Center for Natural Lands Management Preserve Manager – San Diego County
Open until filled, but for fullest consideration please apply as soon as possible and no later than July 24, 2021
PDF of position description available here
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | July 8, 2021
Job Opening: Preserve Manager – San Diego County
Posted in Uncategorized
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | July 8, 2021
Tejon Ranch Development and Fire Risk
The Guardian has a story about the battle between California developers who want to build a development at Tejon branch, conservationists who want to protect the land and the high fire risk of such a development.
California developers want to build a city in the wildlands. It could all go up in flames
Tejon Ranch Company says its plan to build 20,000 homes would help the housing crisis. Experts warn it could put people in danger.
About an hour’s drive north of Los Angeles lies one of the last remaining pieces of the truly wild, wild west.
The 270,000-acre Tejon Ranch is dotted with centuries-old native oaks. Endangered mountain lions roam the grounds, and California condors soar above it. Rains paint the hills bright orange with poppies, and purple with lupine. But in the summer, and during drought years, the landscape dries to a shimmering gold. A small group of cowboys still run cattle here.
Soon all of it could go up in smoke, scientists and climate activists fear.
Read more at California developers want to build a city in the wildlands. It could all go up in flames – The Guardian
Posted in Uncategorized
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | July 8, 2021
Researchers found that greener farming methods don’t compromise yields
Anthropocene reports
In the most comprehensive study to date, researchers found that greener farming methods don’t compromise yields
In 63% of cases, they found that eco-friendly farming boosted biodiversity without any cost to yields. In several cases, yields actually increased
Read story at In the most comprehensive study to date, researchers found that greener farming methods don’t compromise yields
Posted in Environment | Tags: Green Farming
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | July 7, 2021
Job Opening: CNPS Is Hiring an Executive Director
Reporting to the Board of Directors, the Executive Director (ED) serves as the lead executive of the organization, responsible for the implementation of the strategic goals in alignment with the mission, vision, and values of CNPS. In collaboration with staff, more specific areas of responsibility include fundraising; budgeting; Board and Chapter Council support and relations; organizational operations; partner cultivation and stewardship; and staff leadership, support, and management.
The ED shall navigate the complex organizational structure of CNPS by establishing and maintaining a highly collaborative approach to management and program development that emphasizes cooperation, communication, delegation, and mutual trust.
The ED will directly manage seven Program Directors (Senior Operations Director, Senior Director of Public Affairs, Development Director, Conservation Director, Director of Biodiversity Initiatives, Rare Plant Director and Vegetation Director), and lead a growing staff of thirty-five (35) full-time employees.
The full job announcement and application instructions can be found here.
Posted in Uncategorized | Tags: California Native Plant Society, Job Opportunity
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | July 7, 2021
Derelict Oil Tanks Removed From the Carrizo Plain National Monument
from Los Padres ForestWatch
After discovering and reporting abandoned oil equipment in a remote area of the Carrizo Plain National Monument in 2018, we’re pleased to announce that the oil company responsible has completely removed the derelict oil tanks and other debris! We’re glad that the Bureau of Land Management took our report seriously and ordered the oil company to conduct this important restoration work.
Posted in Environment, Park | Tags: Carrizo Plain National Monument
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | July 7, 2021
Lichens Slow to Return After Wildfire
from UC Davis
Lichen communities may take decades — and in some cases up to a century — to fully return to chaparral ecosystems after wildfire, finds a study from the University of California, Davis, and Stanford University.
The study, published today in the journal Diversity and Distributions, is the most comprehensive to date of long-term lichen recolonization after fire.
Unlike conifer forests, chaparral systems in California are historically adapted to high-intensity fires — they burn hot, fast and tend to regenerate quickly. However, with more frequent fires predicted under a drier, warming climate and more ignitions occurring amid a growing human population in these areas, the study indicates that lichen communities may not receive the window of opportunity they need to return to chaparral shrublands after wildfire.
Read more at Lichens Slow to Return After Wildfire | UC Davis
Posted in Environment | Tags: Fire Ecology, Lichens
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | July 6, 2021
GreenLatinos
GreenLatinos is a national non-profit organization that convenes a broad coalition of Latino leaders committed to addressing national, regional and local environmental, natural resources and conservation issues that significantly affect the health and welfare of the Latino community in the United States. GreenLatinos develops and advocates for policies and programs to advance this mission.
