Exploring Nature in the San Francisco Bay Area
The new Eastshore State Park comprises one of the largest undeveloped public landholdings fronting San Francisco Bay, stretching from the Bay Bridge in Oakland to Marina Bay in Richmond. The 8.5-mile-long, 260-acre park is the result of more than four decades of lobbying, negotiations, and ballot initiatives by local environmental activists. In 2000, the Department…
To learn more about ravens, you might first dive into a field guide—Audubon, Golden, Peterson, Sibley, among others. In addition to a clear, concise description of your bird in question, most field guides will point to distinguishing features (in the raven’s case, its large size, Roman-nosed beak, diamond-shaped tail, and gliding in flight, etc); range…
Want to know more about frogs and how to keep them among us? Do you miss being awakened by frog songs in the night? There are fewer frogs in fewer places than there used to be here in the Bay Area, but there is something you can do about that. In fact, quite a few…
When Christmas Bird Counts revealed that the quail population in San Francisco was plummeting, the Golden Gate Audubon Society (GGAS) launched its Save the Quail campaign. Together with the Golden Gate National Recreation Area and the Presidio Trust, GGAS has developed a quail recovery plan with an initial focus on the Presidio, home to the…
Books and Other References This small selection of wildflower guides lists those that are most useful for wildflower watchers in the Bay Area. Some of these books have been in continuous publication for decades, a good measure of their usefulness and popularity. Unless otherwise noted, they are available through local bookstores that feature books on…
In his article on “The Changing Nature of Joaquin Miller Park” author Rex Burress wrote that the fiddle-heads of young bracken ferns are edible “either cooked or raw.” However, before you head out to pick ferns for your soup pot, you might want to heed the information brought to our attention by one very informed…
Independent, nonprofit environmental journalism connecting people with nature in the San Francisco Bay Area.
