The Guardian reports
The Royal Observatory in Greenwich has announced winning and commended entrants in this year’s contest.
See the winning photos as Astronomy Photographer of the Year – winners and finalists | Science | The Guardian
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 21, 2023
Astronomy Photographer of the Year
Posted in Astronomy, Photography | Tags: Astronomy Photographer of the Year
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 21, 2023
The overlooked contribution of trees outside forests to tree cover and woody biomass across Europe
Science Advances reports
High-resolution biomass map across Europe reveals regions dominated by non-forest trees.
Trees outside forests in Europe have always been overlooked, a
Read about this study that evaluates the impacts of non-forest trees in Europe at The overlooked contribution of trees outside forests to tree cover and woody biomass across Europe | Science Advances
Posted in Environment | Tags: ontribution of trees outside forests
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 20, 2023
Free National Park Entrance Sat. for Nation Public Lands Day
from the National Park Service
This Saturday, visit a national park for FREE (that got your attention) and join in the nation’s largest single-day volunteer effort to make a difference in the green spaces and historic sites in your community. Bring your people skills. No flair is necessary. (Well, a little never hurts.) Held annually on the fourth Saturday in September, #NationalPublicLandsDay celebrates environmental stewardship and encourages the use of open space for education, recreation, and health benefits. National Public Lands Day is led by the National Environmental Education Foundation – NEEF, in partnership with the National Park Service and other federal agencies. There are many ways to participate. Whatever you choose, we encourage you to share #YourParkStory!
Posted in Park | Tags: Free National Park Entrance, Nation Public Lands Day
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 20, 2023
Wildfire smoke erodes air quality gains in the U.S.
NPR reports
Over the last few decades, air in the U.S. has undergone a remarkable transformation: pollution levels of health-damaging tiny particles have dropped by roughly 40% since 2000, primarily thanks to the country’s decades-long effort to improve air quality through the Clean Air Act, a landmark environmental law.
Smoke from wildfires fueled by human-driven climate change, however, has erased roughly 25% of those air quality gains, according to a new study published Wednesday in Nature.
Read more at Wildfire smoke erodes air quality gains in the U.S. : NPR
Posted in Environment | Tags: Air Pollution, Wild Fire Smoke
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 20, 2023
The Flora of the California Channel Islands 9/28/23
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Posted in Talks | Tags: Flora of the California Channel Islands
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 20, 2023
New “electrical” blue tarantula species found in Thailand: “Enchanting phenomenon”
CBS News reports
Entomologists in Thailand have been stunned by an electrifying new species of tarantula found in the southern part of the country.
The spider, known as the Chilobrachys natanicharum, has a “blue-violet hue resembling the color of electrical sparks,” researchers from the Entomology Museum at Khon Kaen University and the Natural History Museum of the National Science Museum said in a paper announcing the find. They called the tarantula’s rare color an “enchanting phenomenon.”
Read more and see photos at New “electrical” blue tarantula species found in Thailand: “Enchanting phenomenon” – CBS News
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 19, 2023
Job Opening: Nursery Manager
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 19, 2023
California Legislature Climate, Energy and Environment Bills
A summary of how the California State Legislature did on bills relating ot climate energy and the environment from the LA Times- Boiling Point by Sammy Roth
The legislative session had come to a close in Sacramento, and elected officials had approved a whole bunch of climate change, energy and environment bills — and rejected others. Here’s a brief roundup of some of the highest-profile legislation.
New requirements for big business:
- Lawmakers approved the Climate Corporate Data Accountability Act, which will require companies with more than $1 billion in annual revenue to disclose their carbon emissions — including emissions from their supply chains. Gov. Gavin Newsom said he would sign the bill, along with legislation that will require corporations with annual revenue above $500 million to disclose their climate-related financial risks. (Stories by The Times’ Dorany Pineda and the Sacramento Bee’s Jenavieve Hatch)
Posted in Environment | Tags: California Legislature
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 19, 2023
Overpopulation
Why is it the conversations about climate change rarely include discussions of population control?
from Alt National Park Service
Posted in Environment | Tags: Overpopulation
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 19, 2023
What wildfire smoke means for birds
DNyuz reports
“Birds are especially vulnerable, because they have an incredibly efficient respiratory system, which is designed to deliver enough oxygen to power flight,” said Olivia Sanderfoot, an ecologist at the University of California, Los Angeles, who studies how smoke affects birds and other wildlife. The avian respiratory system is especially adept at drawing oxygen out of the air, but if there are pollutants wafting around, birds take those up readily, too.
