Surf scoters showed up in the Bay in astonishing numbers in winter 2019, pausing a three-decade decline and puzzling scientists
Surf Scoter Decline, Interrupted
June 17, 2019 •
First Look
Timely news, art, ideas and science from the natural world of Northern California.
Tech Entrepreneur-Turned-Environmentalist’s Commencement Speech: Truth and Justice, Money and Power
June 15, 2019 •
Silicon Valley entrepreneur and former California Coastal Commissioner (from 2006-2013) Steve Blank will give the commencement speech at the UC Santa Cruz Rachel Carson College on June 15, with stories about what he calls when “truth and justice faced money … Read more
How People Saved the Seabirds of the California Current
June 14, 2019 •
It wasn’t until the federal government took away several of my favorite fisheries, and access to my favorite spots, that I fully comprehended what I had previously taken for granted … The ocean is, or was once, a public trust … Read more
Journal of A Robberfly in Mexico
June 12, 2019 •
Bay Area lepidopterist Liam O’Brien spent the 2019 City Nature Challenge surveying the biodiversity of Mazatlan at the invitation of Mexican naturalists.
The Rising Tide Will Catch Us All Eventually
June 10, 2019 •
Rising, by Elizabeth Rush, is an elegant argument that it’s time to retreat from our shoreline.
Meet A Beach Worm That Builds Sand Castles
June 6, 2019 •
Phragmatopoma californica breathes over its entire body, poops from near its mouth, and reproduces with other worms despite living inside a tube.
The Future of Bay Area Open Space and Housing
June 4, 2019 •
I moved to the Bay Area 20 years ago, and still feel a daily thrill at living in such a special place. Today, as I reflect on my new role as CEO of Greenbelt Alliance and the path that brought … Read more
Climate Solutions Already Exist in Nature, a Reminder
May 28, 2019 •
California wants to go carbon negative. But even policymakers tend to overlook the best way to get there.
A New Atlas for Dealing With Rising Seas in the Bay Area
May 24, 2019 •
A new report urges the Bay Area’s communities to work together against sea level rise.
Scientists Discover a New Coral Species Off San Francisco, and There Might be More
May 16, 2019 •
As technology and seafloor maps improve, a new picture of California’s undersea life emerges