GGAS BLOG
Welcome to our online blog featuring thoughtful articles on everything from birding hotspots to bird science written by members of our community.
In order to keep this blog as engaging and relevant as possible we welcome all interested contributors to pitch their article idea(s) to our communications desk at rnakano@goldengateaudubon.org. We are especially interested in publishing blog posts from writers within underrepresented communities including; Black, Indigenous, and other People of Color, LGBTQIA+ individuals and people with disabilities. For more information on contributing blog posts and the editing process visit our Blog Guideline page here.
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Two weeks on the Farallones
By Michael Pierson I recently had the pleasure of spending two weeks volunteering on the Farallon Islands as part of an invasive plant removal team. I work as a naturalist on a local whale watching boat and have spent many weekends circling the islands, wishing I could set foot on this forbidden place. The many
Birds for breakfast
By Alan Krakauer The past year of Covid-19 saw folks change how they relate to nature. Like many of you, my wife and I enjoyed a bit of a silver lining by getting reacquainted with our local wildlife. Attendance in nearby parks soared as people sought freedom and relief in the outdoors. When one can’t
Mount Sutro’s Bombardier Butterflies
By Liam O’Brien They blast by incredibly fast, zipping and zagging every which way. No, I’m not talking about the annual visit of the Blue Angels for Fleet Week. I’m talking about our skipper butterflies. I remember wondering if I’d ever learn them, back when this butterfly mania took hold of me. Years of frustration,
Contributing to a Breeding Bird Atlas
By Brandy Deminna Ford Have you ever really looked at a Mourning Dove—its grayish blue crown, pale rosy breast, and shimmering iridescence punctuated by myriad black spots on the wings? Have you paused to notice the slight differences between a male and female pair or listened to a female’s low cooing call from a nest
Chow time for cormorant chicks
Photographer Rick Lewis, a Golden Gate Audubon member, specializes in documenting the avian life near his Alameda home. Over the weekend he had a chance to watch young Double-crested Cormorants being fed by their parents in a nesting tree near a busy shopping center there. Here are two of the eagerly waiting chicks: Double-crested Cormorants
Dragonfly Detour
By Tara McIntire Over the course of this past year, our lives changed forever For me, this has translated into a “world exposed” as I discovered the natural wonders of tiny spiders and pollinators, during endless hours in my garden during the early months of our shelter-in-place. I liken it to a forced road detour,
Birdathon 2021: Soaring success
By Ilana DeBare If Birdathon 2021 were a film, we’d say “it’s a wrap!” Instead we’ll say, “it’s a rap-tor!” Golden Gate Audubon Society’s annual fundraiser came to a high-flying conclusion over the weekend, capping two months of innovative new events designed to carry on despite Covid. Unable to hold our usual in-person Birdathon programs,
Secret Jewel along Tomales Bay
By Ilana DeBare Bay Area birdwatchers have long flocked to Audubon Canyon Ranch’s flagship Martin Griffin preserve along Bolinas Lagoon, which for years hosted dozens of egret nests. But almost no local birders have set foot on another ACR property—its dramatic Toms Point preserve on the northern edge of Tomales Bay. Toms Point is a 70-acre
Creation of a felted Osprey chick
By Hilary Powers Bid high for the baby Osprey in the Birdathon auction – you may never see another! When Golden Gate Audubon Society called for donations of services or experiences (not stuff) to fit this year’s theme, I had to stop and think, because stuff is what I do: true-life replicas of creatures natural
Accessible birding for every body
By Chris Okon When I started birding in 2005, I went on each and every Golden Gate Audubon Society bird walk that I could: the rolling terrain of Sibley Volcanic Regional Preserve, the meadows of Yosemite, the wild hills of the Sierras, the special patches in Golden Gate Park, any opportunity to see and learn
Egret nests in Alameda, 2020
Editor’s Note: It’s nesting season! Photographer Gerry Traucht has been following a nesting colony of Great and Snowy Egrets in Alameda for eight years, through the removal of their dying nest tree in 2018 and their shift to new trees in 2019. About a dozen Great Egrets have arrived so far this spring. As we
Sharing birds with tomorrow’s outdoor educators
By Analicia Hawkins and Aryn Maitland Throughout the past year, opportunities to connect with the birding community in person and enjoy nature together have been few and far between. Even though birding alone can be a fulfilling experience, there’s something special about being able to share that experience with others—especially with people who may be