Read full story about how wildfires effect birds and other wildlife at What wildfire smoke means for birds – DNyuz
Posted in Animals, Birds, Environment | Tags: Wildfire effects on birds
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 18, 2023
With about 1,500 ghost orchids left in Florida, groups sue to list it as endangered
NPR reports
Environmental groups have filed a lawsuit because they want the federal government to list a rare orchid, found mainly in Florida, as an endangered species.
Posted in Wildflowers and Other Plants | Tags: Ghost Orchids
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 18, 2023
iNaturalist Strikes Out on Its Own
Bay Nature reports
This summer, iNaturalist, the global social network for recording and collectively identifying the biodiversity around us, went independent. With the help of a $10 million startup grant, the organization that started as a UC Berkeley master’s project separated from the California Academy of Sciences and National Geographic Society and became its own 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.
Read more at iNaturalist Strikes Out on Its Own – Bay Nature
Posted in Uncategorized | Tags: iNaturalist
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 18, 2023
California sues oil giants, claiming they downplayed climate change for decades
NPR reports
California accuses oil companies of misleading the public on the dangers of fossil fuels for decades. The state demands they help fund recovery efforts after climate change-fueled disasters.
— Read on www.npr.org/2023/09/16/1199974919/california-oil-lawsuit-climate-change
Posted in Environment | Tags: Fossil Fuels
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 18, 2023
Why poison ivy loves climate change
WBUR reports
Poison ivy is poised to be one of the big winners in this global, human-caused phenomenon. Scientists expect the dreaded three-leafed vine will take full advantage of warmer temperatures and rising levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere to grow faster and bigger — and become even more toxic.
Read full story at Bigger, earlier and itchier: Why poison ivy loves climate change Bigger, earlier and itchier: Why poison ivy loves climate change
Posted in Uncategorized
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 17, 2023
Regional Parks Botanic Garden Photos 9/17/23
Photos from the East Bay Regional Parks Botanic Garden in Tilden Park in Berkeley, CA on September 17, 2023.
Posted in Garden | Tags: East Bay Regional Parks Botanic Garden, Tilden Botanic Garden
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 17, 2023
NASA Announces Summer 2023 Hottest on Record
NASA News Release
Summer of 2023 was Earth’s hottest since global records began in 1880, according to scientists at NASA’s Goddard Institute of Space Studies (GISS) in New York.
The months of June, July, and August combined were 0.41 degrees Fahrenheit (0.23 degrees Celsius) warmer than any other summer in NASA’s record, and 2.1 degrees F (1.2 C) warmer than the average summer between 1951 and 1980. August alone was 2.2 F (1.2 C) warmer than the average. June through August is considered meteorological summer in the Northern Hemisphere.
Read more and see chart at : NASA Announces Summer 2023 Hottest on Record | NASA
Posted in Uncategorized
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 17, 2023
Surrogate Sea Otter Moms Help Restore Population
from Bay Nature
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Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 16, 2023
Three of Mount Rainier’s glaciers have melted away
NBC reports
A warming climate has melted three glaciers on Mount Rainier, the tallest volcano in the lower 48 states — more evidence of the rapid worldwide decline of mountain ice.
The total mass of glacier ice on Mount Rainier, southeast of Seattle, is less than half what it was in 1896, according to estimates from a National Park Service report published this month. Among its more than two dozen glaciers, the mountain is likely to have lost an area of glacial ice that’s nearly the size of Manhattan. The pace of its losses is picking up, the report found.
Read more at Three of Mount Rainier’s glaciers have melted away
Posted in Environment, Park | Tags: Mt. Rainier Glaciers Melting
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 16, 2023
Behave Like an Animal
From Alt National Park Service
Posted in Animals, Environment | Tags: Behavior in the Wilderness
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 15, 2023
Garden Photos
Photos of what’s blooming in my garden.
Posted in Photos (Sandy's)
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 15, 2023
McGee Canyon Fire
Inyo National Forest reports
Inyo National Forest and Bureau of Land Management firefighters are responding to a 1/10th-acre fire in the McGee Canyon area on the north side of Glass Mountain on Mono Lake Ranger District.
The fire is burning in timber and brush with a slow rate of spread.
More details will be forthcoming.
