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from Sonoma Land Trust Gardening for Wildlife Wednesday, August 30, 7pm |
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Learn how to incorporate native plants into your home garden both for efficient use of water and to attract wildlife. Master Gardener Bill Klausing draws upon his own wildlife-friendly native garden to illustrate many of the possibilities available to home gardeners in the North Bay region. |
Posted in Garden | Tags: Gardening with native plants
from CNPS Channel Islands Chapter
Monthly Meeting Tuesday, August 15th 7pm on Zoom Guest Speaker Taylor Wallace
Guest Speaker Taylor Wallace is from the County of Ventura’s Department of Agriculture. Taylor will present on their efforts to support CA native plants and habitats by controlling invasive weeds in Ventura county, the ERDD, early detection, rapid response program and how you can help using iNaturalist.
Posted in Environment, Talks, Wildflowers and Other Plants | Tags: Habitat Preservation, Invasive Weeds
The Conversation writes about species of fish evolved to walking
Walking independently evolved several times in fish, making it an example of evolutionary convergence (similar traits that evolve independently, like wings in bats and birds). The evolution of walking in fish is rare though. There are more than 30,000 species of fish as we know them today (not in the evolutionary sense), of which only a handful can “walk”.
Read article at How fish evolved to walk – and in one case, turned into humans
Posted in Animals | Tags: Walking Fish
NPR reports
President Biden will designate nearly a million acres of land near the Grand Canyon as a national monument today. The monument will protect lands sacred to Indigenous populations and prevent new uranium mining in the area.
Posted in Park | Tags: Baaj Nwaavjo I'tah Kukveni Grand Canyon National Monument, Grand Canyon
from Yerba Buena CNPS
Thursday, August 10, 2023 at 7:30pm Dr. Erica Spotswood, Director of Science at Second Nature Ecology and Design makes the case for urban conservation: Biodiversity, corridors, and native plants
Always free: register here now
Posted in Environment, Talks | Tags: Biodiversity, Native Plants, wildlife corridors
The New York Times has a major story on how Audubon’s National organization struggles and fails at dealing with racism and sexism. Our local Bay Area Chapter has been also dealing with these issues. We have made concrete efforts to be more inclusive and welcoming to all and will vote to change our chapter name this month.
A battle over the group namesake’s ties to slavery grew into a conflict over diversity, highlighting complications that have arisen in the aftermath of George Floyd’s death.
— Read on www.nytimes.com/2023/08/07/us/audubon-society-birding-racism.html
From NPR
Since 2011, Juneau, Alaska, has seen glacial outburst flooding called jökulhlaup every summer when an ice dam from a nearby mountain releases water downstream. But this year’s flooding has been the worst by far, destroying homes and catching residents off guard. (via KTOO)
Posted in Environment | Tags: Climate change, Glacial Flooding
NPR reports
During the day, while the glassfrogs are asleep on green leaves, they’re vulnerable to predators, so they achieve camouflage by becoming super transparent. (Their livers, among other organs, are coated in highly reflective white crystals.) Since their red blood cells are transporting very little oxygen, Delia says the frogs likely have “some alternative process that allows them to keep their cells alive during transparency.” Then, at night, when the frogs become active, “feeding and mating, going about their regular business,” the vitreous amphibians release their red blood cells back into circulation.
Read or listen to the story at A transparent frog hides its red blood cells while sleeping : NPR
Posted in Animals | Tags: Invisible Glassfrog
Photos from the East Bay Regional Parks Botanic Garden in Tilden Park in Berkeley, CA on August 5, 2023.
I have been putting together an album on Flickr of some of the trees in the garden. Here is the link if you would like to see it:
Posted in Garden
Two new job posts from the CNPS job announcement page
Temporary Field Botany Technician – Invasive Plants
Communications and Development Coordinator Opening at Grassroots Ecology
Posted in Job Openings | Tags: Job Openings
High Country News reports
After Channel Islands National Park was established in 1980, a serious effort to restore the native habitat gained steam. Today, the islands are home to around 50 bald eagles, and other formerly threatened species are once again thriving, including the island fox, peregrine falcons and the island scrub jay, which reseeds the islands’ oak trees. Point Bennet, on the coast of San Miguel Island, now hosts the largest seal and sea lion rookery in the world.