Posted in Environment | Tags: GreenLatinos
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | July 5, 2021
Octopuses, Like People, Seem To Have Active Stages Of Sleep, May Dream
NPR reports
Octopuses have alternating periods of “quiet” and “active” sleep that make their rest similar to that of mammals, despite being separated by more than 500 million years of evolution.
During their active periods of sleep, octopuses’ skin color changes and their bodies twitch, according to a report in the journal iScience, and they might even have short dreams.
Read more Octopuses, Like People, Seem To Have Active Stages Of Sleep, May Dream : NPR
Posted in Animals | Tags: Octopus Dreams
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | July 4, 2021
6 great nest cams you should watch this summer
Birdlife magazine writes about 6 great nest cams you should watch this summer at 6 great nest cams you should watch this summer | BirdLife
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | July 4, 2021
How the monkeyflower gets its spots
from Berkeley News
The intricate spotted patterns dappling the bright blooms of the monkeyflower plant may be a delight to humans, but they also serve a key function for the plant. These patterns act as “bee landing pads,” attracting nearby pollinators to the flower and signaling the best approach to access the sweet nectar inside.
“They are like runway landing lights, helping the bees orient so they come in right side up instead of upside down,” said Benjamin Blackman, assistant professor of plant and molecular biology at the University of California, Berkeley.
Read more at Source: How the monkeyflower gets its spots | Berkeley News
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | July 3, 2021
Sonoma Land Trust Virtual Outings And Events
See the upcoming Sonoma Land Trust Virtual Outing at Sonoma Land Trust Hosted Outings And Events – Join Us On The Land
Posted in Park, Talks, Walks & Hikes | Tags: Sonoma Land Trust, Virtual HIkes
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | July 3, 2021
Invasive alien species exact huge ecosystem cost
Climate News Network reports
At last, a global price on invasive alien species: it runs to billions of dollars and doubles every six years.
French scientists have put a value on the cost of ecosystem destruction by often almost invisible newcomers: the damage invasive alien species do, and the price of containing that damage, has already passed the US$1.28 trillion mark in less than 50 years.
That’s because the annual toll imposed by cats, rats and mice, boll weevils, gipsy moths, African bees, red imported fire ants and other unwelcome migrants has averaged $26.8 billion a year from 1970 to 2017, and has been doubling every six years, and trebling every decade.
Source: Invasive alien species exact huge ecosystem cost | Climate News Network
Posted in Environment | Tags: Alien species
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | July 2, 2021
Eurasian Hoopoes – Attractive but Smelly Bird
The Eurasian Hoopoe is one of my favorite birds. It is one of the interesting birds to see but you might not want to get too close as it is also the skunk of the bird world. The Western Foundation of Vertebrate Zoology has an interesting article on the Eurasian Hoopoe.
Animals use different kinds of defense mechanisms to ward off predators. One of them is producing a foul odor that makes them unpalatable. In mammals, we all are familiar with the skunk and its stinky odor. In the avian world, there are several species that use bad smells as a defense mechanism not only against predators, but also against ectoparasites that eat and degrade bird feathers.
Read more at In the avian world, there are several species that use
Posted in Birds | Tags: Eurasian Hoopoe
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | July 1, 2021
UC Bot. Garden Members Can Visit Without A Reservation – Beginning July 5
Beginning July 5, members can visit the Garden any time we are open without a reservation. Here are the guidelines to make your visit easy!
- Checking-in at the Entrance Kiosk is required. Bring your membership card for fastest check-in.
- The new Members’ Only hour is 9 to 10 am daily, starting July 5. The Garden is open exclusively for Members and their guests during this hour. Additional guest tickets may be purchased at the Kiosk during Members’ Only hour.
- Regular admission hours will be 10 am to 5 pm. If you are bringing a guest, not included in your membership package, for whom payment is required, the guest will need a paid advance reservation. Please check your membership type for details about the guests allowed free entry with you.
- Guests accompanying you using a one-time guest pass do not need a reservation.
If you would like to upgrade your membership (bring more guests!), please email gardenmembership@berkeley.edu with your phone number and a good time to call you.
