The Impossibility of Describing Nature …
In his 1979 book The Tree, British novelist John Fowles characterizes nature as “an experience whose deepest value lies in the fact that it cannot be directly described by any...
Science and Nature
Eat an Oyster, Restore a Reef
Linda Hunter pulls up to Bay Natives Nursery in Bayview-Hunters Point and opens the rear hatch of her gray Prius. Inside are several white plastic buckets full of shells. They...
How Otters Keep Seagrass Healthy
Seagrass beds are important to consider when regarding climate change not only because they can sequester carbon in soils, but also because seagrass may buffer against ocean acidity.
Behind the Name at the East Bay Parks
How often have you encountered a trail, campsite—or even an entire park—with an odd or mysterious name? Eighty-five years ago, visionary academics, public officials, and hikers, living mostly in Oakland...
Face-to-Face With Mining Bees
The mining bee family Andrenidae is tough to get to know. They are, for all this, among our most common wild bees.
Review of The Pacific Warm Blob Sequel: Not Yet a Phenomena like the Original
The Pacific is warmer than usual, again.
Can Better Forestry Jobs Prevent Fires and Restore Rural America?
On an unseasonably warm November day in a rural neighborhood in the western Sierra Nevada, men with chainsaws patrol a tree thicket that burned three years ago. One man, whose...
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...
Open Space Park or Hotel? The Future of the Burlingame Shoreline Could Set a Precedent for Climate Adaptation
For perhaps the first time in 80 years the California State Lands Commission, which negotiates and hands out leases for state-owned shoreline property, faced a decision this summer between competing...
An Artist Finds the Life Lessons of Seaweed
If you’ve ever stepped into a certain kind of beach town gift shop on the Northern California coast, you are likely familiar with Josie Iselin’s work: an artist, Iselin creates...
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