Citizen scientists began collecting data for our long term monitoring project of the Living Roof plants and animals.
The bird data we collected on Sunday has been submitted to eBird, a project that was launched in 2002 by Cornell Lab of Ornithology and National Audubon Society. The observations made by our citizen scientists join those of an international network of eBird users. eBird shares the bird data with a global community of educators, land managers, ornithologists, and conservation biologists. In time these data will become the foundation for a better understanding of bird distribution across the western hemisphere and beyond. For more information visit: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/about
For those citizen scientists involved in the Living Roof Project you can have access to our eBird account. Just email ahysert@calacademy.org and I will give you the instructions and password.
June 28th, July19th, July 23rd, August 16th, and August 20th, 9:30 a.m. -12:30 p.m.
Participate in a citizen science project by helping the Academy collect data for a long term monitoring project on the Academy’s roof. Learn about the roof’s delicate ecosystem, plants and the diversity of birds and insects that visit the roof daily. For ages 12 and older.
Reservations: Academy admission plus $3 per person. Buy tickets online or call 415-379-8000 (press 0 for a reservation representative). Limited space available (15 people maximum).
Water Wonders at Stow Lake
June 2nd, July14th, August 4th (CANCELED) 9:30 a.m. -12:30 p.m.
Join us for an exploration of an important freshwater ecosystem in Golden Gate Park, Learn about aquatic food chains through hands-on activities and fun educational games. Find out about the latest water-related issues the Bay Area is facing and what you can do to help.
For ages seven and up (children 7-12 must be accompanied by a parent). Participants should wear comfortable clothes and sturdy shoes for outdoor activities.
Reservations: Academy admission plus $3 per person. Buy the tickets online or call 415-379-8000 (press 0 for a reservation representative). Limited space available. Meet at the Business Entrance
Wild Woodlands
June 9th, July 7th, August 25th 1:00-4:00 p.m.
Come explore the oak woodland in Golden Gate Park. Take a closer look at the fascinating world of plants through fun hands-on activities. Learn about the importance of maintaining biodiversity in our parks and the controversial issue of native versus invasive species.
For ages seven and up (children 7-12 must be accompanied by a parent). Participants should wear comfortable clothes and sturdy shoes for outdoor activities.
Reservations: Academy admission plus $3 per person. Buy tickets online or call 415-379-8000 (press 0 for a reservation representative). Limited space available. Meet at the Business Entrance.
Photo: Rick J. Pelleg, 2005.
The tree we saw during our Wild Woodlands programs on April 25 and 26 is a silky oak (Grevillea robusta), sometimes also referred to as a silver oak. It is native to Australia and is a member of the protea family. It is not in the oak family but got its common name from the oak-like grain of its wood.
Height: 15 – 40 m
Leaves: 10 – 30 cm long; 9 – 15 cm wide; bi- or tri-pinnately compound, making it fern-like in appearance; alternate on the stem; dark green with grayish-white or rusty undersides; leaves tend to be variable within the species.
Flowers: large, showy, gold to orange-yellow flowers; held in pairs on racemes (a type of stem) 7.5 to 10 cm long; each individual flower is slender and about 2.5 cm long; bottlebrush-like shaped; require summer heat to flower so those planted in San Francisco often do not flower.
Fruit/Seeds: a pod-like follicle, 20 mm in diameter, is slightly flattened and has a long-curved style; hard, dark-brown to black follicle splits open in late fall releasing the one or two seeds it contains; seeds are about 10 mm long, flattened, and surrounded by a membranous wing.
Further information:
- http://plants.usda.gov/java/profile?symbol=GRRO
- http://hort.ufl.edu/trees/GREROBA.pdf
- McClintock, Elizabeth. The Trees of Golden Gate Park and San Francisco. Berkeley, CA: Heyday Books, 2001.
- Olde, Peter & Marriott, Neil. The Grevillea Book. Vol. 3. Portland, OR: Timber Press, 1995.
- Rodd, Tony & Stackhouse, Jennifer. Trees: A Visual Guide. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2008.
The Carbon Diaries 2015 by Saci Lloyd, August 1, 11.00 am in the Education Classroom
It’s 2015 and the effects of global warming have hit close to home with the “Great Storm” that hit London. In response, Great Britain decides to implement carbon rationing—each person is allotted a miniscule amount of carbon use per year. Good-bye air travel. Good-bye home heating. Laura Brown, a 16-year-old Londoner, shares her diary of what happened in this uncertain and tumultuous future. Join us for a discussion of what the future might hold.
Reservations: Free with general admission to the museum, but please call the Naturalist Center at 415.379.5494 to reserve a space.