Posted in Garden | Tags: UC-Berkeley Botanical Garden
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | June 30, 2021
Job Opening: University and Jepson Herbaria
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | June 30, 2021
Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2021: Shortlist revealed
from the BBC
See photos from the short list for the Astronomy Photographer of the Year. The competition has received more than 4,500 entries from people in 75 countries. See photos and article at Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2021: Shortlist revealed – BBC News
Posted in Astronomy | Tags: Astronomy Photographer of the Year
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | June 30, 2021
How a Venus flytrap knows to snap shut
EarthSky article on how Venus Flytrap works
How does a Venus flytrap close up? A Venus flytrap leaf has two lobes connected at a hinge on its stalk. Each lobe secretes nectar to attract insects. And each lobe is lined with cilia hairs that will later seem like prison bars to some unfortunate prey.
The lobes themselves are curved out and stretched open, like a clam. Each inner lobe has three sensory hairs. When something bumps against those hairs – whether it’s a raindrop, debris in the wind, or a visiting insect – that mechanical stimulus is converted into electrical signals in cells at the base of the hair. Those electrical signals then spread across the leaf.
Read more at How a Venus flytrap knows to snap shut | Earth | EarthSky
Posted in Wildflowers and Other Plants | Tags: Venus Flytrap
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | June 29, 2021
Job Opportunities: Redwood National and State Parks
JOB OPPORTUNITY: Redwood National and State Parks (NPS) is seeking up to three temporary employees.
What we need: Local candidates interested in being Visitor Use Assistants (VUA).
What you do as a VUA at Redwood National & State Parks:
VUAs will be located at Jedediah Smith and Mill Creek Campgrounds. Both campgrounds are in Del Norte County, CA near the communities of Crescent City, Hiouchi, and Klamath. VUAs are usually the first contact the public has with an NPS employee while visiting the park. VUA’s main job collecting fees for camping and day use at one of our three fee booth locations. Candidates with prior experience collecting and accounting for money is preferred. You will also provide information to visitors about the park and surrounding areas of interest. VUAs provide information about park resources, park regulations, and recreational opportunities.
Posted in Park | Tags: Job Opportunities, Redwood National and State Parks
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | June 29, 2021
Job Opportunity: Mendocino Coast Botanical Garden
Now hiring! Mendocino Coast Botanical Gardens is looking for an individual with retail experience and excellent customer service skills. The Garden Store Manager is responsible for all aspects and success of the Gardens’ gift shop. This is a full-time, year-round position with benefits.
Full position description and application instructions: https://www.gardenbythesea.org/…/garden-store-manager/
Posted in Uncategorized | Tags: Mendocino Botanical Garden
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | June 29, 2021
Job Opening: Public Policy and Funding Program Manager Sonoma Land Trust
The Sonoma Land Trust is looking to hire a Public Policy and Funding Program Manager. Read job description at https://sonomalandtrust.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/SLT-Public-Policy-and-Funding-Program-Manager-06-2021-1.pdf
Posted in Uncategorized | Tags: Job Opportunty, Sonoma Land Trust
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | June 29, 2021
Florida Manatees Are Dying Of Starvation At An Alarmingly High Rate : NPR
NPR reports
Over 10% Of Florida’s Total Manatee Population Has Died So Far This Year
In Florida, wildlife managers and environmental groups are stunned by a record number of manatee deaths. More than 750 manatees have died since the beginning of the year, the most deaths ever recorded in a five month period. Most of the deaths are in Florida’s Indian River Lagoon, where a large die-off of seagrass has left manatees without enough to eat.
Read more at Florida Manatees Are Dying Of Starvation At An Alarmingly High Rate : NPR
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | June 28, 2021
Peregrine Falcons at UC Berkeley 6/29/21
Host organization: UC Retirees’ Association at Berkeley (UCRAB) Speakers: Sean Peterson and Lynn Schofield We hope you will join UCRAB for a presentation by Sean Peterson and Lynn Schofield on Berkeley’s own pair of Peregrine Falcons. Sean and Lynn manage the social media project of Cal Falcons, which provides information and updates on Annie and Grinnell, the Peregrine Falcon pair who have been nesting on top of the Campanile since 2016. Sean Peterson is a PhD candidate in UC Berkeley’s Department of Environmental Science, Policy, and Management. He currently studies wetland birds in the Sierra Nevada foothills, focusing primarily on Black Rails. At the University of Minnesota, he received his Masters Degree studying Golden-winged Warblers. Sean has been studying birds since 2006 when he spent a summer bird banding in Costa Rica. Lynn Schofield is a biologist with The Institute for Bird Populations who currently studies wildlife responses to fire and works on wetland conservation issues in the Sierra Nevada Region. She has also been involved with the Golden Gate Raptor Observatory since 2008 as an intern and then later as a volunteer. Her research interests also include migratory behavior in neotropical birds and using novel tracking technologies to help understand bird behavior. |
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Posted by: Sandy Steinman | June 28, 2021
Carson Pass Interpretative Hikes
Posted in Uncategorized | Tags: Carson Pass Interpretative Hikes
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | June 28, 2021
Couple charged $18K for uprooting 36 Joshua trees
The Hi-Desert Star reports
Two home builders who destroyed 36 Joshua trees on their Prescott Avenue property were fined $18,000 in court Tuesday.
