Phy.org reported
The long-standing mystery around why spider webs sometimes feature “extra touches” known as stabilimenta has been revisited in a new study which suggests that their wave-propagation effects could help spiders locate captured prey.
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | November 21, 2025
Spider web ‘decorations’ may help pinpoint location of captured prey
Posted in Animals | Tags: Spider Webs
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | November 20, 2025
Tahoe Area State Park to Reopen
SF Gate reported
D.L. Bliss State Park, one of Lake Tahoe’s most beloved stretches of shoreline, is finally set to fully reopen after years of closures, delays and mounting frustrationover a stalled infrastructure overhaul, California State Parks announced this week. The park, in the southwestern corner of the lake, just north of Emerald Bay, has been largely inaccessible since 2023, as crews attempted to replace aging, leaking water lines.
Read more Beloved California state park to reopen after yearslong closure
Posted in Uncategorized
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | November 20, 2025
Regional Parks Botanic Garden Photos 11/19/25
Photographed in the East Bay Regional Parks Botanic Garden in Tilden Park in Berkeley, CA on November 19, 2025.
The Regional Parks Botanic Garden is a California native plant garden. It is located within Tilden Park in the hills above Berkeley, California, It is a 10-acre garden includes many of the state’s rare and endangered plants and a place for visitors to wander among trees, shrubs, flowers, and grasses from plant communities throughout the state. There are free weekend and holiday tours. Admission and parking are free. For more information about the garden visit the Friends of the Regional Parks Botanic Garden.
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | November 20, 2025
Puffins return to nature reserve for first time in 25 years
The Independent reported
Experts say it is a huge milestone for the vulnerable birds
Puffins have been discovered nesting at a County Antrim nature reservefor the first time in a quarter of a century.
This marks a significant milestone in the recovery of the vulnerable seabirds in Northern Ireland.
The find was made by Ulster Wildlife on the Isle of Muck, located off Islandmagee.
The comeback is attributed to a dedicated seabird recovery project, initiated by the nature conservation charity in 2017.
Source: Puffins return to nature reserve for first time in 25 years
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | November 20, 2025
Leave the Leaves for Natural Pest Control
from the Xerces Society
Once your yard plants have died back in the fall, you might wonder where all the insects you saw spend the winter. Most stay right in your yard, just hidden (and often in a different life stage!) Quality overwintering habitat like leaves, stems, stumps, rock shelters, and bare soil provides year-round habitat for all sorts of beneficial insects that eat pests in your yard!
Posted in Animals, Environment | Tags: Leave the Leaves
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | November 19, 2025
Trump administration seeks to roll back protections for imperiled species and habitat
NPR reported
President Trump’s administration moved Wednesday to roll back protections for imperiled species and the places they live, reviving a suite of changes to Endangered Species Act regulations from the Republican’s first term that were blocked under former Democratic President Joe Biden.
The proposed changes include the elimination of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s “blanket rule” that automatically protects animals and plants when they are classified as threatened. Government agencies instead would have to craft species-specific rules for protections, a potentially lengthy process.
Read on www.npr.org/2025/11/19/g-s1-98459/trump-administration-endangered-species-act-blanket-rule
Posted in Animals, Birds, Wildflowers and Other Plants | Tags: Endangered Species Act
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | November 19, 2025
Climate Watch | Audubon
Since 2016, Climate Watch volunteers have collected data which Audubon scientists are able to use to document in peer reviewed research that birds are responding to climate change and shifting their ranges. You can join us in this mission by observing birds in your area, using our specific protocol, and helping us learn about how birds are responding to the changing climate.
Posted in Birds | Tags: Climate Watch
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | November 19, 2025
In Washington, Birds Are Giving ‘Yelp Reviews’ of Forest Restoration Work
The New York Times reported
A collective of land trusts, conservancies and tribes is capturing birdsong with audio gear and A.I. for clues about habitat health.
