia, a species that was still relatively common in the late 19th century.
Until recently, no seeds from this entire genus had ever been stored in a seed bank. That gap in conservation history left one of the world’s rarest trees with almost no safety net.
Posted in Uncategorized
SF Gate reported
As climate change drives up the chance of extreme wildfires, smoke pollution presents a real health risk for people in the West.
But now scientists have documented how using prescribed burns — one of California’s leading strategies for mitigating wildfires — could actually reduce air pollution over time.
Read more Stanford study finds surprising upside of prescribed burns
Posted in Uncategorized
SF Gate reported
An illegal drone grounded fire crews as the Elephant Fire in the northern Sierra Nevada burned more than 6,000 acres.
Read on www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/elephant-fire-sierra-nevada-22343586.php
Posted in Environment | Tags: Elephant Fire, Forest Fires
Today reported
Shocking video shows the moments where a large bison charged directly towards visitors at Yellowstone National Park and tossed one man high into the air. The 65-year-old man’s family tells NBC that he underwent surgery and remains at the hospital. NBC’s Camila Bernal reports for TODAY.
Read on www.today.com/video/bison-attack-at-yellowstone-national-park-caught-on-camera-266580549716
Posted in Animals, Park | Tags: Yellowstone Bison Attack
Anthropocene Magazine reported
As reproduction slows and populations gray, scientists warn that many zoos are losing their capacity to function as effective conservation tools.
Read more at Are zoos still arks—or are they becoming nursing homes?
NPR reported
The Trump administration finalized a rule Friday that changes how agencies enforce the Endangered Species Act. The administration narrowed the definition of “harm” under the landmark law.
Read on www.npr.org/2026/07/11/nx-s1-5890025/trump-administration-imperiled-wildlife
Posted in Animals | Tags: loss wildlife protections
SF Gate reported
Yosemite National Park’s monthly visitation numbers for June soared to near-record highs, topping every year in the past decade. The booming visitation comes on the heels of a busy spring after the park removed its reservation system, alongside several other popular parks.
Read more at Yosemite June visitation soars to near-record high
Posted in Park | Tags: Record Yosemite Visitation
NPR reported
Farmers in Senegal are welcoming fish into their rice paddies. The hope is they’ll fertilize the crop, be a source of food … and eat the snails that carry parasitic worms.
Read on http://www.npr.org/2026/07/12/nx-s1-5803170/farmers-fish-rice-snails-tropical-disease
Posted in Animals, Wildflowers and Other Plants | Tags: rice patties fish and snails
NPR reported
Farmers in Senegal are welcoming fish into their rice paddies. The hope is they’ll fertilize the crop, be a source of food … and eat the snails that carry parasitic worms.
— Read on www.npr.org/2026/07/12/nx-s1-5803170/farmers-fish-rice-snails-tropical-disease
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Posted in Animals, Wildflowers and Other Plants | Tags: Fish, snails rice patties
Monga Bay reported
Following a grueling 14-day trek, a team of mountaineers and conservationists has photographed the elusive blue-fronted lorikeet in the highlands of eastern Indonesia’s Buru Island. This is only the second photographed record of the parrot in more than 100 years, according to bird conservation groups.
The blue-fronted lorikeet (Charmosynopsis toxopei) is a small species found only in the island of Buru. The bird, which has a lime-green plumage, an orange beak and a pointed tail, was first identified from seven museum specimens collected in the 1920s.
Read more at ‘Lost’ parrot rediscovered on remote Indonesian peak
Posted in Birds | Tags: blue-fronted lorikeet, Charmosynopsis toxope
See the schedule of upcoming Bay Nature Events https://baynature.org/events/
Posted in Talks, Walks & Hikes | Tags: Bay Nature Events
See upcoming events for Eldorado National Forest Interpretive Association at enfia.org/calendar/
Space Daily reported
One electric eel delivered an 860-volt shock, the highest ever measured from a living animal — and a 2019 study revealed it belongs to one of three separate species
For 250 years, the electric eel was a settled question. Ever since Linnaeus catalogued it in the eighteenth century, science recognized exactly one species, Electrophorus electricus, famous for delivering a jolt strong enough to knock down a horse.
Posted in Uncategorized
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
The Week reported
Birdwatching is the fastest-growing outdoor hobby for Gen Z, according to a study commissioned by the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds.
The research found a 47% increase in birdwatching across all ages since 2018, but a 1,088% surge among those aged 18 to 24, suggesting around 750,000 Gen Zers are budding ornithologists.
Read more at Why birdwatching has become a favourite pastime for Gen Z
Posted in Birds | Tags: Gen Z Bird Watching
See all Xerces Society upcoming events at Xerces Society Webinars
Posted in Butterflies, Talks | Tags: Xerces Society Webinars
See links to many webinars and recordings at Bird Alliance and Audubon chapters at https://smbasblog.com/zoom-recordings/
Posted in Birds, Talks | Tags: Bird Webinars
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Posted in Job Openings | Tags: Job Opening
Check out the latest events and news for Sonoma Land Trust at OUTINGS & EVENTS
Posted in Uncategorized
Science Daily reported
Read more Beneath our feet lies a fungal superhighway stretching 68 quadrillion miles
Posted in Mushrooms | Tags: fungal superhighway stretching 68 quadrillion miles
See upcoming events calendar of hikes and programs at https://www.abdnha.org/calendar1.htm.
The New York Times has 7 Podcasts About the Joys of Bird-Watching
These shows offer expert advice and fun facts that will help both novices and enthusiasts get the most out of tuning into the winged world.
See the podcasts at 7 Podcasts About the Joys of Bird-Watching
Posted in Birds | Tags: Joys of Birdwatching
See All Upcoming Tejon Ranch Events at Events
Posted in Walks & Hikes | Tags: Tejon Ranch activities
The Oregonian reported
A young California condor flew into Oregon last month, marking the first time in more than 120 years that one of the critically endangered birds has flown free in Oregon’s sky, according to the Yurok Tribe–led Northern California Condor Restoration Program.
Read more at Condor flies into Oregon for first time in over 120 years
Posted in Birds | Tags: California Condors
Natural History Wanderings 