Read more at Couple charged $18K for uprooting 36 Joshua trees | Hi-Desert Star
Posted in Environment | Tags: Environmental Destruction, Joshua Trees
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | June 28, 2021
Amateur Mushroom Hunters Help Scientists
NPR has an article that demonstrates the major importance of citizen science in the field of mycology.
Let’s face it. If you are a mushroom scientist, you are hopelessly outnumbered.
By one estimate, there are between 2.2 million and 3.8 million species of fungi — and more than 90% of them aren’t cataloged.
But mycologists (as fungus professionals are known) do get a big boost from a surprisingly sophisticated world of amateurs — both those who tromp through the forests observing oddball species, as well as those who have helped build a community that links the amateurs with the pros.
Read more at Amateur Mushroom Hunters Help Scientists : NPR
Posted in Mushrooms | Tags: Citizen science, Mushroom hunting, Mycology
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | June 27, 2021
Co-existing with Coyotes
See the video Co-existing with Coyotes to learn about coyotes, safety, and how humans and coyotes can coexist in an urban national park called the Presidio at
Posted in Animals, Park | Tags: Coyotes, Presidio National Park
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | June 27, 2021
Santa Cruz Island Foundation’s Free online California Islands encyclopedia
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Posted in Park | Tags: Channel Islands Encyclopedia, ISLAPEDIA.com
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | June 26, 2021
A Sierra “Secret Garden”
The San Francisco Chronicle has a story “The ‘secret garden’ of the Sierra has been off-limits for a century. Until now.”
Just a couple miles north of Truckee, a pristine mountain meadow was bursting with wildflowers, stretching below snowcapped peaks and mixed conifer forests for hundreds of acres. I was setting eyes on it for the first time ever, and it was every bit as beautiful as I had dreamed. The meadow was saturated in green. Willows dotted the horizon. A quiet creek bent in horseshoe-like shapes, flowing downstream to the Truckee River. Black bears, bobcats, mountain lions roam this land, as do deer, beavers, squirrels and many species of birds.
This valley is habitat for endangered species and hundreds of species of plants. The landscape is unaltered, appearing much as it did before European settlers first arrived in the Sierra Nevada in the early 1800s.
Read full article at The ‘secret garden’ of the Sierra has been off-limits for a century. Until now.
Posted in Garden, Wildflowers and Other Plants | Tags: Sierra Nevada, Truckee Donner Land Trust
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | June 25, 2021
Birding Basics: What You Need To Know To Start Bird Watching
NPR writes about tips on starting to watch birds
There is no “right” or “correct” way to observe birds. You can enjoy them however you like! Maybe you’re doing the dishes, you spot a Northern Mockingbird outside of your kitchen window, and you pause to appreciate it — that’s birding! Maybe you’re taking a moment to observe some pigeons fighting over food scraps on a subway platform — in my book, that counts as birding too.
If you’d like to dive deeper into the hobby, here are tips for how to get into birding:
Read more or listen at Birding Basics: What You Need To Know To Start Bird Watching : Life Kit : NPR
Posted in Birds | Tags: Beginning Birding Tips
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | June 24, 2021
There’s a Global Plan to Conserve Nature. Indigenous People Could Lead the Way
The New York Times reports
Dozens of countries are backing an effort that would protect 30 percent of Earth’s land and water. Native people, often among the most effective stewards of nature, have been disregarded, or worse, in the past.
Read story at There’s a Global Plan to Conserve Nature. Indigenous People Could Lead the Way. – The New York Times
Posted in Environment | Tags: Indigenous Conservation
Natural History Wanderings 