Aleta George

Writer Aleta George trained as a Jepson Prairie docent in 2009. In addition to writing Bay Nature's Ear to the Ground column, she has written for Smithsonian, High Country News, and the Los Angeles Times.

Ecocity World Summit

April 1, 2008 •  by

While development plans for the weapons station are being honed, shaped, and scrutinized, innovative thinkers and planners are crossing the Bay and the world’s oceans to convene in San Francisco during Earth Week, April 22 to 26, for the Ecocity … Read more

Invasion of the New Zealand Mud Snail

April 1, 2008 •  by

The scientists and volunteers with the Coho and Steelhead Monitoring Program don’t yet have to deal with New Zealand mud snails. Barely larger than a grain of rice, this snail from Down Under has invaded water bodies all over the … Read more

Proposed State Park Closures

April 1, 2008 •  by

In 1953, Sada Coe gave her family ranch to the public, with the stipulation that it become parkland and that it be named after her father, Henry W. Coe. Several years later, she reiterated her passion for sharing the land … Read more

Allen’s Hummingbirds in Town

January 1, 2008 •  by

Starting in February in coastal areas, keep an eye out for a change in your local hummingbirds. Our resident Anna’s will be sharing the stage with the Allen’s flying in from Mexico and Southern California. Who needs Cirque du Soleil … Read more

Plastics in the Ocean

January 1, 2008 •  by

Nurdles bobble but they don’t go down. Nurdles are industrial-grade plastic pellets that get melted to make all manner of plastic products, but in the process of packaging and transportation, the nurdles often escape and make their way through storm … Read more

River of Words, 2008

January 1, 2008 •  by

When teacher Linda Cover walks into a classroom, she steps onto fertile soil, knowing that her students have a cumulative knowledge of their watershed. As a Spectra Arts teacher with the Cultural Council of Santa Cruz, she works with kids … Read more

Sudden Oak Death Still With Us

January 1, 2008 •  by

A mountain biker flew down Patrick Ridge in Marin County’s China Camp State Park. He was focusing on the rocky fire trail and an upcoming sharp left turn, so it’s unlikely he noticed the dying trees that line the trail. … Read more

Artificial Reefs for Oysters

October 1, 2007 •  by

In our October-December 2004 issue, Bay Nature reported on efforts to restore once-thriving Bay populations of the West Coast oyster, Ostrea conchaphila, which were devastated by a complex mix of Gold Rush-era sedimentation, Bay fill, pollution, and over-harvesting. In the … Read more

Bay Area Ridge Trail

October 1, 2007 •  by

The Bay Area is home to several regional trails, from the Bay Trail near the water’s edge up to the Bay Area Ridge Trail, which traverses the high points of our landscape. The ultimate goal of this latter project is … Read more

Grunion

October 1, 2007 •  by

Most summers, cold northerly winds off the Pacific Coast drive warm surface waters away from the shoreline and churn up colder, nutrient-rich waters from below. But this year, for reasons scientists don’t understand, that wind lacked its usual punch, resulting … Read more