Read on www.nytimes.com/2025/11/18/climate/washington-birds-habitat-health.html
Posted in Birds | Tags: Bird Conservation, Habitat Restoration
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | November 19, 2025
Xerces Society Upcoming Webinars
See all Xerces Society upcoming events at Xerces Society Webinars
Posted in Butterflies, Talks | Tags: Xerces Society Webinars
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | November 19, 2025
Los Padres ForestWatch Upcoming Events
See Upcoming Los Padres ForestWatch Upcoming Events at Home | Los Padres ForestWatch
Posted in Birds, Talks | Tags: Los Padres ForestWatch Upcoming Events
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | November 19, 2025
Photos from my garden
Photos from my garden in Berkeley, CA from 11/17/25.
Posted in Garden, Photos (Sandy's) | Tags: Garden Photos
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | November 19, 2025
Sperm whales use vowels like humans, new study finds
Popular Science reported
Scientists decoding whale clicks found patterns that echo the building blocks of human speech.
Read more https://www.popsci.com/environment/sperm-whale-language-vowels/
Posted in Uncategorized
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | November 19, 2025
Sea levels are rising faster than at any time in the last 4,000 years
EuroNews reported
Melting glaciers and thermal expansion are driving the ‘acceleration’ of sea level rise to record levels.
Sea levels are rising faster than at any point in the last 4,000 years, highlighting the urgent need for “global and local” action.
New research has warned that climate change and human activities are driving the surge, which poses a serious threat of flooding for major cities around the world.
Read more at Sea levels are rising faster than at any time in the last 4,000 years. Here’s why
Posted in Uncategorized
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | November 18, 2025
Mushrooms in the Garden
Photos of Mushrooms from the Regional Parks Botanic Garden in Tilden Park in Berkeley, CA taken on November 15, 2-25.
Posted in Uncategorized | Tags: Mushrooms, Regional Parks Botanic Garden, Tilden Botanic Garden
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | November 18, 2025
These parrots came to Los Angeles as pets – then went wild
The Guardian reported
Once escapees from the pet trade, Los Angeles’s feral parrots have become a vibrant part of city life, and could even aid conservation in their native homelands
Read more These parrots came to Los Angeles as pets – then went wild
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | November 18, 2025
Upcoming Bay Nature Events
See the schedule of upcoming Bay Nature Events mailchi.mp/baynature/march-11
Posted in Talks, Walks & Hikes | Tags: Bay Nature Events
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | November 18, 2025
Scientists capture stunning photos of a massive prehistoric fish species thought to be extinct for 70 million years
Stevetonksgardendesign reported
A fish believed gone for 70 million years just stared down a camera in the dark. The photos, taken far below the Indian Ocean’s surface, are forcing a candid rethink of extinction, survival — and how much of the planet still hides in plain sight.
Posted in Animals
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | November 17, 2025
Good Fire: Tending Native Lands now on view at Oakland Museum of California
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Posted in Environment | Tags: Good Fire, Oakland museum
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | November 17, 2025
Last week, reports of graffiti surfaced in Arches National Park, which remained open during the longest government shutdown in U.S. history with a skeleton staff and reduced services.
SF Gate reported
On Nov. 12, SFGATE visited the park to document the incidents and found a dozen examples painted on and carved into the park’s famed red rocks.
Last week, reports of graffiti surfaced in Arches National Park, which remained open during the longest government shutdown in U.S. history with a skeleton staff and reduced services.
Posted in Park | Tags: Arches National Park, Vandalism in National Parks
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | November 17, 2025
Hidden water world inside trees helps forests survive droughts – Earth.com
Earth.com reported
Scientists reveal how tree water traits – like storage, flow, and control – shape forest survival as Europe faces longer, harsher droughts.
Read on www.earth.com/news/hidden-water-world-inside-trees-helps-forests-survive-droughts/
Posted in Environment | Tags: Tree Strategies Dealing With Drought
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | November 17, 2025
France’s largest rewilding project takes root in the Dauphiné Alps
Monga Bay reported
The nonprofit Rewilding Europe announced its 11th project this summer in the Dauphiné Alps, a forested mountain range in southeastern France where wild horses, bison and lynx thrived more than 200 years ago.
Rewilding is a restoration concept that reintroduces historically present species to a landscape with minimal other human intervention.
Read on news.mongabay.com/2025/11/frances-largest-rewilding-project-takes-root-in-the-dauphine-alps/
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | November 17, 2025
With Upgraded Transmitters, We Can Now Track Migrating Monarchs Better Than Ever
Xerces Society reported
Read more With Upgraded Transmitters, We Can Now Track Migrating Monarchs Better than Ever | Xerces SocietyA new radiotelemetry transmitter, called the Blu+, is revolutionizing how scientists can track migrating monarchs this fall.
