The Revelator has an interview Rue Mapp with the founder of Outdoor Afro and author of the new book Nature Swagger
Outdoor Afro: Celebrating Black Joy in Nature. Black people like nature, too. But you wouldn’t know it from looking at outdoor magazines — at least not before Outdoor Afro got started.
Read interview at Outdoor Afro: Celebrating Black Joy in Nature • The Revelator
Posted in Walks & Hikes | Tags: Outdoor Afro, Rue Mapp
Photos from a visit to the UC-Berkeley Botanical Garden on November 18, 2022.
The garden is currently open daily to the public from ten to five by reservation . Garden members can enter at nine. There is an entrance fee (free for garden members) and paid parking. Reservations are required except for garden members. For more information and to make reservations go to UC-Botanical Garden.
Posted in Garden, Photos (Sandy's) | Tags: UC-Berkeley Botanical Garden
The 123rd Christmas Bird Count is just around the corner! From December 14, 2022 through January 5, 2023, bird lovers of all ages and skill levels throughout the Hemisphere will take part in the nation’s longest-running community science bird project. The Audubon CBC has not only provided valuable data for hundreds of peer-reviewed studies, but it has also become an annual holiday tradition for tens of thousands of birders. We look forward to running another COVID-safe CBC this season, with updated guidelines in place. Read on for more on how you can participate in this year’s count. Learn more
Posted in Birds | Tags: 123rd Christmas Bird Count
National Parks Conservation Association reports
In a major setback for wildlife protection and conservation, a federal district court today sided with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and National Marine Fisheries Service, delaying the restoration of comprehensive Endangered Species Act protections for hundreds of species and the places they call home.
Posted in Animals, Environment, Park | Tags: Endangered species, Wildlife Protection
The bark on this tree formed interesting patterns that caught my attention on a walk in town today.
Interesting Bark
Posted in Photos (Sandy's) | Tags: Tree Bark
The New York Times reports
An effort decades in the making is showing results in Nepal, a rare success story in a world of cascading climate disasters and despair.
Read story at How Nepal Grew Back Its Forests
Posted in Environment | Tags: Forest Deforestation, Forest Restoration, Nepal
See the galleries of the winners of 2022 Natural Landscape Awards. A lot of good stuff although you may find you disagree with the judges’s final decisions. Best viewed on a larger screen to fully appreciate the work. Check out the galleries at Competition Galleries – 2022 – Natural Landscape Photography Awards
Posted in Photography | Tags: 2022 Natural Landscape Photography Awards
The Guardian reports
Warm autumn has brought almost 100 to Britain, a development that is no cause for celebration.
While birders are understandably excited by the record numbers of pallid swifts in the UK, their appearance – like the bee-eaters that bred in Norfolk last spring – are another warning of rapid and worrying changes in our climate. As the appearance of these Mediterranean birds reveals, temperatures more like summer than autumn should not be celebrated, but feared.
Read more at Pallid swifts come to UK shores amid worrying changes in climate | Climate crisis | The Guardian
Posted in Birds | Tags: Pallid Swifts in UK
from eBird
eBirders help make a game-changing bird conservation tool a reality. New eBird Trends maps show precisely where populations of 583 bird species are changing, using observations submitted by eBirders. For the first time, you can zoom in and pinpoint where bird are increasing or decreasing—a crucial first step to reversing declines like the ones identified by the 2022 U.S. State of the Birds report and the State of the World’s Birds.
Posted in Birds | Tags: Bird Conservation, eBird Trends maps
EarthSky reports
In 2022, the famous Leonid meteor shower will be washed by bright moonlight on the shower’s peak morning, November 18. Try watching from late night until the moon rises.
Read more EarthSky | Leonid meteor shower: All you need to know in 2022
Posted in Astronomy | Tags: Leonid Meteor Shower
A new wildflower book of one of my favorite places: Bristlecone Forest Wildflowers by Cathy Rose, Karen Ferrell-Ingram, and Stephen Ingram
From Stephen Ingram Nature Photography
The Ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest is an extraordinary habitat where resilient, weathered trees and hardy flowering plants thrive in a desert mountain environment. Bristlecone Forest Wildflowers is a detailed plant guide to the wildflowers, shrubs, trees, and grasses found in the subalpine zone of the White Mountains, from the Schulman Grove to the Patriarch Grove. The book includes:
Tuck it in your pack as you hit the trails of the Schulman Grove or make the scenic drive to the Patriarch Grove trails.
You can order the book at: https://ingramphoto.com/product/bristlecone-forest-wildflowers/
Posted in Wildflowers and Other Plants | Tags: Bristlecone Forest Wildflowers
The Revelator reports
Ponds need the world’s attention. These smaller bodies of water don’t get much conservation respect, but research shows they’re actually important refuges for endangered plants and animals.
Posted in Job Openings | Tags: Botanist Aide, Sierra Pacific Industries
from East Bay Regional Parks
On November 15th, the Park District Board of Directors unanimously voted to advance efforts to secure funding for development of the first public access point at the new Thurgood Marshall Regional Park – Home of the Port Chicago 50. The Park District was awarded a $3 million direct appropriation in the 2022-2023 California state budget for Public access at Thurgood Marshall.
Posted in Park | Tags: Thurgood Marshall Regional Park
After four questions, you will end up with a personalized list of plants that have evolved to thrive in your specific area.
To use this helpful tool clickLETS GET STARTED!
