San Francisco Naturalist Society

The San Francisco Naturalist Society is dedicated to the enjoyment, study, and preservation of the natural world.

Upcoming Naturalist Society Events

Saturday, June 15
Second Annual SFNS Campout!
Alice Eastwood Group Campground, Mount Tamalpais State Park, just outside Muir Woods. The site has bathrooms, running water, bbqs, picnic tables, and a fire pit. Space is limited to 25 people and there is only one spot left! Contact Patrick at (415) 225-3830 to reserve your spot. Bring your own tent and supplies. $5.

Thursday, July 11
Beavers of Martinez
Join Heidi Perryman, Founder of Worth A Dam, for a talk on the Beavers of Martinez. Dr. Perryman shares the story of how one beaver family won over the hearts of the people of Martinez. This North Bay community took a crash course in beavers when a mating pair moved into a downtown stream. Concerned that their dam would cause flooding, the city proposed killing the beavers, but resident outcry encouraged them to try humane solutions instead. A flow device was installed at the dam and this controlled pond height, allowing the beavers to safely remain. Heidi Perryman is part of the Occidental Arts and Ecology Center (OAEC) WATER Institute California Working Beaver Group, whose mission is to promote understanding of the importance of healthy watersheds. Dr. Perryman recently co-authored a paper on the historic range of the North American Beaver. For more information about Perryman and Worth A Dam please visit www.martinezbeavers.org.
Randall Museum, 199 Museum Way, San Francisco, CA 94114. For more information, go to www.sfns.org or contact Patrick Schlemmer at jkodiak@earthlink.net or (415) 225-3830.
Free and open to everyone.

Thursday, October 10
ZomBees! with Professor John Hafernik.

Saturday, November 16
Tidepooling at Fitzgerald Marine Reserve with Carole Preston.

Friday, December 20
SFNS 15th Anniversary Speaker Party!

The San Francisco Naturalist Society is a free club for people who are interested in the natural world. If you would like to be added to the announcement list for upcoming Naturalist Society events, email club president Patrick Schlemmer.

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Today's Naturalist Events

Wed., May 22 Whales: Up Close and Personal. Conservation photographer Bryant Austin is the only photographer in the world producing high-resolution, life-size photography of whales. A chance encounter with a humpback calf and its mother helped Austin develop a technique to create detailed, intimate portraits of his subjects. Spending days at a time submerged with groups of whales, he remains motionless, allowing humpback, sperm, and minke whales that are sometimes forty-five feet in length and weigh as much as fifty tons to come within six feet. Book signing to follow. SF Main Library, 6 pm. More Details…Free.

Wed., May 22 California Prairies: More Than Just Grasslands, with Glen Holstein. Ever wondered what makes grassland a prairie or marveled over the stunning display of wildflowers across a rangeland? How important is the prairie ecosystem? What once was a vast expanse of native prairie across California is now represented as remnant patches. What is being done to enhance our native prairies? Where are they and how well are they understood? Can they be restored? Join us for the answers to these questions and more in a wonderful opportunity to learn about the important and diverse California prairie ecosystem. Garden Room, Orinda Public Library, 7:30 pm. More information, including directions to the meeting, at http://ebcnps.org/meetings. Free.

Wed., May 22 Ecology & Science in Public, 7:30 pm.

Quote of the Day

May is a white cloud behind pine trees
Puffed out and marching upon a blue sky.
May is green as no other,
May is much sun through small leaves,
May is soft earth,
And appleblossoms,
And windows open to a south wind.

-Amy Lowell

	Today's Naturalist Events Wed., May 22 Whales: Up Close and Personal. Conservation photographer Bryant Austin is the only photographer in the world producing high-resolution, life-size photography of whales. A chance encounter with a humpback calf and its mother helped Austin develop a technique to create detailed, intimate portraits of his subjects. Spending days at a time submerged with groups of whales, he remains motionless, allowing humpback, sperm, and minke whales that are sometimes forty-five feet in length and weigh as much as fifty tons to come within six feet. Book signing to follow. SF Main Library, 6 pm. More Details…Free. Wed., May 22 California Prairies: More Than Just Grasslands, with Glen Holstein. Ever wondered what makes grassland a prairie or marveled over the stunning display of wildflowers across a rangeland? How important is the prairie ecosystem? What once was a vast expanse of native prairie across California is now represented as remnant patches. What is being done to enhance our native prairies? Where are they and how well are they understood? Can they be restored? Join us for the answers to these questions and more in a wonderful opportunity to learn about the important and diverse California prairie ecosystem. Garden Room, Orinda Public Library, 7:30 pm. More information, including directions to the meeting, at http://ebcnps.org/meetings. Free. Wed., May 22 Ecology & Science in Public, 7:30 pm.