Posted by: Sandy Steinman | February 6, 2025

How the New Administration’s Actions Will Affect National Parks 

The National Park Conservation Association reported

Will there be a shortage of national park rangers this visitation season? Our policy experts weigh in on the latest developments.

Thousands of job offers rescinded. Buyouts offered. And many staff left uncertain about the security of their jobs. It’s been two weeks since the new administration took office, but uncertainty and confusion are already taking a hefty toll on the National Park Service.

National park staff across the country are feeling the impact of the Trump administration’s recent executive orders and directives. As information continues to come fast and furious from the White House, NPCA breaks down what you need to know about the administration’s efforts to overhaul the federal workforce and agency funding — and how it all may affect your next park visit and the protection of our parks’ irreplaceable resources.

Read more at How the New Administration’s Actions Will Affect National Parks · National Parks Conservation Association

The CoolDown reported

South America’s largest land mammal has made a historic comeback.

The South American tapir hasn’t been spotted in the Atlantic Forest for over 100 years and was considered extinct in Brazil’s coastal region. Scientists were happy to be proven wrong.

AS reported on the endangered animals’ exciting reappearance when recordings of a female South American tapir and her calves were discovered on hidden trail cameras.

Read more Hidden trail cameras capture footage of South America’s largest mammal once believed extinct: ‘This … reflects the importance of protected areas’

Posted by: Sandy Steinman | February 5, 2025

Evacuated Altadena resident returns to find bear underneath home

FOX11 Los Angeles reported

As evacuation orders were lifted in the Eaton Fire area, one resident returned home to find a bear in a crawl space underneath their Altadena home.

Read on www.foxla.com/news/bear-found-in-altadena-home-eaton-fire

Posted by: Sandy Steinman | February 5, 2025

Bay Regional Park District celebrates Black History Month.

Join the East Bay Regional Park District in celebration of Black History Month. Learn about contributions of individuals and groups through naturalist-led programs about Black environmentalists and conservationists, or register for one of the Black History Walks at Thurgood Marshall Regional Park – Home of the Port Chicago 50. www.ebparks.org/we-celebrate/black-history-month

Posted by: Sandy Steinman | February 5, 2025

East Bay Regional Park Docent Trainings

For over 30 years, the East Bay Regional Park District has provided opportunities for members of the public to do just that–share their love of nature or their passion for history by becoming docents. Learn more at  Docent Groups | East Bay Parks

Posted by: Sandy Steinman | February 5, 2025

Deaths of 30,000 fish off WA coast made more likely by climate change

The Guardian reported

Analysis drawing on satellite data and 13 climate models concludes that climate change makes marine heatwaves 20 times more likely

Read on www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/feb/05/deaths-of-30000-fish-off-wa-coast-made-more-likely-by-climate-change-research-finds

Posted by: Sandy Steinman | February 4, 2025

Massive pod of 1,500 dolphins spotted off California coast

SF Gate reported

It’s rare to spot a group this large of this species of dolphin, researchers said. 

Read on www.sfgate.com/centralcoast/article/massive-pod-dolphins-spotted-california-20105737.php

Posted by: Sandy Steinman | February 4, 2025

Yosemite Reservations for February

If you’re planning on driving to Yosemite in February, this is a reminder that day-use entrance reservations are required on February 8–9, February 15–17, and February 22–23 in order to manage the Horsetail Fall event. This is required for all visitors to the park. Initial reservations immediately sold out in November, but the remaining 50% of day-use reservations will be available two days prior to a day-use reservation date beginning at 8 am PST at https://www.recreation.gov/timed-entry/10086745. For example, on February 21 at 8 am, day-use reservations for February 23 will be available.
If you have a lodging reservation for Yosemite Valley, Wawona, Foresta, or Yosemite West, you don’t need an additional entrance reservation.

Read More…

Posted by: Sandy Steinman | February 4, 2025

California Native Plant Society Workshops 

California Native Plant Society plant science training workshops provide botanists, biologists, land managers, and ecologists the scientific skills and practical experience necessary to assess, manage, and protect native plants and lands in California and beyond.

Learn about workshops offered and how to register at  Workshops – California Native Plant Society

Posted by: Sandy Steinman | February 4, 2025

East Bay Regional Parks Upcoming Events

See upcoming events calendar for the East Bay Regional Parks at https://www.ebparks.org/calendar

Faced with a rash of shark deaths marked by brain swelling, Canadian and American scientists are trying to solve a marine mystery.
— Read on www.nytimes.com/2025/02/01/science/canada-great-white-sharks.html

Posted by: Sandy Steinman | February 4, 2025

Poor Wildflower Season Predicted for Anza-Borrego this Year

From Anza-Borrego Desert Foundation:

Will we have a wildflower bloom this season?