***Update*** the fire has been contained at 1/10th acre and the cause is under investigation.
Posted in Park | Tags: McGee Canyon Fire
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 15, 2023
Unraveling the Mystery Of Avian Keratin Disorder in Alaska 9/21/23
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from Golden Gate Bird Alliance |
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Thursday September 21 @ 7pm — Danielle Gerik |
Avian keratin disorder (AKD) is an outbreak of debilitating beak deformities affecting wild birds. First observed among Black-capped Chickadees in Alaska in the late 1990s it now appears to affect a variety of species across a broad geographic area. Danielle Gerik will present results of tracking AKD across the globe using citizen science and will discuss which bird species might be most vulnerable.
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Posted in Birds, Talks | Tags: Avian Keratin Disorde
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 15, 2023
More on the restoration power of beavers
Mongabay reports
NASA satellites reveal restoration power of beavers
- A new partnership between NASA and researchers is measuring the impact of beavers reintroduced to landscapes in Idaho.
- Beavers are one of the world’s most powerful ecosystem engineers, building new habitats by slowing water flow and reducing flooding, while also boosting biodiversity.
- Beavers are all the more important in an age of rapid climate change, as they produce wetter and more resilient habitats, even in the face of wildfires.
- “NASA is interested in how satellite Earth observations can be used for natural resource management,” a member of the space agency’s Ecological Conservation Program tells Mongabay.
Read on at NASA satellites reveal restoration power of beavers
Posted in Animals | Tags: Beavers, Restoration Power of beavers
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 14, 2023
Upcoming Events with Siskiyou Land Trust
See the Siskiyou Land Trust Calendar of Events at Upcoming Events with Siskiyou Land Trust!
Posted in Environment, Talks | Tags: Siskiyou Land Trust Events
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 14, 2023
Job Opening at Yosemite
Come and work with us at Yosemite next summer! Applications open now:
-Park Ranger (Protection)
-Recreation Fee Clerk & Technician
Apply starting Oct 9:
-Park Ranger (Interpretation)
-Park Ranger (Interpretation-Language)
To read more about these positions and apply, visit USAjobs.gov.
Posted in Job Openings | Tags: Job Openings
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 14, 2023
“Water Recycling Around the World”
“Water Recycling Around the World”
When: September 20, 2023, at 6 p.m.
When: September 20, 2023, at 6 p.m.
Where: Register for this free Zoom webinar here.
Posted in Environment, Talks | Tags: Water Recycling Around the World
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 14, 2023
Most of the 177 environmental activists killed last year were in Latin America
NPR reports
Global Witness says 177 environmental activists were killed in 2022, and the majority were murdered in Latin America.
Listen to story at Most of the 177 environmental activists killed last year were in Latin America
Posted in Environment | Tags: 177 environmental activists killed
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 14, 2023
Weather anomalies are keeping insects active longer
The National Science Foundation reports
Unseasonably warm and cold days can prolong the active period of moths and butterflies.
As Earth’s climate continues to warm, extreme and anomalous weather events are becoming more common. But predicting and analyzing the effects of what is, by definition, an anomaly can be tricky.
Scientists say museum specimens can help. In the first study of its kind, published in Nature Communications Biology, researchers at the University of Florida used natural history specimens to show that unseasonably warm and cold days can prolong the active period of moths and butterflies by nearly a month.
Read more at Weather anomalies are keeping insects active longer
Posted in Butterflies, Environment | Tags: Weather anomalies are keeping insects active longer
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 14, 2023
The world’s highest-dwelling mammal isn’t the only rodent at extreme elevation
ScienceNews reports
On a series of expeditions along the spine of the Andes Mountains, a team of high-climbing researchers has found mammalian life scampering through some of Earth’s harshest environments.
Read more at The world’s highest-dwelling mammal isn’t the only rodent at extreme elevation
Posted in Uncategorized
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | September 13, 2023
Redwood Fire in Sequoia N. P. Update
Update on the #RedwoodFire in the wilderness of Sequoia National Park! Today, crews performed aerial ignitions to bring the fire downslope towards the western containment line. Aerial and manual ignitions will continue throughout the week. By doing this carefully calculated lighting, we can help ensure that the fire burns in sensitive areas, like steep slopes or giant sequoia groves, at an intensity that will be healthy for the ecosystem.
Posted in Park | Tags: Redwood Fire, Sequoia National Park
Natural History Wanderings 