Posted in Garden | Tags: Calscape Garden Planner
SciTechDaily has a video and reports “See a Solar Snake Slither Across the Sun’s Surface – At 380,000 Miles per Hour”
Solar Orbiter has detected a ‘tube’ of cooler atmospheric gases rapidly snaking its way through the Sun’s powerful magnetic field. This observation provides a fascinating new addition to the zoo of features revealed by the Solar Orbiter mission, which is led by the European Space Agency (ESA). It is especially intriguing because the snake was a precursor to a much larger eruption.
The snake was spotted on September 5, 2022, as the Solar Orbiter spacecraft was approaching the Sun for a close pass that took place on October 12. The ‘snake’ is a tube of cool plasma suspended by magnetic fields in the hotter surrounding plasma of the Sun’s atmosphere.
See video and read more at : See a Solar Snake Slither Across the Sun’s Surface – At 380,000 Miles per Hour
Posted in Astronomy | Tags: Solar snake
Mono County tourism reports
Hwy 89 Monitor Pass and Hwy 270 The Bodie Road are back open!
Hwy 108 is closed for the winter. For up-to-the minute road conditions go to Roads.dot.ca.gov
Posted in Drives | Tags: Mono County Road Updates
The San Francisco Chronicle reports
Park officials announced Tuesday that the contentious crowd-control policy enacted during the first two years of the pandemic and continued a third year because of construction will not be in place next year. The reservation requirement covered the park’s peak summer season.
Posted in Park | Tags: Yosemite Reservation System
NPR reports
In the fight to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, one of the longstanding challenges has been figuring out who is exactly producing them and how much.
Now, a new global tracker is helping to make clear exactly where major greenhouse gas emissions are originating. Created by the nonprofit Climate Trace, the interactive map uses a combination of satellites, sensors and machine learning to measure the top polluters worldwide.
Read or listen to story at A new website backed by Al Gore tracks big polluters by name : NPR
Posted in Uncategorized
The Native Seed Production Field Technician works with the Farm Manager to produce native seed for habitat restoration. The job involves working on a diverse set of tasks associated with native seed production including cultivation, planting, irrigation, weed control, seed harvesting, seed cleaning and seed bagging and tagging. It includes the operation of farm equipment and manual labor to accomplish the many tasks associated with production of native seed. It is a unique opportunity to learn about native seed production – a sought after set of skills that few people possess.
For more information, please visit: https://riverpartners.org/about-us/jobs/.
Posted in Job Openings | Tags: Job Opening, Native Seed Production Field Technician
Earth.com reports
According to a recent study led by the University of Exeter, “plant blindness” – or people’s lack of interest in and knowledge of the diversity of plants surrounding them – is caused by a lack of exposure to nature.
Read more “Plant blindness” is caused by urbanization • Earth.com
See the current list of Anza-Borrego Desert Natural History Association activities, hikes, tours, classes, lectures and ABDNHA Calendar. They are both in person and virtual events.
Posted in Astronomy, Birds, Desert, Park, Walks & Hikes | Tags: Anza-Borrego Desert Natural History Activities
from Death Valley National Park
Posted in Drives, Park | Tags: Death Valley Road Updates
Audubon reviews wifi binoculars
On a recent outing with Seattle’s Seward Park Audubon Center, a small group put the technology to the test, with promising but mixed results.
Read what they found at How Wifi Binoculars Could Help Make Birding and Nature More Accessible | Audubon
Posted in Birds
Photos from my yard today.
Posted in Photos (Sandy's) | Tags: Pelargonium, Raindrops
The BBC reports
Many wildlife species are thriving in Europe thanks to protection and re-introduction, a new report finds.
Grey wolves, Eurasian beavers, grey seals, and European bison have seen some of the strongest recoveries in numbers and geographical range.
The report, commissioned by conservation group Rewilding Europe looked at 50 European species.
Read more at Wildlife protection helps species thrive in Europe
Posted in Animals | Tags: European Wildlife Protection
NPR reports
Humans are sweaty beasts, but it turns out many other animals have different ways to keep cool. Staff of the Maryland Zoo help explain how their residents regulate their temperatures.
Read more: Do animals sweat? Here’s a poem to answer that question : NPR
Posted in Animals | Tags: Do Animals Sweat?
The US Geological Survey is seeking seasonal Biological Science Technicians (GG05) to assist with ongoing research that helps guide resource managers when and where to use local plant materials for promoting restoration success on desert lands under current and future climates.
Learn more and see how to apply at forum.cnps.org/
Posted in Job Openings | Tags: Job Opening, USGS
YubaNet reports
The loss of ice from Greenland’s largest basin is occurring much faster and could contribute up to six times more to global sea-level rise by 2100 than climate models currently project, according to a study led by Dartmouth professor Mathieu Morlighem with researchers from the Technical University of Denmark (DTU) and the University of California, Irvine.
— Read on yubanet.com/enviro/greenlands-largest-ice-sheet-thinning-rapidly/
Posted in Environment | Tags: Greenland, Melting Ice Sheets
NPR reports on a coral reef that resurrected itself
Though they may not know it, about half a billion people worldwide depend on the ecosystems created and sustained by corals. And with climate change threatening coral’s survival, marine scientist Enric Sala had a goal that might have seemed impossible.
Read or listen at This coral reef resurrected itself — and showed scientists how to replicate it : NPR
Posted in Environment | Tags: Coral Reefs
Natural History Wanderings 