As spring approaches, many are wondering if Anza-Borrego Desert State Park will experience one of its famed wildflower blooms this year. Unfortunately, due to the desert receiving virtually no significant rain this season, a large-scale bloom is not expected. These breathtaking blooms, which blanket the desert floor with vibrant colors, require substantial and well-timed rainfall to occur—a weather pattern we haven’t seen this year.

Read More…

Posted by: Sandy Steinman | February 3, 2025

Yosemite delays reservation system amid Trump review

The San Francisco Chronicle reported

Yosemite National Park finally figured out a way to eliminate bumper-to-bumper traffic and hour-long waits at entrance stations: limit the number of visitors by requiring reservations.

But the reservation system, which was scheduled to permanently take effect this year, is now on hold to give the Trump administration time to review the planned changes. Some say it may not proceed anytime soon, or at all.

Read more  Yosemite delays reservation system amid Trump review

Posted by: Sandy Steinman | February 3, 2025

Upcoming Marin Bird and Nature Walks

from Wild Birds Unlimited

Thurs, 2/6: Las Gallinas Ponds, San Rafael, Marin Audubon
Sat, 2/8: Shollenberger Park, Petaluma, Petaluma Wetlands Alliance
Sat, 2/8: China Camp, San Rafael, Friends of China Camp
Sat, 2/15: Two Larkspur Highlights, Marin Audubon
Sat, 2/22: Ellis Creek Ponds, Petaluma, Petaluma Wetlands Alliance
Sat, 3/1: Valley Ford Wetlands and Dillon Beach, Marin Audubon

The New York Times reported 

Extreme weather events — deadly heat waves, floods, fires and hurricanes — are the consequences of a warming planet, scientists say.

Read on www.nytimes.com/2025/01/10/climate/california-fires-climate-change-disasters.html

Posted by: Sandy Steinman | February 2, 2025

2025 Owens Lake Bird Festival  April 11 to 13

The Owens Lake Bird Festival will return in April 2025, with birding tours on and off the famous Owens Lake, as well as photography, advocacy, botany, geology, and mining history tours.

The festival will take place as follows:

  • Friday, April 11: Happy Hour and Check-in at FOI’s Lone Pine Office, 142 E. Bush Street, from 5:30-8:00 PM (optional).
  • Saturday, April 12: Half-Day Morning and Afternoon tours, as well as Full-Day Tours starting from the parking lot of the Lone Pine Museum of Western Film History, 701 S. Main Street. The day will end with a celebratory catered Dinner(optional), also at the Museum, starting at 6 PM, and a Silent Auction with goods donated by local businesses.
  • Sunday, April 13: Morning Half-Day tours, also starting from the Museum.

For more information including registration go to  e Bird Festival – Friends of the Inyo

Posted by: Sandy Steinman | February 2, 2025

Support Federal Protections for the Monarch Butterfly

Sign on to Xerces’ public letter advocating for strong protections under the Endangered Species Act.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has proposed to list the iconic monarch butterfly as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act. The Xerces Society invites you to join our public letter advocating for strong federal protections for the monarch butterfly.

This proposal comes at a crucial time. Following efforts by hundreds of volunteers and partners to count overwintering monarch butterflies in California, the 28th annual Western Monarch Count has reported a peak population of just 9,119 butterflies this winter. This is the second lowest overwintering population recorded since tracking began in 1997.

Please take a moment to add your name to our letter which we will submit with the names of all co-signers to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Sign Our Letter 
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | February 1, 2025

Eastern Sierra Road Closures

ATTENTION DRIVERS TRAVELING TO THE EASTERN SIERRA: Winter storms are inbound this weekend, please be advised that we currently have several highway closures to our roadways.
Closures:
SR89 (Monitor Pass), SR108 (Sonora Pass), SR120 E (Mono Mills Rd.) SR120 W at Lee Vining, SR158 (North June Loop), SR168 at Aspendell, and SR270. (Bodie Road)
We will reassess winter storm closures after the inclement weather passes.
SR108 (Sonora Pass), SR120 W at Lee Vining, SR203 at Mammoth Mountain Lodge, and SR168 at Aspendell are in full winter closures.
For more updates on road closures please visit https://quickmap.dot.ca.gov/
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | February 1, 2025

Gate Closures in Los Padres National Forest

From Los Padres Forest Association

At this point, the seasonal gates have shut for the season. Knowing the status of gate closures is tricky and it can certainly ruin your weekend outing if you come across a locked gate you expected would be open. Some gates are opened/closed solely on established dates, other gates are opened/closed around storm systems and weather events – open during dry times and closed when rain is forecast. It’s really hard to know for sure if and when a gate will be open/closed. Best advice for any of you heading to the mountains is to do your homework ahead of time. Here are a few resources:

  • The Forest Service has a page dedicated to road and campground closures. It may not be exactly up to date, especially during shoulder seasons, so give the Ranger Stations a call to confirm. Their phone numbers are also listed on the page.
  • HikeLosPadres.com has a page with status and location of the gates that often provide (or deny) the most access. If you have any updates or would like to see gates added, let us know INFO@LPForest.org.

