My blog site under development - but more or less functional now: http://naturenewssf.blogspot.com/
It is presently just a duplication of this newsletter
1. 55 full-time, 10.5-month positions open - deadline June 23
2. Plant Demographics in San Mateo and Santa Clara Counties - botanist Toni Corelli on June 2
3. Supervisor Scott Wiener proposes charter amendment to allow Supervisors to amend ballot measures. Socrates and James Madison might agree
4. Public Workshop #2 - Ocean Beach Master Plan - June 4
5. Roofwater Harvesting DIY booklet
6. Cool compendium of some of latest discoveries of living species/How different organisms likely to be affected by Japanese nuclear accident; Research opps
7. Urgent House vote on eliminating US contribution to UN population fund
8. LTEs on job market for low-skilled/What's good for General Motors - outsourcing?
9. Feedback I: non-raven-ous
10. Feedback II: ravens and crows, Round 7 - for fanatics and masochists only
11. What is a perp walk?
12. The Rapture: The world still awaits God's judgment
13. The Rapture: God screws up?
GGNRA dog management comment deadline is May 30, not May 31, as previously reported. Procrastinators, take note.
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1. AmeriCorps Watershed Stewards Project is now accepting applications with placement sites in Santa Barbara!
WSP is looking to fill 55 full-time, 10.5 month positions at locations throughout California’s Coastal Watersheds, two of these positions will be available in Santa Barbara! Work duties involve a variety of watershed restoration and fisheries monitoring activities. This year's placement sites have extended their reach into Santa Barbara, Ventura County. Members will be hosted at the Department of Fish and Game office in Santa Barbara, and co-mentored by DFG Fisheries Biologist, South Coast Habitat Restoration and the California Conservation Corps.
Applications are due by June 23rd, 2011!
For more information and to apply check out the attached fliers or contact information below:
Watershed Stewards Project
WSP.Recruiter@ccc.ca.gov
www.watershedstewards.com
(707) 725-8601
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2.
California Native Plant Society meeting - free and open to the public
Plant Demographics in San Mateo and Santa Clara Counties
Speaker: Botanist Toni Corelli
Thursday 2 June, 7.30 pm
San Francisco County Fair Bldg
9th Avenue & Lincoln Way in Golden Gate Park
The talk will cover much of San Mateo and all of Santa Clara County, including most of the Santa Cruz Mountains, the Santa Clara Valley, and the southern Diablo Range east of Hwy 101. The chapter area includes many unique local floristic communities, including serpentine, coastal strand, maritime chaparral, coniferous forests, and saltwater marshes (both coastal and baylands), just to name a few.
The talk will focus on the floristic regions within the chapter area, and the plants associated with them, including which plants are the most common, the most locally rare, the most invasive non-natives, and so on. It will also identify local botanical hotspots on public lands rich in species diversity.
For the past five years, Toni Corelli has been at work on a new booklet entitled the Annotated Checklist of Plants for San Mateo and Santa Clara County, using data from the chapter's archived plant lists, recent lists updated by the Natural Resources DataBase (nrdb.org), and herbarium consortium records. This checklist is a floristic snapshot of the plants known to occur within the chapter's region in the past as well as the present. This can be used as a life-long plant checklist for this region, and chapter members and others will be able to contribute information to verify and update this list. The booklet will include the latest scientific name changes from the upcoming 2nd edition of The Jepson Manual. This booklet will be published this summer.
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3. SF supervisor proposes ballot measure change
http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2011/05/27/state/n062024D70
Excerpts from Associated Press story:
...Supervisor Scott Wiener has proposed a charter amendment for the November ballot that would allow supervisors to amend a ballot measure three years after its effective date. The change would require the mayor's approval.
Wiener's proposal would not apply to tax and bond measures, charter amendments and measures placed on the ballot through the initiative signature-gathering process.
Wiener tells the San Francisco Chronicle he does not have any particular laws in mind. But he wants city officials to be able to clean up measures that are technically flawed or outdated without putting them before voters again.
Critics say Wiener's amendment would drastically reduce voters' authority.
JS: At risk of being tarred and feathered, I ask the question: What's wrong with reducing voters' authority? Have you looked at our record? As a partially reformed democrat, I ask people to look at that record as it applies to ballot initiatives. If you're honest you're very likely to have said to yourself at some point "And I VOTED for that!!" I have--and more times than I would like to admit. The Law of Unintended Consequences is the most powerful, even inevitable, law pertaining to human society. If you read the history of either state or city ballot initiatives it makes rather sorry reading. We are not equipped to sift through all the arcane details or the ramifications of what we vote on, nor do we have the requisite background information. We need humility. (Good luck on that, Jake.)
