NPR reported
The Laysan Albatross was first banded (or marked) in Hawaii in 1956. Meaning, she could be even older than the current estimate of 74.
Read on www.npr.org/2025/02/14/nx-s1-5297871/wisdom-albatross-mother-midway
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | February 14, 2025
At 74, Wisdom the albatross welcomes new motherhood once again : NPR
Posted in Birds | Tags: Oldest Breeding Albatross, Wisdom
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | February 14, 2025
Webninar: The Secret Lives of Snakes
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Posted by: Sandy Steinman | February 14, 2025
California’s Two-Spot Octopus Combines Extraordinary Intelligence with Masterful Camouflage
California Curated reports
While diving along the California coastline, spotting a California two-spot octopus is a rare and memorable experience. Nestled in rocky crevices or hidden among kelp, these octopuses are easily identified by their distinctive blue “eye-spots,” which are not actual eyes but mimicry patterns used to confuse predators. Such encounters provide a fascinating glimpse into the behavior of this remarkable marine species.
The California two-spot octopus (Octopus bimaculoides), found from Central California to Baja, is a master of adaptation. Its chromatophores—specialized skin cells—allow it to change color and pattern with precision, enabling camouflage, communication, and courtship displays. This ability, paired with its intelligence and problem-solving skills, highlights the octopus’s unique place in the marine ecosystem and makes it a subject of keen scientific interest.
Posted in Animals | Tags: California two-spot octopusOctopus bimaculoides
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | February 13, 2025
Upcoming Bay Nature Events
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Posted in Talks | Tags: Upcoming Bay Nature Events
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | February 13, 2025
Yosemite National Park is in chaos
SF Gate reported
Yosemite National Park is in trouble. Hamstrung by President Donald Trump’s hiring freeze, hundreds of rescinded job offers and the threat of coming layoffs, the park is poised to enter its busiest months of the year severely short-staffed. Not only that, but the park’s day-use reservation system — created to protect park resources and improve the visitor experience by reducing crowding — appears unlikely to return this year.
Read more Yosemite National Park is in chaos
Posted in Park | Tags: Yosemite National Park
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | February 13, 2025
UC Berkeley Bontanical Garden Closed Today 2/13/25
The Garden is closed today, 2/13, due to the rain and high wind advisory. We appreciate your understanding! Please stay tuned to our social media and website for updates. https://botanicalgarden.berkeley.edu
Posted in Garden | Tags: UC Berkeley Bontanical Garden
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | February 13, 2025
Know your deadly mushrooms this rainy season
Berkeleyside reported
Mycologists and mushroom foragers rejoice in the rainy season as it’s when many of their favorite species can be found. But some can be deadly and so, as it does every year around this time, the East Bay Regional Park District (EBRPD) is warning of the danger posed by toxic mushrooms.
Two of the world’s deadliest types of shrooms thrive in the East Bay: the Amanita phalloides (death cap) and the Amanita ocreata (Western destroying angel).
Both are associated with oak trees, and can be found growing anywhere oak roots are present, according to the park district. Both the death cap and the destroying angel contain amatoxin, a lethal chemical compound that causes liver failure. Symptoms of mushroom poisoning typically appear around 12 hours after consumption.
California Poison Control System operates a free hotline at 1-800-222-1222T
Read more at Know your deadly mushrooms this rainy season
Posted in Mushrooms | Tags: Poison Mushrooms
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | February 13, 2025
Meet The World’s Most ‘Safeguarded’ Tree—A Jurassic Survivor Thought Extinct Until 1994
Forbes reported
Hidden within the remote canyons of Wollemi National Park, located in New South Wales, Australia, is a tree so rare and ancient that its exact location remains a closely guarded secret.
The Wollemi pine (Wollemia nobilis), a conifer species belonging to the 200 million year-old Araucariaceae family, was thought to have vanished from the planet—until a chance discovery in 1994 rewrote botanical history.
Read more Meet The World’s Most ‘Safeguarded’ Tree—A Jurassic Survivor Thought Extinct Until 1994
Posted in Environment | Tags: Wollemi pine, Wollemia nobilis
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | February 12, 2025
Be a Garden Tour Docent at Theodore Payne
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Help bring the Native Plant Garden Tour to life by volunteering as a docent! As a docent, you’ll be paired with a garden, connect with its story, and play a key role in making the day welcoming and enriching for visitors. Your time and enthusiasm help guests feel inspired and engaged as they explore these beautiful spaces. Plus, docents receive an official Garden Tour t-shirt and can visit gardens on the alternate tour day. Sign up today!