Newly Closed Gates

  • Grade Valley Road (at Lockwood Valley Road: Grade Valley, Thorn Point, Johnston Ridge access)
  • Santa Barbara Canyon Road (at the Reyes Ranch: SB Canyon, Sierra Madre, Buckhorn Rd access)
  • Frazier Mountain Road (just past Chuchupate Ranger Station)
Posted by: Sandy Steinman | February 1, 2025

Right whales can live to 130, but in North America they die young

MongaBay reported

  • A new study indicates that right whales have extremely long lifespans of 130 years or more, adding to growing evidence of extreme whale longevity.
  • The research draws attention to the plight of North Atlantic right whales, which are critically endangered. It found that despite their long potential lifespan, their actual lives are far shorter than those of southern right whales, a close relative.
  • The authors and other experts believe North Atlantic right whales’ lives are being cut short due to threats in the “highly industrialized” waters off the eastern United States and Canada where they live; these include fishing gear, which can entangle the whales, and vessel strikes.

Read more at  Right whales can live to 130, but in North America they die young

Posted by: Sandy Steinman | January 31, 2025

Upcoming Events at the Santa Barbara Natural History Museum

See upcoming events at the Santa Barbara Natural HIstory Museum at https://mailchi.mp/sbnature2.org/general-events-13930336?e=693571bfe8

Posted by: Sandy Steinman | January 31, 2025

Regional Parks Botanic Garden Photos 1/29/25

Photographed in the East Bay Regional Parks Botanic Garden in Tilden Park in Berkeley, CA on January 28 and 29, 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.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Posted by: Sandy Steinman | January 31, 2025

Golden Gate Recreation Area Upcoming Events

To see the current schedule of upcoming events at Golden Gate Recreation Area go to See all upcoming events

Posted by: Sandy Steinman | January 31, 2025

Upcoming CNPS Events

See the calendar of upcoming events of the California Native Plants Society at https://www.cnps.org/events

Posted by: Sandy Steinman | January 31, 2025

Ancient forest uncovered by melting ice in the Rocky Mountains 

CBS Radio reports

A nearly 6,000-year-old forest is once again seeing daylight after millennia hidden under ice in the Rocky Mountains.

A team of scientists from Montana State University, the U.S. Geological Survey and collaborating institutions discovered the ancient whitebark pine forest while on an archeological survey on the Beartooth plateau in Wyoming, thanks to warming temperatures that melted the ice previously covering it.

Read more or listen at: Ancient forest uncovered by melting ice in the Rocky Mountains | CBC Radio

Posted by: Sandy Steinman | January 30, 2025

Upcoming UC Berkeley Botanical Garden Events

See the events calendar for the UC Berkeley Botanical Garden at Garden Events

Posted by: Sandy Steinman | January 30, 2025

Yosemite tries to control February crowds after damage done to park

SF Gate reported

Each year in mid-February, Horsetail Falls transforms into a unique spectacle when the waterfall is backlit by the sunset. In the winter light, the waterfall glows bright orange as through it was on fire, and the event is therefore nicknamed named Firefall.

The natural phenomenon has exploded in popularity in recent years, to the point where an influx of Firefall enthusiasts have trampled sensitive areas in a mad rush to glimpse the ephemeral beauty. In response, the National Park Service implemented a reservation system to limit the number of visitors during the event, but beginning this winter, resorts have started offering shuttle services that bypass crowd control measures.

Read more at Yosemite tries to control February crowds after damage done to park

Posted by: Sandy Steinman | January 29, 2025

Golden Gate Bird Alliance Classes 

See the upcoming schedule of classes at  Classes – Golden Gate Bird Alliance

Posted by: Sandy Steinman | January 29, 2025

Shark born from tank without males at Shreveport Aquarium

NPR reported

A Louisiana aquarium has a new star — and a mystery — on its hands after a baby shark was born in a habitat without any males.

The Shreveport Aquarium announced last week that Yoko the swell shark — named for “Onyoko,” the Chumash word for shark — hatched on Jan. 3, about eight months after her egg was first discovered in a tank with only female inhabitants.

Read more Shark born from tank without males at Shreveport Aquarium : NPR

Posted by: Sandy Steinman | January 29, 2025

Squirting Cucumbers Shoot Their Seeds Like Botanical Bombardiers 

The New York Times reported

Scientists say they’ve worked out how the plant can fire its seeds up to almost 40 feet.

Read more at Squirting Cucumbers Shoot Their Seeds Like Botanical Bombardiers

« Newer Posts - Older Posts »

Categories