Otherworldly Light
Winter is the ideal season to see UV fluorescent organisms in the Bay Area.
Author Archives: Damon Tighe
Born in Klamath Falls Oregon and raised in Calaveras County of California, Damon Tighe attended Saint Mary’s college of Moraga California where he worked on local newspapers while earning a Biology/Chemistry degree. He taught High School in Portland, Oregon and moved back to the Bay Area to work on the Human Genome Project at the National Lab’s Joint Genome Institute. He spent a bit of time pursing a MFA in Natural History and Science Filmmaking in Montana, but returned to the Oakland to work on biofuels and single cell genomics.
He currently manages an apartment complex in downtown Oakland, works for Bio-Rad laboratories designing curriculum and training educators from Colorado to the coast in biotechnology, and is well versed in local fungi, plants and slowly but surely critters of Lake Merritt.
What are These Small, White, Circular Needle-Like Things?
I found this on my front door — it looks like needles in a circular motion with white tips. What is it? The small “needles” that start to decorate doors,...
Fasciated Plants and Where to Find Them in the Wild
What is this weird belt-like growth on poison oak? Fasciated plants have fascinated humans for thousands of years due to their gnarled and belt-like growth patterns on stems or bizarrely...
Meet the Bay’s Incredible Swimming Worms
I think I saw a worm swimming in the Bay, what is it? It was mid August in 2015 when I first held one, its long thread like body rolling...
Where Do Morel Mushrooms Grow in Northern California?
They're one of the most sought-after edible mushrooms in the world. At least 10 species live in the Bay Area.
Why Is Lake Merritt Turning Blue at Night?
Oakland's tidal lagoon is glowing blue with bioluminescent dinoflagellates.
