The New York Times reported
The brainy birds carry big chips on their shoulders, scientists say. And some people who become subjects of their ire may be victims of mistaken identity.
Read on www.nytimes.com/2024/10/28/science/crows-grudges-revenge.html
Posted in Birds | Tags: Crow Behavior
Tioga Road (continuation of Highway 120 through the park) and Glacier Point Road will temporarily close on Monday, November 11, at 4 pm. We will reassess road conditions after the storm passes. Call 209/372-0200 (then 1, 1) to check road conditions.
Posted in Drives, Park | Tags: Yosemite Road Closures
See Bay Nature’s calendar of upcoming events at events
Posted in Talks, Walks & Hikes | Tags: Bay Nature Upcoming Events
ScienceDaily reports
Goldenrod can perceive other plants nearby without ever touching them, by sensing far-red light ratios reflected off leaves. When goldenrod is eaten by herbivores, it adapts its response based on whether or not another plant is nearby. Is this kind of flexible, real-time, adaptive response a sign of intelligence in plants?
Read more at Are plants intelligent? It depends on the definition | ScienceDaily
Posted in Wildflowers and Other Plants | Tags: Plant Intellignece
A New York Times Opinion piece reports
Mounting development is a grave threat because of how it is carving up an ecosystem that must stay relatively intact to function.
Read on www.nytimes.com/2024/11/08/opinion/yellowstone-tv-national-park.html
Posted in Park | Tags: Yellowstone
See the calendar of upcoming free events for Marin County Parks Events Calendar – Marin County Parks
Posted in Park
from Anthropocene Magazine
Posted in Birds | Tags: Tropical Birds Thrive on Farms
See upcoming events from the Friends of Inyo at Friends of Inyo Events
Posted in Uncategorized, Walks & Hikes | Tags: Friends of INyo
The BBC reports
For Antarctic wildlife, exposure to the Sun’s damaging rays has increased in recent years, scientists say.A hole in the ozone layer – the protective barrier of gas in the upper atmosphere – now lingers over the frozen continent for more of the year.A major cause of ozone loss is believed to be the amount of smoke from unprecedented Australian wildfires, which were fuelled by climate change.
Read more at Ozone hole: Why Antarctic wildlife is being ‘sunburnt’
Posted in Animals | Tags: Antarctic wildlife is being 'sunburnt’
SFGate reported
After years of planning and preparation, a defunct boatyard on San Francisco’s southeastern shoreline has finally opened to the public as a new park.
Read on www.sfgate.com/local/article/san-francisco-india-basin-waterfront-park-19891266.php
Posted in Park | Tags: Indian Basin Waterfront Basin Park
See Upcoming Los Padres ForestWatch Upcoming Events at Home | Los Padres ForestWatch
Posted in Birds, Talks | Tags: Los Padres ForestWatch Upcoming Events
We host many outings & events throughout the year. From mountain treks to botany crawls, bird watching to kayaking, there are many ways to join us.
See the calendar of events at Sonoma Land Trust Hosted Outings And Events – Join Us On The Land
Posted in Talks, Walks & Hikes
NPR reports
A study of tiger beetles has found a possible explanation for why they produce ultrasound noises right before an echolocating bat swoops in for the kill.
Read on Tiger beetles produce ultrasound to evade echolocating bats looking for a meal : NPR
Posted in Animals | Tags: bats, Tiger Beetles, Ultrasound
SFGate reported
Cesar Chavez Park in Berkeley has become a battleground for wildlife advocates and dog owners over the almost-endangered burrowing owl that spends winter there.
Read on www.sfgate.com/local/article/animal-lovers-dog-owners-clash-rare-species-19887253.php
Posted in Birds, Park | Tags: Burrowing Owls, Cesar Chavez Park
From UC Berkeley Botanical Garden
UCBG 2024 Florilegium On view through Nov. 21, 202410:00 am–4:00 pm (closed Tuesdays) Early closure: Sat. Nov 2, 1:00 pm. Late opening: Sun. Nov 3, at 11:00 am
Experience an immersive exhibition of 75 exquisite botanical illustrations featuring the unique flora of the UC Botanical Garden at Berkeley. This juried exhibition includes 31 new works shown alongside entries from our previous Florilegium exhibitions. Don’t miss this stunning exhibition of art! Learn more
Posted in Garden | Tags: UC-Berkeley Botanical Garden
NewsBreak reported
Mojave National Preserve is ramping up efforts to safeguard its vulnerable desert tortoise population, which faces significant threats from vehicular traffic. Each year, dozens of these slow-moving reptiles are killed or injured as they cross roads within the Preserve. While they spend about 95% of their lives in burrows, desert tortoises become more active during the spring and summer rains, venturing out to eat wildflowers, drink from puddles, and search for mates.
