Napa County Breeding Birds Atlas

January 1, 2004 •  by

How many people does it take to figure out the number of bird species that breed in Napa County? For the Napa-Solano Audubon Society (NSAS), all it took was some 70 volunteers, most of whom surveyed separate 5-kilometer plots between … Read more

Out in the Tules

January 1, 2004 •  by

The rounded hills by the Bay are the first thing that catch your eye at Coyote Hills Regional Park. But the brackish and freshwater marshes behind the hills have a charm of their own. Remnant of a once-extensive mix of tidal and freshwater wetlands that sustained a thriving Ohlone community for several thousand years, the marsh is now home to marsh wrens, muskrats, and one of the East Bay’s few remaining patches of tules.

Lodi Crane Festival

October 1, 2003 •  by

Fall marks the height of bird migrations along the Pacific Flyway. And while the Bay Area has plenty of birds to see, you’ll have to head a bit farther east to see the spectacular sandhill cranes that winter in the … Read more

Monarch Day at Natural Bridges

October 1, 2003 •  by

To see slightly more diminutive returning migrants, head south on Sunday, October 12, for Welcome Back Monarchs Day at Natural Bridges State Beach in Santa Cruz. By mid-October, the butterflies have begun to arrive from as far away as 2,000 … Read more

Stavocet/Avostilt

October 1, 2003 •  by

While you’re exploring the Bay Area this fall, keep your eyes open for the new bird on the Bay. Ten years after Jim Rosso’s initial sighting, San Francisco Bay Bird Observatory Intern Biologist Robin Dakin and photographer David Cardinal recently … Read more

The Essential Tree

October 1, 2003 •  by

It’s almost impossible to imagine the California landscape without oak woodlands. But this most familiar and prolific habitat faces a number of serious threats, including unchecked suburban development and Sudden Oak Death. Fortunately, many parks in the Bay Area, including those of the East Bay Regional Parks, offer welcome refuge for a variety of oak woodlands.

Four Threats to a Healthy Bay

October 1, 2003 •  by

Habitat Loss On the fringes of the Bay lie the varied wetlands that feed and shelter the Bay’s wildlife. Chinook salmon, white croaker, and northern pintails feed in the shallow water as it fluctuates with the tides. Topsmelt, Pacific staghorn … Read more

Toward A Healthy Bay

October 1, 2003 •  by

In the 40 years since the movement to save San Francisco Bay began, we have moved from desperately fending off more bay fill projects to proactively restoring thousands of acres of shoreline wetlands. Yet how healthy is the Bay that we are saving? What are the factors that affect the health of the Bay and what are we doing about them?

Update: Sea Otter Census Numbers Rise

July 1, 2003 •  by

Since our story went to press, there’s been some good news for the Southern Sea Otter: census numbers for the California population soared by 17 percent since last year. More than 2,500 otters were counted off our coast this spring, … Read more

Great White Shark Diving

July 1, 2003 •  by

While most beachgoers or surfers in Northern California would prefer never to meet up with great white sharks, some folks are actually paying big bucks for the privilege of such an encounter. Several adventure boat operators have been sailing tourists … Read more