.jpg)
Nature in the City NEWS
Green Hairstreak Festival
 |
| Photo by Iris Clearwater |
Last month Kids in Parks, which connects San Francisco middle-schoolers with nature, led the first Green Hairstreak Festival at Hoover Middle School.
Over 1,000 students participated, learning about ecology and the locally threatened Green Hairstreak butterfly. The school is located at the base of Hawk Hill, one of its three remaining breeding grounds. Each student received a passport, used to visit stations about Stewardship, Propagation, the Green Hairstreak life cycle & Habitat Corridor, Native Plants, and more.
Students with a full passport could receive a green hair-streak in their hair. Even ABC Channel 7 news came out for this exciting event! See more photos and become a fan of NTC on our Facebook page!
Twin Peaks Bioregional Park
Spring 2010 has brought a milestone to the Twin Peaks Bioregion Project of Nature in the City. Thanks to our star volunteer, Claire Beyer, author of Revisioning Open Space: A Framework for Designing a Recreation and Habitat Corridor Across San Francisco, CA, we have a brand new brochure that articulates the vision and proposal for a Twin Peaks Bioregional Park. Thanks go also to Craig Dawson, Director of the Sutro Stewards, our partner in the project, for helping get the new publication printed in time for our Nature in the City TALK on the same subject.
We finally have a tangible tool to teach San Franciscans about the potential for cutting edge conservation in the heart of the city. We'll be taking 25 more people through the Bioregion this weekend to learn about this amazing network of natural habitats.
|
What it Really Means to be GREEN!
At the regular meeting of the San Francisco Weed Management Area (SFWMA) this week, members of the collaborative were treated to a visit by a brand new activist who wants to focus her energies on persuading nurseries to stop selling invasive plants!
Did you know that many nurseries across California and right here in San Francisco still sell some of the members of the San Francisco Six, the City's Worst Wildland Weeds? It is amazing. Well, an angel has come down from heaven, who wants to stop this destructive practice in its tracks. Under the aegis and sponsorship of the SFWMA, she will be organizing volunteers to table at farmer's markets this summer to recognize California Invasive Weeds Awareness Week. If you're interested in helping out with this noble and critical public education initiative, email us.
Also, be sure to check out the SFWMA's report on the Weeds of San Francisco: Preliminary Mapping and Assessment Report for WMA Strategic Planning. Sounds fascinating, we know, but this is the very first compendium of the state of invasive plants in the City and County of San Francisco, and it will play an important role in how we prioritize conserving the city's biodiversity and wildlife habitat.
Propagation, Picnic, & Nature Walk!
Nature in the City is partnering with Literacy for Environmental Justice (LEJ) Native Plant Nursery on Saturday, June 12th from 10 AM - 2 PM for Propagation, Picnic, and Nature Walk!
Help hands-on plant propagation and learn about natives at the beautiful LEJ native plant nursery & gardens. Bring some food for the barbie, and join us for an optional walk afterwards to explore the environs of Candlestick Park! FREE! For more information or to RSVP email Iris Clearwater. While you're there, visit the living classroom at Heron's Head Park.
Backyard Nursery Network Unite!
First meeting 6:00 pm on June 16th!
We are starting up a network of backyard gardeners to help grow plants for the Green Hairstreak Corridor! If you are interested, contact deidre@natureinthecity.org. If you can't make it that day, let us know also if you have pots, perlite, native plant seeds, soil, funds or ideas to contribute!San Francisco Butterfly Count!
Novices and experts are welcome on this day long expedition into the city to catch a glimpse of as many butterflies as possible! Join local lepidopterist, author of the Butterflies of San Francisco guide, and Nature in the City Steering Committee member, Liam O'Brien, for the 16th Annual SF Butterfly Count. Everyone will begin the hunt at the Randall Museum, where you will be divided into teams. For more information email Liam O'Brien.
Want to brush up on your butterfly species before the big count? Go to your local bookstore and buy a Guide to the Butterflies of San Francisco! While you're there, pick up a MAP of San Francisco's Natural Heritage. We wouldn't want you to get lost!  |
Tremendous Spring Treks!
 |
| Green Hairstreak - April 24, 2010 Photo by Kevin Woolen |
We had a fantastic month of sold-out Spring 2010 Nature in the City Treks! Liam O'Brien led us on two walks to learn about the Green Hairstreak Corridor and to catch glimpses of this elusive beauty. Check out this blog posting by Molly Samuel, one of our participants. We had some phenomenal photographers with us, who took some beautiful photos of the butterfly, and even our first shot of the eggs on a Coast Buckwheat leaf!
You can take a tour of the corridor on your own with our new Green Hairstreak Corridor map. Bring the plant list with you, and see which you can identify. Many are in bloom right now and site stewards Sarah McConnico and GG Gunther have labeled the plants at the 14th Ave at Noriega site. See this recent article on GG's site, San Francisco's youngest site steward!
 |
| Mt. Davidson - April 25, 2010 Photo by Iris Clearwater |
Other treks included a spectacular day of birds and plants with Dominik Mosur on Mt. Davidson. Join us again next year, or take a sneak peak at blog postings by participants Daphne Powell and Jeff Diehl; Nature in the City Founder & Director Peter Brastow led us on an adventure across the city from the ancient Oak Woodlands in Golden Gate Park, over Mt. Sutro, Twin Peaks, and into the riparian bluffs of Glen Canyon; and Tree Frog Treks founder Mr. Science (aka Chris Giorni) led a group of over 50 children and adults from the TFT headquarters and through the oaks and redwoods of Golden Gate Park. Visit our Facebook photo albums for special photos from each of these days.
