Why Do Birds Flock?
Q: I recently saw a video of a cloud of birds moving in wild patterns. Then I saw shorebirds doing the same thing. Why do birds do this–other than because...
Wildlife
The Pinnacles’ First Condor Nest in 100 Years
For the first time in a century, condors are nesting in Pinnacles National Monument, a park of towering cliffs in the Gavilan Mountains east of Monterey Bay. The discovery is...
Development Threatens San Bruno Mountain Butterflies
It's an old story. Another species that once flourished is being pushed to extinction by modern human encroachment. The callippe silverspot has been gradually pushed into a few remaining islands...
California Coho Salmon In Dire Straits
The collapse of Central California Coast coho salmon population is imminent, according to a report by the National Marine Fisheries in late December 2009. Numbers of returning coho may be...
Protesting Burrowing Owl Eviction
An ongoing controversy over the displacement of burrowing owls in Antioch brought out 40 local residents and others from across the Bay Area on Sunday for a march to protest...
Naturalist’s Notebook: Venn and the Art of Hummingbird Identification
In spring, not every hummingbird you see in the Bay Area is the same. John Muir Laws helps us tell the difference between the Allen’s, the rufous, and the Anna’s.
At Home Under the Log
A world awaits discovery under almost any humble log in winter, whether it’s in your backyard or deep in the woods. Lift that log and make some new discoveries. Just...
Beyond Jaws
Fast, silent, and deadly, the great white shark has long evoked both fear and awe among those who live, work, and play along the California coast. Yet for all its...
Naturalist’s Notebook: A Small Bird That Acts Big
Turns out this little songbird is a little fiercer than most.
Rafting Time for Diving Ducks
The great rafts of ducks on San Francisco and Tomales bays, mostly surf scoter, greater and lesser scaup, and canvasback, are a wintertime spectacle. Scoter flocks can range from many...
