Orange bumblebee? A hornet/bee hybrid? Giant flying peanut? Many metaphors describe the bumbling buzzer known as the valley carpenter bee, the largest native bee that’s currently lollygagging through many SoCal gardens, outdoor locales and parklands. Who hasn’t experienced one of these fast-flying furries zooming straight toward your face? Who hasn’t responded with an unconscious head […]
Watch out. There are more arms, legs and tentacles in the oceans these days. The number of cephalopods (octopus, cuttlefish and squid) has increased in the world’s oceans over the past 60 years, say scientists at the University of Adelaide. Researchers from the University’s Environment Institute recently compiled an international database of cephalopod catch rates […]
The sky’s the limit at the Second Annual Bird LA Day on May 7 which aims to get Angelenos away from technology and into the wildness of local parks, open spaces forests – and even downtown Los Angeles – to witness nature on the wing. Many organizations from Big Bear to Long Beach, Calabasas to […]
They will have to fly it alone. The San Bernardino flying squirrel does not require protection under the Endangered Species Act, announced the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service recently. The USFW conducted a status review for this small tree-dwelling mammal that lives in the forest canopies of the San Bernardino Mountains; they determined that the […]
First it was venomous yellow bellied sea snakes washing up on our Southern California coastlines, but now a more docile but equally rare critter was recently spotted by a diver off the waters below Alamitos Bay. The Long Beach Press Enterprise reports that diver Roger Hanson saw and subsequently captured an image of Pacific seahorse, […]
Predators eat prey. It’s nature’s way. But when prey presents problems for humans, sometimes it’s good to encourage predators on the scene (think barn owl boxes for rodents, mice, etc.). With the news of the invasive mosquito infiltrating Southern California bringing along the potentially dangerous Zika virus, some ecologically-minded folks may wonder: Why don’t we […]
The higher you climb in Debs Park in Los Angeles, the less you hear of the traffic on the 110 Arroyo Freeway and the more you hear chirps, tweets, buzzes, clinks, coos and trills. Up hidden in a cluster of trees and foliage, a ruby-crowned kinglet was singing an inventive collection of notes, […]
Johanna Turner pointed to where she and fellow camera trapper Denis Callet found the recent deer kill in this Altadena canyon. The half-eaten carcass was found in sandy open area next to a bubbling flowing creek – and just within yards of homes situated on the ridges of either side. “I bet those folks living […]
Capture your feathered friends for posterity when you discover secrets of nature photography from a pro. The Birding and Nature Photography Workshop is sponsored by the Annenberg Space for Photography and Friends of Ballona Wetlands; this hands-on photography workshop takes place at the Ballona Wetlands Ecological Reserve at 9am on January 31. Photographer Dave Collins and […]
Suddenly, the calm of Eaton Canyon was pierced by the shriek of delight from a young boy as he rose up from the ground where he had been poking through the leaves with a long stick. A crowd of adults gathered round as he cupped his hand and displayed his find which, on any other […]
One small critter is making one big mess in Topanga Creek. In the slow-moving creek waters, they lurk under rocks, skitter around the silty muck and hide under piles of sticks and leaves, tentacles waving and pincher claws grasping for anything that may be food. These days, food to these invasive crayfish means native frog, […]
How many times have you bent over to pick up a feather and thought: “Gee, which bird dropped this?” “Why aren’t I better at bird identification?” “What is the matter with me?” The folks at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service can help you with some of those questions with its online Feather Atlas, a […]