"The best argument against democracy is a five-minute conversation with the average voter." — Winston Churchill
I am finding very late in life that governance is an extremely difficult job, and we laypeople are not up to the job of governing directly. Even authoritarian regimes have difficulty with governance, and how much more difficult it is when people choose to govern themselves (at least we think that's what we're doing--the reality is somewhat different). We don't think things through, and an appalling number of voters really do decide on the basis of advertising--sound bites, as the story on California's present difficulties in The Economist reveal.
And readers: Please spare me your opinion about our San Francisco Board of Supervisors and California Legislature--I'm too painfully aware of what goes on there. Still, the 'cure' of direct democracy via the initiative may worsen rather than improve matters. At any rate, the subject needs an in-depth look, if we're grown-up enough to do it. I have no idea whether Scott Wiener's proposal would improve matters, but I'd like to look at it. It's unlikely to make them worse.
An excerpt from The Economist's recent lengthy article regarding California: "California's democracy is not at all like America's, as conceived by founders such as James Madison. The federal constitution is based on checks and balances within and among three and only three branches of government--executive, legislative, and judicial. That is because Madison feared that popular "passions" would undo the republic, that majorities might "tyrannize" minorities, and that "minority factions" (ie, special interests) would take over the system. America's was therefore to be a representative, not a direct, democracy. "Pure democracies have ever been spectacles of turbulence and contention," Madison wrote, "and have in general been as short in their lives as they have been violent in their deaths."
I have profound respect for our founding fathers. They were an amazingly well-read group of men (sorry, that's what they were--men) who were deeply steeped in the classics; knew their Athens, Sparta, Rome, Montesquieu and the Scottish Enlightenment philosophers. They distrusted democracy--as did Plato and Socrates. Read the Federalist Papers as well as the writings of the anti-Federalists. Direct democracy works well only in small units, where everyone knows each other. The larger the unit the more complicated problems become, and the chance for mischief grows.
“In an ideal state, all citizens could be summoned by the cry of a herald.” Aristotle
For having lived long, I have experienced many instances of being obliged, by better information or fuller consideration, to change opinions, even on important subjects, which I once thought right but found to be otherwise. - Benjamin Franklin
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4. Public Workshop #2 - Ocean Beach Master Plan
www.spur.org/oceanbeach
Please join us at the Golden Gate Park Senior Center on Saturday, June 4th for Ocean Beach Master Plan Public Workshop #2.
The project team has been hard at work analyzing the impacts of different courses of action at Ocean Beach. You will have a chance to review several "test scenarios" and compare their outcomes in categories like ecology, infrastructure, and public access over a 100-year period. You can then work with us to assemble an approach that best serves the future of Ocean Beach.
If you missed our first workshop or would like a refresher on the complex issues at Ocean Beach, please read our article in the SPUR Urbanist, or have a look at the workshop materials here.
WHEN: Saturday, June 4th, 10am-1pm
WHERE: Golden Gate Park Senior Center, 6101 Fulton St. (@37th Ave)
TRANSIT: Muni 5-Fulton to 37th Ave.
DIRECTIONS: http://bit.ly/mtX6tn (limited parking available)
PROJECT PARTNERS:
San Francisco Planning and Urban Research Association (SPUR)
California State Coastal Conservancy
US National Park Service
San Francisco Public Utilities Commission
San Francisco Dept of Public Works
ACCESSIBILITY:
This is an ADA accessible facility. Assistive listening devices, sign language, or translation services are available on request.
QUESTIONS/CONTACT: oceanbeach@spur.org
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5. Hey Roofwater Harvesting enthusiasts,
We wanted to let you know about the latest Occidental Arts & Ecology Center WATER Institute’s DIY booklet called: “Low Cost Agricultural Roofwater System”, which provides plenty of clean drinking water to our hens without the use of any electricity via gravity.
This booklet visually & verbally debuts (after nearly 20 decades of usage by many colleagues) our infamous “Wonder Gutter” design – so named cuz at first you wonder what the heck we are doing, and then when you see how simple it is you wonder why the heck you didn’t think of it first? Ha Ha!
