Exploring Nature in the San Francisco Bay Area
From the shores of Point Reyes to the Inner Coast ranges, our densely-populated metropolitan region has a rich natural heritage.
Humans aren’t the only creatures that flock to California to take advantage of our state’s mild winter climate. Millions of ducks, geese, and other migrating birds also make the Golden State their winter home.vWhether feeding, breeding, or just loafing, the waterfowl that migrate to the wetlands of Northern and Central California provide birdwatchers with an…
The Big Sur coast has always provided nature lovers with an abundance of breathtaking scenery. But one of the most majestic elements of this coastal landscape, the California condor, nearly disappeared entirely in the early 1980s. Down to as few as 22 individuals in 1982, the condor population became the subject of one of the…
The tafoni weathering formation featured at El Corte de Madera Creek Preserve is a particularly accessible example of an uncommon phenomenon, but there are several other places to see tafoni in the Bay Area. At Castle Rock State Park west of San Jose, similar Vaqueros Sandstone outcrops line the steep canyons that gird the crest…
There’s a lot more to the western sand dollar (Dendraster excentricus) than meets the eye. Most people who spend any time at the beach are familiar with the sand dollar’s skeleton, or test—the rigid, white flattened disk that commonly washes up on local beaches after the animal has died. But a living sand dollar leads…
The Regional Parks Botanic Garden, in Tilden Regional Park, is a 10-acre landscape of plants native to California. The garden includes ten sections corresponding to ten geographic regions of the state, all woven into a beautiful naturalistic landscape of trees, shrubs, perennials, ferns, grasses, and wildflowers. Location, Hours, and Contact Information The Regional Parks Botanic…
Independent, nonprofit environmental journalism connecting people with nature in the San Francisco Bay Area.
