Tag Archives: Berkeley wildlife
The mystery and thrill: Shorebirds enjoy winter in Berkeley
A wide variety of shorebirds winter in the San Francisco Bay waters, and in Berkeley in particular. A few, like the whimbrel (a type of curlew), migrate from as far away as the Arctic. Elaine Miller Bond, whose work on local wildlife we have been delighted to publish before, recently spent time photographing shorebirds at the Berkeley and Emeryville tidal zones and mudflats in the company of Rusty Scalf, a teacher and trip leader for the Audubon Society.
According to Scalf, these shorebirds have “high odometer readings.” Yet, for foraging, they rely heavily on the fragile, narrow, often muddy habitat between dry land and water — a zone that is increasingly imperiled by global climate change.
Here, we publish a selection of Miller Bond’s gorgeous photos with extended captions written by her describing the birds and their habits. … Continue reading »
Sitting on the dock of the bay: Birds throng Berkeley pier
On Wednesday, author and photographer Elaine Miller Bond captured this shot of an amazing spectacle down at the Berkeley Marina.
“There were many hundreds, probably thousands, of seabirds (mostly cormorants) flocked together, feeding on the water,” she said. “Within minutes, the entire flock had taken flight and landed here, on the old pilings at the far end of the Berkeley Pier. Though we humans no longer use these derelict planks, birds can certainly be seen, ‘sitting on the dock of the bay.’” … Continue reading »
Can’t get enough of them: Berkeley’s burrowing owls
We admit we are suckers for these adorable birds, so when regular Neil Mishalov sent us these two gorgeous pics, it didn’t take long to decide to share them with you, even though it was barely two weeks ago that we published another photo of this beautiful bird.
News of these special birds is spreading. New York Magazine recently included a visit to spot the burrowing owls as an “Insider’s Tip” in its Five-Point Weekend Escape Plan to Berkeley story. (They also recommended checking out Berkeleyside’s Nosh for East Bay food news, a point we couldn’t disagree with.) … Continue reading »
Mating newts at UC Botanical Garden a stimulating sight
It’s not just us humans who get romantic around Valentine’s Day. Have you heard of newt love? UC Botanical Garden director and zoologist Paul Licht is intimately familiar with the mating habits of the two newt species – Taricha torosa (California newt) and Taricha granulosa (rough-skin newt) – that become amorous at this time of year. And it’s quite a sight (watch video, above).
According to the Botanical Garden, these small, dark-skinned amphibians hide in the underbrush and are rarely seen by humans, but, once the rains come, scores of them gravitate to the crystal-clear waters of the Japanese Pool. (Perhaps using the famous newt crossing in Tilden Park to get there.) … Continue reading »
Authorities searching for deer shot by arrow in Berkeley
Residents in the Berkeley hills are on the lookout for a doe that appears to be wandering around with an arrow sticking out of her torso.
Young-Eun Choi , who lives on Campus Drive, spotted the wounded and weakened deer Wednesday morning and took some photos of her eating.
“The head of the arrow had gone through the body but the tail of the arrow was still on the opposite side, leaving the arrow stuck in the deer,” Choi’s husband, Yun S. Song, a professor of computer science and statistics at UC Berkeley, said in an email sent to neighbors. “Although not focused, the photos clearly show the red/white tail of the arrow. The doe was still alive, but moving very slowly, obviously in great pain. Moreover, it had a fawn following it. Unfortunately we cannot locate where they are at present.” … Continue reading »
Tell us: Is it a fox or a coyote on a Berkeley deck?
Ann O’Brien was visiting from Iowa when she spotted what she thought was a coyote sunning itself on a deck in north Berkeley on Thursday. Clearly, the local wildlife is feeling comfortable in the urban environment — some would say making itself a little too much at home. Here at Berkeleyside, we’re not naturalists enough to provide a definitive identification of the animal. Is it a coyote or a fox? Let us know. … Continue reading »
Deer charging people, dogs in the Berkeley hills
Violent crime has been decreasing in Berkeley in recent years — that is, when the perpetrators in question are humans. Wildlife is another matter. Two Berkeleyside readers recently reported incidents of deer charging at pedestrians in the Berkeley hills in late May. Animal Services confirms there have been multiple cases.
