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Nature in the City News
Owls on Mt. Sutro
The stewards at last month's Mt. Sutro Volunteer Day were treated to a wild surprise. Jake Sigg, who was among those leading the habitat restoration group said, "We were working in the area beneath the great horned owl nest... A huge aggregation of crows and ravens (a few dozen) were in great noisy commotion above us. The reason soon became apparent. They were harassing the owl pair, and eventually raided the nest of its eggs or babies."
Craig Dawson added, ""For the entire morning we heard the bird battle being waged above our heads with the hooting owls, cawing crows and ravens with a hawk adding it's unique cry before the morning was over. The avian display was a reminder of just how wild the last remnant of Sutro's forest still is."
The next Mt. Sutro Stewards volunteer day is on Saturday April 4. Don't miss it!
New Alcatraz Waysides Installed
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Brandt's Cormorant on Alcatraz |
The fantastic new waysides that our very own Peter Brastow worked on for the GGNRA have finally been installed on Alcatraz. Several different waysides illustrate the fascinating ecology of Alcatraz, where thousands of seabirds nest every spring. Take the ferry out to the island this season to see Western Gulls, Brandt's Cormorants and several other species of water birds nesting, and right on the pavement of the main parade ground!
California Natives Shows Off Their Winter Color
Garden for the Environment
"Many people, when they think about native plants, conjure up a vision of rangy, sparse, weedy looking shrubs. And sadly, many native plants have been set out around town in well-meant projects and then neglected, giving native gardening a bad name.
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Pink Flowering Currant |
But native plants, when well-cared for, can produce as many graceful, magical effects as plants from anywhere else on the planet. And with future irrigation water for California homes very much in question, natives have a stronger appeal than ever. Since these plants evolved for our climate, they are among the best candidates to survive our cyclical droughts."
Read the full article about California native's in GFE's From the Border.
Looking for native plants? Check out the Haight-Ashbury Native Plant Nursery! Over 50 species of local plants and the only local native plant nursery in San Francisco!
By carefully selecting your garden plants you are aiding in the fight against invasive weeds - one of the most harmful things to biodiversity worldwide. Take a look at the recent results of a California Invasive Plant Council survey on the cost of fighting weeds.
A Truly Green Building?
An anonymous contributor to Jake Sigg's newsletter wrote:
"I was on my way to the SF Rec & Park Volunteer's Appreciation Day at the new Cal Academy. A woman with an employee outfit was directly across from me on the N Judah. I asked her if she'd heard anything about the bird situation I'd heard from Josiah Clark, that birds were smashing into the large windows that surround the Academy. She looked very sheepish: 'They have the employees walk around the building each morning to gather up the dead ones cuz they don't want the story to get out.'
I went on to give this building one more try: I think it has all the joy of a college dorm and why are the tanks so low. In the gift shop, I saw the new, big coffee table book on it: 'Cal Academy of Science: Architecture in Harmony with Nature.' Gave me pause."
BBC News recently reported on these 'eco-traps' and how glass buildings and other sources of polarized light are dramatically altering species behaviors. Check out the article here.
Spring '09 Earth Island Journal is Now Online!
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Cover of the Spring EIJ |
Check out the ocean-themed Spring 2009 Earth Island Journal. Below is a clip of an article by Jeffrey Marlow about how climate change appears to be driving a spike in jellyfish populations.
"Fishermen haul up their nets to find gelatinous bycatch. Beachside resorts struggle to ensure swimmer comfort and safety. Ocean freighters, desalination facilities, seabed mining dredgers, and nuclear power plants have all been forced to curtail operations while jellyfish ooze is excavated from clogged pipes. In Japan, some coastlines have been inundated with hundreds of millions of refrigerator-sized jellyfish, so many and so large that they have forced the temporary closure of electricity plants that provide power to Tokyo."
Funding for Cisterns, Rain Gardens, and Pervious Paving!
The San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC) Urban Watershed Management Program is pleased to offer $100,000 of funding to the Community Challenge Grant Programs spring cycle for stormwater management projects initiated by the community.
Groups of residents or businesses, community groups, and non-profit organizations are encouraged to apply. SFPUC funds must be used for projects that address stormwater management issues.
The application deadline is Wednesday, March 25, 2009 by 4:00 PM
To request an application with funding guidelines or for additional information please contact Lanita Henriquez, Program Manager, or call (415) 554-4830. You can also download the information at CCG's new website.
Correction:
In our last newsletter we posted an article about the Mountain Lake cleanup. The article stated that Mountain Lake is "one of the last two remaining natural lakes in San Francisco" - this is incorrect. There are 4 natural lakes remaining in San Francisco - Mountain Lake, Pine Lake, Lake Merced, and Laguna Honda (a natural lake, turned reservoir.)
Sharp Park ALERT
San Francisco District 5 Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi has proposed legislation to direct the Recreation and Park Department to restore Sharp Park for the San Francisco garter snake and the California red-legged frog and for the City either to give Sharp Park to the Golden Gate National Recreation Area or enter into a joint management agreement.
If you missed our alert last week click here and take action!!
Join Nature in the City!
Become a member today and get a new map! Nature in the City is a project of Earth Island Institute, a 501(c)3 California non profit public benefit corporation. |
Vegetation Ecologist Wanted for the Marin Municiple Watershed District
The vegetation ecologist will work under the supervision of the Natural Resources Program Specialist and will focus on programs related to invasive species control (planning and
supervision), wildfire risk reduction, fuel break management, special status species monitoring, SOD and Climate Change response, vegetation mapping, habitat restoration and environmental compliance. Some work with volunteers is likely but not a focal point of this position. The vegetation ecologist will also participate in the revision and enactment
of the Mt Tamalpais Vegetation Management Plan.
The salary range is $5854 to $7171 per month. Cal-Pers based benefits package.
Click here to read the full job description.
Applications are due in the office by no later than 4:00 pm on March 31st. Due to the high volume of applications received for other recent recruitments, late applications will not be considered.
Get the Word Out!
The California Invasive Plant Council (Cal-IPC) would like to make contact with groups and organizations that might not currently be connected to Cal-IPC including:
Watershed groups
Volunteer restoration groups
Land trusts and conservancies
Regional Park Districts and County parks
'Friends of' groups
Docents at local parks and natural history museums
Please forward this e-mail to contacts that you know, directly send contacts to Heather Brady, or send suggestions for local groups that may be interested.