Fruits of the Forest
The classic image of a redwood forest is one of stately tall trees, dense shade, and lots of green. The columnar trunks of the giant trees draw our gaze up...
Science and Nature
In the Shadow of Giants
The hills above Oakland once held some of the largest redwoods ever seen, one estimated at 31 feet in diameter. Ten million years ago, such trees towered over much of...
Dredging up an Avian Oasis
What do you get when you scoop up 250,000 cubic yards of muck from the Petaluma River? Prime shorebird habitat, of course. Unlikely as it may seem, Shollenberger Park is...
Redwood Resources
Here are several local organizations that have recently taken steps to preserve redwood forests in the Bay region and beyond. Peninsula Open Space Trust (POST) Together with the Midpeninsula Regional...
Saving El Palo Alto
Imagine a landmark so prominent that anyone looking south from San Francisco or north from San Jose could spot it. Spanish missionary Padre Pedro Font wrote in his diary in...
Presidio Art Exhibit: Birds of the Pacific Slope
This summer, a new exhibit in San Francisco’s Presidio celebrates one of the world’s most diverse urban bird habitats. From July 9 through August 29, “Birds of the Pacific Slope:...
Cooper’s Hawk Surveys in the Bay Area
At the sight of a diving juvenile Cooper’s hawk, “the squirrel reared back and opened its mouth with its paws raised in the air in a defensive pose,” notes Jim...
Disappearance of Native Oaks in the Bay Area
Although solidly rooted in California’s natural and cultural history, our native oaks are disappearing at an alarming rate. The loss of these magnificent trees to urbanization and Sudden Oak Death...
Quail Ridge Wilderness Conservancy
Purple needlegrass may soon gain recognition as one of California’s official state symbols, like the golden poppy, our state flower since 1903. For native grass advocates, “the hope is that...
Purple Needlegrass Takes Root in the Capitol
David Amme, author of “Grassland Heritage” in Bay Nature’s April-June 2004 issue, called purple needlegrass “the undisputed candidate for official state grass.” Now that may soon become literally as well...
.jpg){kind=link}