Natural History Wanderings

See this year’s schedule of events at Mono Basin Scenic Area Visitor Center announces 2024 events

https://naturalhistorywanderings.com/2024/05/19/mono-basin-scenic-area-visitor-center-2024-events/

The New York Times reports Now, after a heroic DNA sequencing effort, a collaboration involving hundreds of scientists has created a new family tree for flowering plants. Comparing gene sequences...

https://naturalhistorywanderings.com/2024/05/19/a-new-tree-of-flowering-plants-for-spring-groundbreaking/

Governor Gavin Newsom today announced that Caltrans will open the portion of Highway 1 closed by the Rocky Creek slip-out to traffic, starting at 6:30 a.m. this Friday, May 17 – eight days soon...

https://naturalhistorywanderings.com/2024/05/18/highway-1-reopened/

There will be hundred of flowers to see, great books and posters for sale and wildflower-loving folks to talk with. This is a spectacular year for wildflowers along the coast. Sponsored by Dor...

https://naturalhistorywanderings.com/2024/05/18/gualala-wildflower-show-may-25-1000-am-may-26-400-pm/

The Guardian reports Early springs mean food for young of arrivals from west Africa has already disappeared; this year they face the opposite problem. Migratory birds, especially those long-dist...

https://naturalhistorywanderings.com/2024/05/18/climate-disruption-to-uk-seasons-causes-problems-for-migratory-birds/

Glacier Point Road opened to vehicles on Tuesday, May 14 Trails leaving from Glacier Point Road are still snowy. Hikers should be prepared with appropriate gear and for route finding including cr...

https://naturalhistorywanderings.com/2024/05/17/glacier-point-road-open/

from Golden Gate Bird Alliance Thursday May 23 at 7pm Tamalpais Room at The David Brower Center (2150 Allston Way, Berkeley CA) and online via Zoom On-island and at-sea perspectives will show how...

https://naturalhistorywanderings.com/2024/05/17/bering-sea-saga-a-tale-of-two-birders-5-23-24/

NPR reports Bear Divide is unique because it’s like a passageway through the wall of the San Gabriels. Birds are funneled through, Reckling says, and fly low enough for researchers to identify,...

https://naturalhistorywanderings.com/2024/05/17/on-this-unassuming-trail-near-la-bird-watchers-see-something-spectacular/

Photographed in the East Bay Regional Parks Botanic Garden in Tilden Park in Berkeley, CA on May 14, 2024. The Regional Parks Botanic Garden is a California native plant garden. It is located wit...

https://naturalhistorywanderings.com/2024/05/16/regional-parks-botanic-garden-photos-5-14-24/

Smithsonian Magazine reports Paleontologists Discover Massive Dinosaur Tracks in China, Hinting at One of the Largest Known Raptors The footprints, left behind by a 16-foot-long creature some 96 ...

https://naturalhistorywanderings.com/2024/05/16/paleontologists-discover-massive-dinosaur-tracks-in-china-hinting-at-one-of-the-largest-known-raptors/

Photos taken in the Regional Park Botanic Garden Photos on 5/12/24.

https://naturalhistorywanderings.com/2024/05/15/regional-park-botanic-garden-photos-4-12-24/

The BBC  reports Seagulls are being forced into our towns by the loss of natural spaces – and we need to learn to live alongside them, say scientists. Hit by multiple pressures, from avian flu...

https://naturalhistorywanderings.com/2024/05/15/seagulls-charismatic-not-criminal-say-scientists/

ScienceDaily reports When officials make tough calls on which areas to prioritize for conservation, biodiversity is often their top consideration. But there are several types of diversity, and n...

https://naturalhistorywanderings.com/2024/05/14/species-diversity-is-directly-correlated-with-productivity-in-eastern-u-s-forests/

The Virginia Mercury reports Throughout Virginia, scientists are documenting significant warming of water temperatures, from inland freshwater streams and rivers to the Chesapeake Bay and the At...

https://naturalhistorywanderings.com/2024/05/13/warming-water-temperatures-in-virginia-are-changing-aquatic-life-as-we-know-it/

NPR reports Popular slogans and ad campaigns have urged the public to save honeybees. But reports suggest those efforts were directed at saving the wrong bees. — Read on www.npr.org/2024/05/11/...

https://naturalhistorywanderings.com/2024/05/12/weve-been-trying-to-save-the-wrong-bees-2/

Bay Nature reports The Xerces blue butterfly, long gone from San Francisco, became a symbol of the fight against extinctions. Now scientists are sending in a replacement. Scientists have schleppe...

https://naturalhistorywanderings.com/2024/05/12/theres-a-new-blue-flitting-on-xerces-old-turf/

To see job description and apply go to   https://jobs.colostate.edu/postings/143604

https://naturalhistorywanderings.com/2024/05/11/job-opening-botanist-vandenberg-space-force-base-california/

Reuters reports Giant blue-grey sei whales that vanished from Argentina’s Patagonian coast a century ago due to hunting are starting to flourish once again, demonstrating how species can recove...

https://naturalhistorywanderings.com/2024/05/11/a-whale-makes-a-comeback-off-argentinas-coast-100-years-after-vanishing/

SF Gate reports Failures on the part of the Aramark subsidiary contracted to run visitor services in Yosemite National Park have led to the deterioration of historic structures, resulting in inju...

https://naturalhistorywanderings.com/2024/05/10/national-park-service-says-yosemite-contractor-endangered-visitors/

from the Revelato Snap a photo, save the planet? The app iNaturalist does a lot more than identify the species you see. As iNaturalist codirector Scott Loarie tells us, it also helps inspire cons...

https://naturalhistorywanderings.com/2024/05/10/how-your-photos-can-help-save-the-planet/

from eBird Go birding on Global Big Day—11 May! Be a part of a new world record by submitting eBird checklists this Saturday. Global Big Day is an annual celebration of the birds around you. No...

https://naturalhistorywanderings.com/2024/05/09/reminder-global-big-day-11-may-2024/

 There are five categories again this year: Calochortus contestants so far Grasses and grasslike plants contestants so far Any other flowering plant contestants so far Gymnosperms contestants so...

https://naturalhistorywanderings.com/2024/05/09/calfloras-10th-annual-may-photo-contest-is-underway/

From California State Parks California is in bloom! Share your wildflower walks in a California state park this spring for a chance to win a prize from our friends at Parks Project! Contest runs ...

https://naturalhistorywanderings.com/2024/05/09/california-state-parks-wildflower-photo-contest/

ScienceDaily reports A new study states that the combination of global warming and extreme heat events, alongside the continued expansion of deforestation in the world, may be devastating for ma...

https://naturalhistorywanderings.com/2024/05/09/combination-of-the-climate-crisis-and-continued-deforestation-may-result-in-significant-damage-to-the-animal-world/

From the National Parks Conservation Association If there’s one thing that’s clear from our 2024 “Polluted Parks” report, it’s that our parks are suffering from air pollution. To be mor...

https://naturalhistorywanderings.com/2024/05/08/pollution-in-the-national-parks/