Read story at See the Channel Islands’ stunning ecological recovery — High Country News – Know the West
Posted in Animals, Birds | Tags: Bald Eagle Recovery, Channel Islands
The bomb cyclone storm of 2023 has long since passed but the Garden is now undertaking the enormous task of removing the 175 ft redwood tree that was severely damaged in the storm. This project will occur on Monday, August 7. In the interest of safety the Garden will be closed to the public.
Posted in Garden | Tags: UC Berkeley Botancial Garden
Attention recent graduates in Geographic Information Systems (GIS), here’s an opportunity to put your geospatial skills to work at Yosemite! Three paid GIS internships are open for applications from recent graduates (within two years) and current students. These internships will be 40 hours per week:
Visitor Access GIS Internship (Oct 16-Feb 2)
Help develop a geospatial dashboard to summarize parking availability under a variety of roadway and parking lot closure scenarios.
Enterprise GIS Internship (Oct 16-Mar 1)
Assist the enterprise GIS program with a variety of web application updates, GIS and troubleshooting requests, and data management needs.
Forestry GIS Internship (Oct 16-Mar 29)
Support the forestry program in developing forestry data sets and implementing mobile data collection workflows.
Apply by August 18 at https://www.suu.edu/iic/internships/ Yosemite’s GIS internships on this job board have El Portal, California listed as their location.
Posted in Job Openings | Tags: Job Openings
Center for Biological Diversity:
SAN LUIS OBISPO COUNTY, Calif.― The Bureau of Land Management late Wednesday ordered an oil company to permanently close and remove 11 long-dormant oil wells inside the Carrizo Plain National Monument, a unique landscape in central California famous for its vibrant springtime wildflower displays and rare wildlife.
— Read on biologicaldiversity.org/w/news/press-releases/oil-company-ordered-to-permanently-close-oil-wells-restore-habitat-in-californias-carrizo-plain-national-monument-2023-08-03/
Posted in Environment, Park | Tags: Carrizo Plain
ScienceDaily reports
Scientists have discovered a new molecular signalling pathway, triggered when leaves are exposed to low humidity, that ensures plant roots keep growing towards water. A new study has found that when the leaves of a plant are exposed to dry air (low humidity), they send a shoot-to-root signal, using abscisic acid (ABA), to tell the roots to keep growing. This is a surprising finding as ABA is usually thought to be a growth inhibitor, not a growth promoter.
read more at Dry days trigger leaves to send a surprising growth signal telling roots to keep growing
Posted in Wildflowers and Other Plants | Tags: Plant Communication
Photos from the East Bay Regional Parks Botanic Garden in Tilden Park in Berkeley, CA on August 2, 2023.
I have been putting together an album on Flickr of some of the trees in the garden. Here is the link if you would like to see it:
Posted in Garden
Posted in Talks, Walks & Hikes | Tags: Friends of the Inyo
Wear sunscreen, a hat and closed toe shoes. Bring garden gloves and drinking water. Some tools will be provided, but if you can, please bring your own pruners and hedge trimmers (manual only, no gas or electric). Restrooms are available.
Date: Sunday, August 13, 2023 Time: Speaker, inside, 9:00 am to 10:30 am
Hands-on practicum, outside, 10:30 am to 12 noon
Location: Ventura, CA, 93004 – Location will be provided upon registration
Registration via Eventbrite
Posted in Garden | Tags: Caring for California Native Plants
ABC7 Los Angeles reports
Firefighters aided by rain fought to contain a massive blaze that swept through the California desert into Nevada and is threatening the region’s famous spiky Joshua trees.
