Over 4,000 native plant seedlings were knocked over in broad daylight at the Friends of Sausal Creek’s native plant nursery in Joaquin Miller Park, Oakland. At least 600 seedlings were lost, and the creek restoration organization estimates material damages as high as $8,000.
Meet the Protists, Marvelous Misfits in the Tree of Life
There are “plant-like,” “animal-like,” and “fungus-like” protists. But it’s surprisingly hard to say exactly what a protist is—these organisms are defined more by what they’re not.
Meet the Latticed Stinkhorn, A Fragrant Fungus Beloved of Flies
Clathrus ruber looks more like an errant pickleball than a traditional toadstool, and it is born from an egg, which some people say tastes like radish. It’s a flashy European transplant now at home in California, worth learning on your next winter fungus foray.
Remembering Phyllis Faber: 1928-2023
Veteran environmental activist, writer, editor, publisher, educator, and coastal wetlands scientist Phyllis Faber has made countless contributions to the Bay Area environmental movement.
King Tides Offer a Glimpse into the Future of Sea Level Rise
King tides over 7 feet are coming to the Bay Area Jan. 21-22, 2023—and lucky for us, they’re happening at a reasonable time to go out and see them. Here’s a short cosmic backgrounder on why king tides happen.
The Bald Eagles Have Landed in Alameda, and They’re Building a Nest
Longtime birder and Alameda local Rick Lewis found the nest, and he’s been discreetly visiting it almost daily since. No sign of eggs yet, but the birds seem good so far—preening each other, and adding sticks to their nest.
Bay Nature’s Most-Loved Stories in 2022
Stories about abalone, bobcats, underground rivers, newts, two-headed worms, out-of-place birds, acorns, shrews, moles, shrew-moles, and clams with a purpose.
After 2022’s Fatal Algal Bloom, Scientists Fear the Bay’s Sturgeon Could Go Extinct
At Point Pinole, 21 sturgeon carcasses––some more than seven feet long––lay strewn along a mile-long stretch of beach in late August 2022, baking in the relentless heat. It was the peak of the largest harmful algal bloom on record in … Read more
How Indigenous People Got Some Land Back in Oakland
The city of Oakland just made history by giving over five acres in Joaquin Miller Park to an Indigenous land trust’s stewardship. But the backstory was decades in the making.
How a ‘Sturgeon Surgeon’ Tracks the Bay’s Giant, Stealthy Living Fossils
Researchers are investigating the secrets of our two resident sturgeon species, which have razor-sharp armor and shlorp up clams with their vacuum-shaped mouths.