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Posted in Butterflies, Garden | Tags: Theodore Payne Docents
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | February 12, 2025
Handful of investors quietly purchase private land within Joshua Tree
SF Gate reported
A handful of privately owned lots within the boundaries of Joshua Tree National Park in the Whispering Pines area were recently purchased, sparking concerns among environmentalists and some residents about what’s coming to the California desert.
Read more at Handful of investors quietly purchase private land within Joshua Tree
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | February 12, 2025
The Truth About L.A. Fires and Forest Management
from las Padres ForestWatch
The recent wind-driven fires in Los Angeles were not because of a lack of forest management. In fact, these fires burned almost entirely in chaparral, where fires naturally burn intensely, especially during Santa Ana winds. The fires highlight just how badly home hardening programs and resources are needed as climate change continues to make these types of events more likely. Click to learn more and watch the full video clip
Posted in Drives | Tags: Forest Management, L.A. Fires
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | February 11, 2025
Job Opening: Botanist
Sierra Industries has a position for a full time botanist See job description and application process at Staff Botanist Opening at Sierra Pacific Industries – rare full-time position!
Posted in Job Openings | Tags: Job Opening
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | February 11, 2025
North Bay land deal to connect 22K acres of forest, wildlife habitat | KRON4
KRON reported
A 1,517-acre patch of coast redwood forest in Sonoma County, considered a haven for native plants and wildlife, is set to be protected following a purchase agreement announced Tuesday by Save the Redwoods League. The property will fill a gap to link more than 22,000 acres of conserved lands from Monte Rio to […]
— Read on www.kron4.com/news/bay-area/north-bay-land-deal-to-connect-22k-acres-of-forest-wildlife-habitat/
Posted in Park | Tags: New Public Lands, Save the Redwoods, Sonoma County
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | February 11, 2025
SF’s coyotes are going after an unexpected source of prey, study shows
SF Gate reported on the findings of a study on the dies of San Francisco coyotes. A few findings included
The highest overall contributor to coyote diets in San Francisco was anthropogenic, or human-origin, food, which was identified in 78% of the samples collected. The data was most frequently traced back to coyotes dwelling in parts of the city with more manmade land cover, like asphalt and brick.
The second most commonly eaten food group in San Francisco’s coyotes was small mammals, which were found in 73.8% of the collected samples and include invasive pest species such as black rats, Norway rats and house mice,
Read story at SF’s coyotes are going after an unexpected source of prey, study shows
Posted in Animals | Tags: San Francisco Coyotes
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | February 10, 2025
Trump Killed a Major Report on Nature. They’re Trying to Publish It Anyway
The New York Times reported
The draft was almost ready for submission, due in less than a month. More than 150 scientists and other experts had collectively spent thousands of hours working on the report, a first-of-its-kind assessment of nature across the United States.
But President Trump ended the effort, started under the Biden administration, by executive order.
“Now key experts who worked on the report, called the National Nature Assessment, are figuring out how to finish and publish it outside the government, according to interviews with nine of the leading authors.
Read full article at Trump Killed a Major Report on Nature. They’re Trying to Publish It Anyway. – The New York Times
Posted in Environment, Wildflowers and Other Plants | Tags: National Nature Assessment
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | February 10, 2025
Directive From New Interior Secretary Weakens Public Land Protections to Push Fossil Fuels
Inside Climate News reported
Doug Burgum’s order would hobble clean energy development, hinder protections for migratory birds and endangered species and open significant landscapes to resource extraction.
Posted in Environment | Tags: Public Lands Protection
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | February 10, 2025
Scientists discover unusual Calif. lake has minerals found in space
SF Gate reported
An asteroid forged an unexpected link to San Bernardino County.
Read more Scientists discover unusual Calif. lake has minerals found in space
Posted in Environment | Tags: Minerals Found In Space in Calif. Lake
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | February 10, 2025
A federal court restored protections for endangered whales that become entangled in fishing gear
AP reported
Commercial fishermen who hoped for a loosening of fishing regulations during President Donald Trump’s administration faced a setback when a federal appeals court reinstated rules meant to protect a dwindling whale species from getting entangled in fishing gear.
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | February 9, 2025
Job Opportunities at Birds Canada
There are multiple job openings at Birds Canada. Check them out at Job Opportunities – Birds Canada | Oiseaux Canada
Posted in Job Openings | Tags: Birds Canada, Job Openings
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | February 9, 2025
It’s like ‘dead birds flying’: How bird flu is spreading in the wild
NPR reported
That’s the way one scientist puts it — referring to how infected wild birds survive long enough to spread it to birds and mammals around the world. And that’s a serious risk for human health.
