A Stunning Preserve on the Sonoma Coast Is Open
Estero Americano Coast Preserve is home to migrating birds, rare grasses, and in the spring, carpets of wildflowers.
The Intelligence of Bird Nests
How could a creature with such a small brain create something so exquisite?
The Spring 2026 Issue
Moth Goggles
We’re surrounded by a world of insects that we barely notice. Put on your goggles and get immersed in the riot of colors and patterns, and the lives of moths.
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LATEST STORIES
What Species Are San Francisco’s Parrots? It’s Complicated.
A new genomic study suggests they’re their own thing. That’s probably thanks to one bold bird.
Sargent Ranch Is Protected. Who Will Steward It?
POST has purchased more than 6,000 acres of oak woodlands near Gilroy, saving it from becoming a sand and gravel mine. It’s land that is sacred to the Amah Mutsun Tribal Band.
In the Name of Eelgrass
To protect the eelgrass meadows in San Francisco’s Richardson Bay, the anchor-out era near Sausalito is coming to a close.
IN SEASON IN NORTHERN CALIFORNIA
The Surprising Story of the Color in a Butterfly’s Wing
How does a butterfly get its green? It’s not pigment.
A Pervasive Invasive: the Argentine Ant
The Argentine ant is likely the most successful invasive species in California. But a 30-year dataset from Jasper Ridge Biological Preserve suggests they’re not invincible.
Spring Brings Peak Bird Biodiversity
For birdwatchers, this is the most exciting time of year. Everything knows where it’s going and it moves fast.
Staff picks
Can We Have More Whales and Fewer Whale Strikes?
Anchovies sparkled and seawater sprayed from the crusty maws of gray whales as they burst through the surface, again and again, off the coast near Pacifica, fifteen miles south of San Francisco. Groups of up to six gray whales devoured fish for 28 days straight in June 2022. This was no ordinary feast. For those…
The Importance of Having Insects
A number of sensational new papers warn of a global insect die-off. Has the apocalypse arrived in Northern California?
Early-Spring Blooming Soaproot Serves as Food, Soap, Glue and Medicine
Soap, food, glue, medicine, poison, and more — all from a hairy, fist-size underground bulb.
In These Gardens, New Home Lands Grow
On the blended ecologies that first-generation immigrants tend.
