Human settlement in the San Francisco Bay Area dates back 10,000 years to early Native American settlements. Today, the region is a teeming metropolis of 7 million people that collectively challenge the health of the region’s ecosystems. How it got this way is a story that prompts a deeper understanding of our place in the landscape.
2009 marks the 25th anniversary of the Golden Gate Raptor Observatory, the Marin-based organization that tracks the movements of birds of prey over the Marin Headlands. Since 1984, more than 1,500 volunteers have logged 40,000 hours alongside staff and scientists to monitor raptors along one of West Coast's most trafficked migratory routes.
Wildlife thrives at Giacomini Wetland at the south end of Tomales Bay.
In 1934, local voters created the East Bay Regional Park District, the nation's largest regional park district. Today, as the district celebrates its 75th anniversary, challenges abound: Sea level rise threatens shoreline parks, the recession and budget crises affect park operations, and a growing human population puts increasing pressure on open space. Nevertheless, the district continues to thrive, with strong public support for land purchases and an unsurpassed combination of diverse wildlife habitats and accessible parks that attract millions of visitors every year.
Memories of the 1930s in what is now Samuel P. Taylor State Park.
Within view of Richmond, Brooks Island today is a haven for nesting terns. That's just its latest incarnation. A short paddle across the harbor to this island refuge takes you back centuries and "away from it all."
The Natural History of the UC Santa Cruz Campus (Second Edition), edited by Tonya M. Haff, Martha T. Brown, and W. Breck Tyler. Bay Tree Bookstore, 2008, 361 pages, $12.95 “UC Santa Cruz may be the best campus in the … Read more
by Jules G. Evens. University of California Press, 2008, 384 pages, $24.95. This is a wonderful book for getting an overview of the Point Reyes peninsula, whether you’re a first time or repeat visitor to the area. I loved learning … Read more
Ranches & Rolling Hills: Art of West Marin–A Land in Trust, by Elisabeth Ptak and the Marin Agricultural Land Trust, Windgate Press, 2008, 160 pages, $50.00 The Marin Agricultural Land Trust (MALT), which preserves West Marin farmland, has created a … Read more
by Margaret Dubin and Sara-Larus Tolley, Heyday Books, 2008, 144 pages, $21.95 Less a cookbook than a cultural anthropological study, Seaweed, Salmon, and Manzanita Cider is a fascinating look at food and the relationship between California Indian tribes and the … Read more
It’s easy to forget how much of the Bay Area was once a working landscape. Row crops, orchards, and pastures held sway in places now covered by freeways and houses. But a surprising amount of that working land endures in our parks and preserves. In the East Bay, ranchers still run cattle on thousands of acres of land, both public and private. And in a few places, thanks to the East Bay Regional Park District, kids and adults can learn firsthand about skills people once took for granted: how to plant a seed, plow a field, grind grain into flour, or spin wool into yarn.
Independent, nonprofit environmental journalism connecting people with nature in the San Francisco Bay Area.