The Blu+ transmitter, developed by Cellular Tracking Technologies and Cape May Point Arts & Science Center (CMPASC), weighs just 0.06g and can be attached to monarch butterflies.
Previous monarch tags could only be detected by specialized receivers. The new Blu+ tags can be detected much more easily, because they are integrated into a network of cellular-connected devices. Now there is potential to get hundreds or even thousands of detections per tag, giving us a much better picture of the route each monarch takes on its journey.
Posted in Butterflies | Tags: Monarch Butterfly Monitoring
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | November 17, 2025
Before plants or animals, fungi conquered Earth’s surface
ScienceDaily reported
Fungi’s evolutionary roots stretch far deeper than once believed — up to 1.4 billion years ago, long before plants or animals appeared. Using advanced molecular dating and gene transfer analysis, researchers reconstructed fungi’s ancient lineage, revealing they were crucial in shaping Earth’s first soils and ecosystems.
Rea more Before plants or animals, fungi conquered Earth’s surface | ScienceDaily
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | November 16, 2025
Job Opening: Natural Resource Specialist
Natural Resource Specialist, San Francisco Peninsula Region. For information on the position and to apply go to
Natural Resource Specialist, San Francisco Peninsula Region – CNPS Forums
Posted in Job Openings | Tags: Job Opening
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | November 16, 2025
Yellowstone visitors stunned as man seemingly provokes wolf pack
SF Gate reported
A man approached and seemingly pepper-sprayed a wolf last month, according to a video posted in a Facebook group
A man approached and seemingly pepper-sprayed a wolf last month, according to a video posted in a Facebook group
Read more Yellowstone visitors stunned as man seemingly provokes wolf pack
Posted in Animals, Park | Tags: Bad Behavior in the National Parks, Wolves, Yellowstone
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | November 16, 2025
Death Valley Road Closures Due Rain
Road Closure Alerts*
Rainfall on 11/15 brought 0.6 inches of rain to Furnace Creek—about one-quarter of the park’s average annual rainfall! Additional rain is forecasted over the next several days.
The park’s rocky, steep terrain causes water to run off quickly, creating fast-moving flows of mud, rocks and debris. These floods have covered some roads and have eroded road shoulders, making travel hazardous.
Roads currently closed due to storm damage:Posted in Desert, Drives, Garden, Park | Tags: Death Valley Road Closures
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | November 16, 2025
The great escape: seal flees killer whales by jumping on to photographer’s boat | Wildlife | The Guardian
The Guardian
A wildlife photographer on a whale-watching trip in waters off Seattle captured dramatic video and photos of a pod of killer whales hunting a seal that survived only by clambering on to the stern of her boat.
See video and photose at www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/nov/13/seal-killer-whale-hunt
Posted in Animals, Photography | Tags: Seals, Whales
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | November 16, 2025
111,000 Spiders Living in a Giant Subterranean Web
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | November 15, 2025
Bay Area county sees more than 351K birds killed by bird flu
SF Gate reported
Bird flu cases are on the rise in Sonoma County after three farms tested positive for the deadly virus beginning in late October, according to recent data from the U.S. Agriculture Department.
Highly pathogenic avian influenza, or HPAI, a deadly strain of bird flu, was detected by the USDA in three Sonoma County poultry farms on Oct. 27, Oct. 28 and Nov. 5. The unnamed farms had a collective 351,700 birds killed, according to data gathered by the agency.
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | November 15, 2025
Photos from the Regional Parks Botanic Garden 11/12/25
Photographed in the East Bay Regional Parks Botanic Garden in Tilden Park in Berkeley, CA on November 12, 2025.
The Regional Parks Botanic Garden is a California native plant garden. It is located within Tilden Park in the hills above Berkeley, California, It is a 10-acre garden includes many of the state’s rare and endangered plants and a place for visitors to wander among trees, shrubs, flowers, and grasses from plant communities throughout the state. There are free weekend and holiday tours. Admission and parking are free. For more information about the garden visit the Friends of the Regional Parks Botanic Garden.
Natural History Wanderings 