A giant thanks to all of our outstanding trek leaders and participants! Stay tuned for a whole new line-up of Nature in the City 2010 Fall Treks, and let us know if you have any special requests!
Nature in the City Needs YELP!
Hey all you Yelpers! We recently discovered that Nature in the City has some disagreeable reviews on Yelp. If you have a minute, please head on over to Yelp.com and write a review supporting Nature in the City! It may not seem like much, but we are a small organization with few opportunities to get our name out there, so we need all the good PR we can get!!
Shop Melvita & Support NTC!
Nature in the City has partnered with Melvita, a pioneer in the field of organic beauty and an industry leader for ecological production best practices!
Stop by their brand new flagship store in downtown San Francisco - at least through the month of June, Melvita will donate 10% of its sales on shampoos, shower gels and soaps to Nature in the City!!! Click here to view the press release.
Mt. Sutro's Rotary Meadow Wins SF Weekly 'Best Wilderness in the City'!
"This is a garden of native plants in a clearing within a eucalyptus grove atop the Mount Sutro Open Space Reserve on the UCSF campus..." Click here to read the rest in the SF Weekly Best Of section.
SF Weekly fails to mention the Mt. Sutro Stewards, who have been working on the mountain for nearly 4 years now, but it's a nice prop nonetheless.
UCSF held the first of three community workshops to vet with the community the implementation of a 2 acre pilot project. The university hopes to achieve a small success at the Mt. Sutro Open Space Reserve to build support for larger scale land management projects. You can find the full agenda and presentation here. Please mark your calendar for the 2nd community workshop on June 30.
Join the Mt. Sutro Stewards this Saturday for National Trails Day! There will be prizes, free trail maps, and refreshments at the end of the workday. Listen to this radio spot from KALW News to learn more about National Trails Day and Mt. Sutro!
Tell the BOS to Reject BVHP Final EIR
Please write to the San Francisco Board of Supervisors and tell them to reject the Final EIR (Volume VII, Responses and Comments of the Draft EIR) for the Bayview-Hunters Point Shipyard Development Project, unless they amend it to address the following concerns outlined by the Sierra Club:
1. Contaminants on E2 must be removed to meet Measure P.
2. Bridge over South Basin (Yosemite Slough) Will Destroy Park Experience.
3. Final Environmental Impact Report (FEIR) misrepresents aesthetic impact of bridge and roads on Candlestick Point State Recreation Area.
4. The FEIR provides misleading data about a Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) route around Yosemite Slough, and fails to provide an objective analysis of alternate routes.
5. FEIR does not adequately address bird-nesting island component of State Park's 34-acre wetland/upland habitat restoration project in South Basin (Yosemite Slough).
6. The roads to the bridge impose a physical and aesthetic impact to park visitors.
7. FEIR states that bridge will only be for BRT, bicyclists and pedestrians and not for cars (except for game days).
8. Removing 23 acres from the State Park for high-end housing will negatively impact wildlife and people.
9. The FEIR should identify the impact of the loss of revenue to the San Francisco Recreation & Parks Department (SFRPD) that results from the loss of fees from the stadium and parking lot when the stadium is moved to Hunters Point.
10. The non-stadium alternatives are not adequately analyzed from a transportation perspective.
11. The FEIR fails to address other projects within the EIR study area.
Click here to read more about each point from the Sierra Club.
Submit your comments before THURSDAY, JUNE 3 - Click here to find and email your District Supervisor NOW!
Contact Your Legislator Right Now to Support Park Funding!
CSPF
"Earlier this week the Legislative Analyst's Office (LAO) released their Summary of LAO Findings and Recommendations on the 2010-11 Budget, which analyzes the Governor's May Revision and makes recommendations to the legislature on the Governor's budget proposals.
In the report, the LAO:
Recommends that the Legislature not restore funding to $140 million, but instead provide state parks with no more than $118 million. This would be $8 million below the current-year funding level - which the LAO acknowledges will likely result in additional seasonal closures and further reduced services."
Read the entire LAO Findings & Recommendations report here. TAKE ACTION NOW and email your state legislator to support state park funding!
Learn more about the State Parks budget crisis and the Governor's budget revision in this San Francisco Chronicle article from May 13.
Nature's Acres
Looking for a good place to buy native plants? One of the best sources for sustainable San Francisco Native plants is the HANC Native Plant Nursery. If you don't find what you need there, well-respected San Francisco local ecologists Josiah Clark and Andrew Scavullo have just opened the Nature's Acres Nursery. Their plants are bursting out of the pot, from quality seeds sourced from San Francisco, and the Bay Area.
Though the nursery is located near Sebastopol, plants will be delivered to the city for orders of 10 or more. Here is their most recent plant list. For more info, contact naturesacresnursery@gmail.com. Let them know that you found out about them through Nature in the City, and they will donate plants for our Green Hairstreak Butterfly Corridor!