Posted in Animals, Desert, Park | Tags: Desert Tortoises, Mojave National Preserve
The New York Times reports
Biodiversity loss, global warming, pollution and the spread of invasive species are making infectious diseases more dangerous to organisms around the world.
Read more at Environmental Changes Are Fueling Human, Animal and Plant Diseases, Study Finds
Rare Plant Habitats and Ethnobotanical Traditions of the Motherlode with John Kipping Thursday 11/14 at 7 pm.
El Dorado County covers 1% of California, yet hosts over 30% (2300 species )of its native plant species. This hotspot of biodiversity provided a nurturing environment for large populations of indigenous peoples over many thousands of years. Come explore these topics with naturalist John Kipping and the Yerba Buena Chapter of the California Native Plant Society.
Sample artifacts of baskets and plant-derived tools will be shared.
Live at the Southeast Community Center
Posted in Uncategorized
Monga Bay reports
Read more at At Mexico’s school for jaguars, big cats learn skills to return to the wild
- In Oaxaca, southern Mexico, a multidisciplinary team is launching a program to return rescued wildcats to their natural habitat.
- The program is run by the foundation Jaguares en la Selva (Jaguars in the Wild) at the Yaguar Xoo sanctuary, where two wildlife enclosures have been designed for jaguars and pumas to learn to hunt and survive on their own.
- In 2021, the program successfully released two jaguars and is currently working to reintroduce two more jaguars and three pumas back into their natural habitats.
NPR reported
The Aral Sea has nearly disappeared over the last 60 years. Now, its source rivers are depleting.
Posted in Environment | Tags: Aral Sea
Bay Nature’s about how dandelions aren’t all bad
There’s a lot to appreciate about the common dandelion, and one of the best things about it is that a lot of people hate them.
The primary reason people hate them is that they’re so insistent. They’re survivors of chemical attacks and attempts to uproot, hanging on tight with their thick roots and just breaking off at the top. They’re quick to reproduce, too, spreading seed effortlessly on the breeze. Gardening writer Anna Pavord calls dandelions “bullies. They simply had to go.” If you have a garden or lawn almost anywhere on the planet where humans are common, you could be one gust of wind from an invasion in your otherwise green lawn or cultivated flower bed.
Read more Learning to Love Dandelions – Bay Nature
Posted in Wildflowers and Other Plants | Tags: Dandelions
Growing Works Fall Festival 2024 – Turning Point Foundation
— Read on turningpointfoundation.org/growing-works-fall-festival-2024/
Posted in Uncategorized | Tags: Growing Works Fall Festival
See upcoming Theodore Payne Foundation Classes and Workshops at Theodore Payne Foundation Events | Eventbrite
Posted in Class/Workshop, Garden, Talks | Tags: Theodore Payne Foundation Events
Australian Broadcasting Company reported
Two humpback whales were found dead in krill fishing nets near Antarctica earlier this year, while a third whale had serious injuries, a report from a conservation conference in Hobart has revealed.
Read on www.abc.net.au/news/2024-11-02/whales-dead-and-injured-caught-krill-fishing-nets/104550754
Posted in Animals | Tags: Dangers Of aKrill Fishing Nets, Humpbacked Whales
From National Audubon
The Northern Mockingbird is one of North America’s most beloved mimics. The skilled singer has also become inextricable from American popular culture, providing inspiration for the fictional “Mockingjay” of the Hunger Games franchise to being a central theme in the iconic novel To Kill a Mockingbird.
But there is a lot more to this charming mocker than literary fame. Read on for 10 fun facts about the Northern Mockingbird. Keep Reading
Posted in Birds | Tags: Northern Mockingbird
SF Gate reported
California’s rare albino redwoods are ghostly white trees that can’t photosynthesize. With only 350 in the wild, they face threats from over-visitation.
Read on www.sfgate.com/northcoast/article/california-rarest-redwood-is-white-19865261.php
Posted in Park | Tags: Albino Redwoods
Travel Speaker Series: Total Uruguay – Golden Gate Bird Alliance on Zoom
— Read on goldengatebirdalliance.org/speaker_series/travel-speaker-series-total-uruguay/
Reuters reported
Read more at World lags on 2030 nature goals headed into UN COP16 talks | Reuters
Posted in Environment | Tags: UN COP16 Nature Goals
See the events calendar for the UC Berkeley Botanical Garden at Garden Events
Posted in Class/Workshop, Garden | Tags: UC Berkeley Botanical Garden Events
The National Parks Association writes
Two national parks in California literally portrayed a galaxy far, far away in the original 1977 Star Wars film and the 1983 sequel, Return of the Jedi.
Read about how Death Valley and Redwood National Parks served as locations for Star Wars movies at A Galaxy Not So Far Away After All · National Parks Conservation Association
Posted in Park | Tags: California National Parks and Star Wars
Natural History Wanderings 