News
This Weekend's Big Year Events
This is a big weekend for the endangered plants! Don't miss out!
Friday, May 30, 2008
10 a.m. - 2 p.m.
Behind the scenes tour of one of the wildest and most striking areas of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area on a search for the endangered Tiburon Paintbrush. Meet at Laurel Canyon Road along Point Reyes-Petaluma Road, just west of Nicasio Reservoir.For more information click here.
Saturday, May 31, 2008
1 p.m.
Join Jake Sigg, Ken Himes and the CA Native Plant Society as they work to remove the principal threat to the Fountain Thistle, pampas grass, at one of its few sites - the intersection of Interstate 280 and Highway 92. Caltrans is removing the bulk of the pampas grass, but is avoiding working in the immediate area where the thistle occurs, because of its sensitivity. For more info click here.
Beautiful Yet Vulnerable
Urban Seabirds of Alcatraz
Alcatraz Island, in the center of San Francisco Bay, has become a breeding site for a number of marine bird species. It is one of few estuarine breeding sites for many of these species. The proximity of Alcatraz to a densely-populated urban area and its status as a heavily-visited national park make disturbance to wildlife a key concern on the island. During the m
onths of March-August, colonial seabirds such as Brandt's Cormorant, Pelagic Cormorant, Pigeon Guillemot, and Western Gulls are nesting on Alcatraz. It’s a wonderful place to see these birds during their breeding season…from the island. PRBO Conservation Science has been monitoring these seabirds in partnership with the Golden Gate National Recreation Area for over 10 years and has found that during this time, small personal watercraft such as kayaks, sculls, and other small boats need to 
stay 300' away from the island. Approaching closer causes the parents to fly off their nests, making eggs & chicks vulnerable to predators, and could also potentially cause colony abandonment. Come take advantage of the views on Alcatraz, but please help protect the seabirds and respect closed areas. Let others know about the sensitivity of the birds at this time of year as well! To learn more visit www.prbo.org/alcatraz.
San Mateo County:
Vote Yes on June 3!
San Mateo County Parks is the only county or regional park agency in the Bay Area without a source of dedicated funds. On June 3rd voters have a chance to change that. This new money will provide additional ranger positions and a resource management position, will facilitate the opening of regional trail connections, and will help the Parks Department to manage existing lands and potential future acquisitions. For just 1/8th of a penny increase in the sales tax - less than $2.00 a month for the average person - Measure O would raise approximately $16 million a year for 25 years to fund parks and recreation in each of the county's twenty cities, Mid-Peninsula Regional Open Space District, Ladera and Highlands Recreation Districts, and San Mateo County Parks. Measure O needs two-thirds majority vote to pass, so your YES vote is important. For more information, go to: www.parksforthefuture.org.
Check out the new public Google Calendar for the Sustainable Watersheds Alliance (SWAle) which has been created to encourage the public to stay abreast with current events. The calendar can be accessed directly by clicking here.
Peregrine Falcon Rescue Has Sad End
SF Gate
Shuffling on a catwalk under the lower deck of the Bay Bridge, biologist Brian Latta rounded a corner and was struck by a dreadful sound. Silence.
The UC Santa Cruz bird rescuer had expected his arrival to prompt ear-splitting protest from a pair of peregrine falcons. Latta, after all, had arrived at 11 a.m. Monday to snatch their 3-week-old chicks, saving them from near-certain death in traffic above or the bay below as they made their first clumsy attempts at flight.
To read the full story go to Monday's SF Gate.
Volunteer Opportunities
Wednesday May 28
Presidio Park Stewards @ Mountain Lake
CNPS @ Bayview
Presidio Nursery
Thursday May 29
Crissy Field Landscape
Lands End Stewards
Friday May 30
Presidio Plant Patrol @Inspiration Point
Saturday May 31
Presidio Park Stewards @ Presidio Hills
Fort Funston
Lands End Stewards
Presidio Nursery
For more information, contact info, and directions to natural areas go to the Community Calendar on the Nature in the City website.
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Photo Courtesy Margo Bors
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Nature in the City is a project of Earth Island Institute, a501(c) California non profit public benefit corporation.
More Eco News and Events
ACT locally, ADVOCATE globally
Tasmanian Devil Endangered as Cancer Hits
Discovery News
Australia's Tasmanian devil will be listed as an endangered species this week as a result of a deadly and disfiguring cancer outbreak, the state government said Monday. The disease, a fast-growing head tumor which spreads over the marsupial's face and mouth and prevents it from eating, often killing it within months, has cut the island's devil population in the wild by as much as 60 percent.
Read the full story here.
