Jul-Sep 2011
In this issue, learn why medium-size predators like raccoons and skunks are thriving right under our noses. And why harbor porpoises are coming back to the Bay, making the Golden Gate Bridge a great wildlife watching spot. And there's never been a better time to get out on San Francisco Bay, where the new Bay Water Trail that's taking shape all over the region. Plus find out what's living in your favorite beach and how turret spiders can tell us about the ancient past. Cover photo by Bruce Finocchio, dreamcatcherimages.net.
Issue Contents
Not all print articles and images appear online immediately.
East Bay Parks Feature
by Glen Martin
Grizzlies may be long gone and mountain lions few and far between, but many smaller predators are thriving in Bay Area wildlands and even in cities and suburbs. From plentiful raccoons and skunks to elusive badgers, midsize predators are major players in local ecosystems, so next time you hear the late-night clatter of garbage cans, give a nod to these scrappy survivors.
From the Jul-Sep 2011 issue
Published July 01, 2011
Length:
Photo by William Keener/GGCR.
Feature
by William Keener
When William Keener got a report of a harbor porpoise inside San Francisco Bay in 2008, he knew this was big news: They had been absent since World War II. Now, Keener's group of researchers has turned the Golden Gate Bridge into a world-class wildlife observatory where anyone can see porpoises in action. Why have they returned? Did Bay cleanup efforts make the difference? While we can't know for sure, we can celebrate this rare case of a large mammal reintroducing itself into its former habitat.
From the Jul-Sep 2011 issue
Published July 01, 2011
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First Person
interview by David Loeb
In the 1970s, mother and peace activist Doris Sloan was working a nonprofit desk job in a basement office in San Francisco when she got into a UC Extension Sierra field class and fell in love with geology. The rest, as they say, is history. Over the subsequent three decades spent teaching, writing, and leading field trips, Sloan has done more than anyone to make the complex geology of California and the Bay Area comprehensible and fun for those of us without PhDs.
From the Jul-Sep 2011 issue
Published July 01, 2011
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On the Trail
by Andrea Pflaumer
A regional effort to create a regional Bay Water Trail is bearing fruit with new funding for an integrated program of boat launches, education programs, and more. It’s time to get out on San Francisco Bay!
From the Jul-Sep 2011 issue
Published July 01, 2011
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Signs of the Season
by David Lukas
Tiny turret spiders, hiding in their silk-lined tunnels near your favorite trail, just might hold some geologic secrets in their genes. "These spiders are like rocks that don't move," says one researcher. Who’d have thought?
From the Jul-Sep 2011 issue
Published July 01, 2011
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Photo by Juliet Grable.
Conservation in Action
by Juliet Grable
Save the Bay turns 50 years old this year, and their native plant nurseries prove the organization is as vital as ever, with volunteers putting in thousands of hours growing native plant seedlings for the group’s restoration projects.
From the Jul-Sep 2011 issue
Published July 01, 2011
Length:
by Aleta George
New Living Landscape effort aims at 80,000 acres in the South Bay, the Sonoma Land Trust bring in the Wildland Conservancy at Jenner Headlands, Landpaths works on public access for private ranch, birds take refuge on humble Aramburu Island, and more...
From the Jul-Sep 2011 issue
Families Afield
by Sue Rosenthal
It turns out the sand at your local beach is not as simple as it seems--it’s full of little creatures. From sand crabs and beach hoppers to tiny water bears, there really is a world in a grain of sand, or at least between the grains of sand.
From the Jul-Sep 2011 issue
Published July 01, 2011
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Ask the Naturalist
by Michael Ellis
The biggest shark in the Bay is the seven-gill--with two more gill slits than the average shark. Why the extras? Well, turns out they’re probably an evolutionary accident, but these are still fascinating animals--up to 10 feet long, and swimming right out there in the Bay!
From the Jul-Sep 2011 issue
Published July 01, 2011
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Naturalist's Notebook
by John Muir Laws
Alcatraz ranks right up there with riding the cable cars for most locals, but it turns out the island is a great place for watching birds! Jack hops on the ferry and chronicles the nesting behavior of snowy egrets, pigeon guillemots, Brandt’s cormorants, and western gulls.
From the Jul-Sep 2011 issue
Published July 01, 2011
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Photo by Diane Poslosky.
Letter from the Publisher
by David Loeb
There’s nothing like getting out on the Bay at water level. And now that harbor porpoises are again venturing daily inside the Golden Gate, there’s never been a better time to grab a paddle and hit the water--or at least let Bay Nature take you there in your mind’s eye!
From the Jul-Sep 2011 issue
Published July 01, 2011
Length:
One reader muses on the connections between Oakland and Oroville, another points up an overlooked gull in Antarcita, and a third reminds us that dogs are most definitely not allowed at Abbotts Lagoon.
From the Jul-Sep 2011 issue
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