Read more at : It’s like ‘dead birds flying’: How bird flu is spreading in the wild : Goats and Soda : NPR
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | February 9, 2025
New Zealand Mountain Becomes a Legal Person as Treaty Settlement Passes Into Law
The New Zealand Herald reported
Almost a decade of settlement negotiations between the Crown and Taranaki formally concluded yesterday, when Parliament voted unanimously to pass a law that formally grants legal personhood to Taranaki maunga (mountain).
The redress bill also acknowledged the historical grievances inflicted on Taranaki’s eight iwi by the Crown.
Posted in Uncategorized | Tags: New Zealand Mountain Becomes a Legal Person, Taranaki
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | February 8, 2025
Job Openings at Watershed Nursery
Posted in Garden, Job Openings | Tags: Job Openings, Watershed Nursery
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | February 8, 2025
Calif. atmospheric river activates Lake Berryessa’s famed Glory Hole
SF Gate reported
The spillway at Napa County’s Lake Berryessa reservoir — lovingly referred to as the Glory Hole — is active again after six years following this week’s atmospheric rivers, officials announced.
Read on www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/lake-berryessa-spillway-glory-hole-20154150.php
Posted in Environment | Tags: Glory Hole, Lake Berryessa
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | February 8, 2025
California Rice Fields Offer Threatened Migratory Waterbirds a Lifeline
Inside Climate News reported
Conservation groups are working with Central Valley farmers to restore critical habitat for wetland birds struggling to subsist on a fraction of their historic wintering grounds. But finding the right spots is challenging.
The Central Valley is one of the most important regions of the Pacific Flyway for cranes and other waterbirds to overwinter or rest and refuel on their way further south. It supports hundreds of resident and migratory species that come here from breeding grounds as far north as the Arctic tundra.
Read full article at California Rice Fields Offer Threatened Migratory Waterbirds a Lifeline – Inside Climate News
Posted in Birds | Tags: Migratory Birds, Rice Fields
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | February 7, 2025
U.S. senators warn that some national parks could close altogether
SF Gate reported
Senators warn of chaos and closures at National Parks following cuts and rescinded job offers to National Park Service employees.
Read on www.sfgate.com/national-parks/article/senators-warn-national-parks-could-close-20154149.php
Posted in Park | Tags: Possible National Park Closures
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | February 7, 2025
The Great Backyard Bird Count is Feb 14 to 17
The Great Backyard Bird Count is Feb 14 to 17. Spend time in your favorite places watching birds—then tell us about them! In as little as 15 minutes notice the birds around you. Identify them, count them, and submit your counts to help scientists better understand and protect birds around the world. If you already use eBird or Merlin, your submissions over the 4 days count toward GBBC. It’s as simple as that! Join a global movement and help scientists. Find out more.
Posted in Birds | Tags: Great Backyard Bird Coun
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | February 7, 2025
Photos From My Garden
Photos taken in my garden on Feb. 5, 2024. Experimenting with a borrowed Olympus Tough TG6 to test its closeup and macro capabilities.
Posted in Photos (Sandy's) | Tags: Garden Photos
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | February 7, 2025
The moon’s grand canyons were carved in the blink of an eye : NPR
NPR reported
The Earth’s Grand Canyon took millions of years to carve, but the moon’s grand canyons took about ten minutes.
Read on www.npr.org/2025/02/04/nx-s1-5280425/the-moons-grand-canyons-were-carved-in-the-blink-of-an-eye
Posted in Astronomy | Tags: Canyons on Moon
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | February 7, 2025
Choosing the Right Feeder and Seed: A Guide to Keeping Backyard Birds Healthy
from Birds Canada
Feeding birds is a wonderful way to connect with nature, support local wildlife, and enjoy the beauty of feathered friends right in your backyard. But to make the most of this rewarding hobby, it’s essential to choose the right feeder and seed type while maintaining a clean and safe environment for your avian visitors. Read more
Posted in Birds | Tags: Bird Feeding Guidelines
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | February 6, 2025
Seasonal Jobs at East Bay Regional Parks
SEASONAL PARK DISTRICT JOBS AVAILABLE! Looking for a summer job? Like the outdoors? Check out the opportunities available for the 2025 summer season.
| Virtual Job Fair: Sat, Mar. 1, 10:30 a.m.–12:30 p.m. |
| The East Bay Regional Park District has a wide variety of opportunities for youth, young adults, and students. The Virtual Job Fair is designed for applicants ages 15–24, although the minimum age requirement for most jobs is 16 years old. Resume and interview tips provided. Pre-registration highly recommended.Sat, Mar. 1, 10:30 a.m.–12:30 p.m. More info/Zoom registration |
Visit the Park District Jobs webpage for more information. Jobs | East Bay Parks
Posted in Job Openings, Park | Tags: East Bay Regional Parks Seasonal Jobs
Natural History Wanderings 