The York Fire that erupted last Friday is California’s largest wildfire this year. As of Wednesday night it had burned through nearly 147 square miles (380.4 square kilometers) of land and was 34% contained, fire officials said.
Posted in Desert, Environment, Park | Tags: Joshua Trees, Mojave Desert, York Fire
Axios reports
Antarctica is missing over 1 million square miles of floating sea ice, even though it’s currently the dead of winter in the Southern Hemisphere.
Why it matters: Scientists don’t know what is driving the shortfall, but they are deeply concerned about its consequences, as sea ice influences the planet’s climate, global ocean currents and marine ecosystems.
Read more at Antarctica has a sea ice shortfall four times the size of Texas
Posted in Environment | Tags: Antarctica Ice Loss, Climate change
Bay Nature reports
Here’s a look at how birds beat the heat along with some ways you can help. “These are birds trying to survive in the crevices in our world.”
— Read on baynature.org/2023/08/03/tactical-pooping-and-other-ways-birds-survive-summer/
Posted in Birds | Tags: Bird Survival in Summer
The Guardian reports
Cactuses are commonly assumed to be made to endure scorching heat, but even they have their limits, as has been shown recently.
After recording the warmest monthly average temperature for any American city ever in July, Phoenix climbed back up to dangerously high temperatures on Wednesday. That could mean trouble not just for people but for some of the region’s plants, too.
Residents across the sprawling metro are finding the extended extreme heat has led to fried flora. Nurseries and landscapers are inundated with requests for help with saguaros or fruit trees that are losing leaves.
Read story at Phoenix’s extreme heat withers saguaros, trademark cactus of desert landscape | Arizona | The Guardian
Posted in Environment | Tags: Saguaro Cacti
Posted in Garden | Tags: Native Plant Sale
Expect busy and crowded conditions throughout the parks. Parking lots will fill early and access to popular attractions like the General Sherman Tree, General Grant Tree, Moro Rock, and others may be limited from mid-morning to late afternoon. …
Posted in Park | Tags: Giant Forest, King Canyon and Sequoia National Parks, Sequoia National Park
The Missouri Independent reports
The three neonicotinoids — thiamethoxam, clothianidin and imidacloprid — are applied as seed coatings on some 150 million acres of crops each year, including corn, soybeans and other major crops. Neonicotinoids are a group of neurotoxic insecticides similar to nicotine and used widely on farms and in urban landscapes. They are absorbed by plants and can be present in pollen and nectar, and have been blamed for killing bees or changing their behaviors.
Pesticide manufacturers say that studies support the safe use of these chemicals, which in addition to seed coatings, are also sprayed on more than 4 million acres of crops across the United States, including cotton, soybeans, grains, fruits, vegetables, and nuts. But conservation groups said that the EPA’s analysis has “gaping holes” and downplays the harm to endangered species.
Read full article at EPA says three widely used pesticides driving hundreds of endangered species toward extinction • Missouri Independent
Posted in Environment | Tags: Pesticides Threaten Endangered Species
NPR reports
Posted in Animals | Tags: Cricket sound
Entrance fees will be waived on Friday, August 4 at ALL National Park Service (NPS) sites, including Death Valley. This is the third anniversary of the Great American Outdoors Act (GAOA), which is making a huge difference in the protection and enjoyment of national parks and other public lands.
Posted in Park | Tags: Free National Park Entrance
Posted in Park | Tags: Cowtrack Fire
Berkeleyside reports
A harmful algal bloom known as a red tide is spreading through Berkeley Marina, and scientists believe it’s the same species that caused a gruesome fish die-off in Oakland’s Lake Merritt and mass mussel death at the Berkeley Marina last August.
No mass fish deaths in the Bay Area have been reported yet, but there is cause for concern.
Read more Algae bloom that caused Lake Merritt fish kill is spotted in Berkeley
Posted in Environment | Tags: Red Tide at Berkeley Marina
Natural History Wanderings 