On May 29, a deer charged several times at a hiker at the intersection of Oak Path and Oak Street, said Berkeley Path Wanderers Association President Keith Skinner. The deer left the scene only when another person and a dog arrived.
The victim of the attack “called Animal Control and was told to avoid the area for the next few months, but it doesn’t seem that the city is taking any other precautionary steps to alert people,” wrote Skinner in an email to Berkeleyside. … Continue reading »
Blue heron at Berkeley Marina scores its lunch
Citizen reporter Gisele Frazão Teixeira shot these photos yesterday at the Berkeley Marina of a Blue Heron spying, catching, and flying away with its prey. Never let it be said that Berkeley isn’t a wildlife enthusiast’s nirvana.
Related:
Berkeley owl chick will soon branch out says expert [04.26.12]
Photos: Baby owl on Berkeley trail is growing up fast [04.19.12]
In Tilden Park’s Jewel Lake: Spotting a rare river otter [04.05.12]
Berkeley owl … Continue reading »
Berkeley owl chick will soon branch out, says expert
The owl chick that has been drawing crowds of fascinated adults and children to Berkeley’s Claremont Canyon trail, where its parents made a nest in a Eucalyptus tree some weeks ago, will soon began to “branch out” and explore its surroundings before making its first flight, says Doug Bell, Wildlife Progam Manager at East Bay Regional Parks.
Great Horned Owls are unusual among raptors in that they go through this development phase which involves “branching”, namely scrambling around nearby branches using a particular legs and wings action. The explorations can get the chicks into trouble, said Bell, as they might get clumsy and fall out of the tree.
Bell urges people who are visiting the Claremont trail to keep their distance and be respectful of the owls and their chick. “We would encourage people to give them space and to keep their dogs on leash,” he said. … Continue reading »
In Tilden Park’s Jewel Lake: Spotting a rare river otter
By Elaine Miller Bond
Camera in hand, Jen Joynt goes out to Bay Area parks, “looking for excitement.”
On a day last winter she started from the Tilden Nature Area, just looking for what she could see. She hiked up Wildcat Peak, where she found and photographed a pair of coyotes. As she headed back, she happened to meet birdwatchers she knew from previous outings. And they turned her afternoon of picture-taking into a brush with Tilden history: they asked if she had seen the otter.
“Oh no, I hadn’t seen the otter!”
Joynt’s mind went to the Tilden otters from two years ago — four of them observed for about a week in 2009. Prior to that, river otters had last been sighted in Tilden, according to park records, during the 1940s. … Continue reading »
Large rattlesnake causes traffic back-up on Berkeley trail
Berkeley’s Claremont Canyon fire trail, one of the city’s most popular spots for swift bouts of aerobic hiking, is also a source of regular diversions. Last week it was an intriguing note, taped to a barrier at the foot of the path, which caught our attention.
Yesterday it was a potentially more dangerous beast. A rattlesnake, approximately three-feet long, crossed the trail not once but twice as this intrepid reporter made her way first up the hill, and … Continue reading »
Berkeley sketchbook: the Northern Flicker bird
Berkeley designer Diana Howard has spotted this bird several times in her garden recently. She says it’s been identified as a Northern Flicker.
See Howard’s previous sketches published on Berkeleyside here.
Do the Berkeley police need wildlife training?
It was recently reported that the Oakland Police Department is to undergo mandatory annual training in handling dogs and wildlife. This came in the wake of two cases in which officers shot respectively a fawn and a dog in the city.
Berkeleyside was curious to find out whether the Berkeley Police Department might choose to follow suit, given that wildlife has been something of an issue in our city’s streets over the past few months.
Back in May a lone deer … Continue reading »