Here is a link for the booklet: http://oaecwater.org/low-cost-agricultural-roofwater-system
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6. From Jeff Caldwell:
A cool compendium of some the latest discoveries among the species of living things: http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/13500847
This article talks a little about how different organisms are likely to be affected and the research opportunities the Japanese nuclear accident affords:
http://www.nature.com/news/2011/110527/full/news.2011.326.html
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7. Urgent House Vote on Eliminating US Contribution to UN Population Fund
Within the next week, the U.S. House of Representatives is expected to vote on a bill that would eliminate the entire U.S. contribution to the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA). Currently, the U.S. gives UNFPA $40 million a year to support a wide range of programs benefiting women in the developing world, including family planning, obstetric care, and prevention of HIV/AIDS.
Improving health outcomes.
UNFPA’s core programs expand access to reproductive health care for the poor and other hard-to-reach groups, including refugees and displaced persons, help mothers survive pregnancy and childbirth, deliver healthy newborns, enable couples to determine the number and spacing of their children and reduce the incidence of HIV/AIDS. UNFPA also supports data collection and research to encourage appropriate population and development policies, activities to improve the status of women, and advocacy to galvanize political and financial backing for reproductive health care and development. UNFPA also plays an important leadership role in global efforts to prevent and repair obstetric fistula, to eradicate female genital mutilation, and to improve access to reproductive health supplies, including contraceptives and condoms.
(JS: How could anyone be opposed to this? Fiscal conservatism can't explain it, nor can morality. The only answer I can think of is a non-answer: because they're Republicans. Republicans have not always been stupid, but something has happened to them in the last 30-40 years. If they're not interested in relieving human pain and suffering you'd think they would be interested in relieving crowding, stress, and disease--and saving money. Or do they view the increased numbers as consumers they can sell things to?)
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8. LTEs, The Economist
SIR – Your article addressed the problem of the difficult job market for low-skilled Americans. You pointed out that these types of jobs are becoming less plentiful in America. This would seem to underscore the fact that allowing ever more unskilled illegal immigrants to enter the country to work at low-skilled jobs is a bad policy, yet every article I read of yours unfailingly addresses any immigration as a positive thing. The Economist is pro-immigration to the point of being contradictory.
Kenneth Mundy
Los Angeles
SIR – In the days when what was good for General Motors was good for the country, manufacturing firms paid their workers well, provided health-care benefits and bought parts from local suppliers. They probably also paid taxes.
In recent years the desire for profits has led to the outsourcing of production to countries where labour costs are less, with a consequent loss of jobs in America. The use of offshore tax havens to protect these profits deprives the Treasury of funds to compensate the unemployed. You are right to castigate the politicians for their failure to deal with the problem but they are not the only villains.
Ronald Macaulay
Claremont, California
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9. Feedback I (non-raven-ous :-)
Kurt Menning:
The Anthropocene is a key concept gaining traction in scientific circles. Don't be quick to dismiss: there is a subtlety you may be missing: the idea is that humans have had such a profound impact that a record of our impact is visible in currently-forming geological strata (the rocks of the future). Everyone, even George Bush, knows we've been impacting the planet for a long. It is a completely different notion, however, to acknowledge that the impact--and its timing--will be visible in rocks when examined in the distant future.
Dismiss? Far from it, in fact I "wrote the book", figuratively speaking. Laypeople have been talking about it for 20 years now--we originally called it the Homogocene. Same thing.
No, I'm taking a dig at The Economist, which deserves it. The journal is well named, as it is almost exclusively concerned with the human-built world, with only an occasional item about the biological world--even then limited and/or inaccurate. So it is progress to see the subject on its front cover. The magazine comes to me on Fridays (today), and it will be the first article I read. Depending on the contents I may write an LTE.
(Written later, after I read the article): I shouldn't have gotten excited; I found the article a bit boring. Why? I think it was because the "changed kind of thinking" still didn't get down to basics--there was little mention of the biological world. Perhaps when there are only a few dozen species of plants or animals left on the planet it may finally take notice. Or maybe that's too optimistic.)
"Our planet has a skin disease; it's the human race." Anonymous
Bob Nelson:
Dear Jake: I have a little local color to add about the "Homeland Security, Fighting Terrorism Since 1492" image. :-) I first encountered a blurry Xerox copy of the image a few years ago after hours in an office cubicle. It was tacked to the cubicle wall... I borrowed it and made a few copies. At the time I was serving (involuntarily) on a federal grand jury. One of my fellow conscripts on the jury clued me in that the image was blurry because it was copied from a T-shirt!
At the end of my 18 month term of jury service, I returned an official binder to a typically arrogant official of the US Attorney's office with that "Homeland Security" image slipped under the clear plastic of the binder's back cover! :-) This particular official was not even the least bit amused when I observed their eye contact with the irreverent image shouting out from the Government binder! (I made a point of handing it over with the image prominently visible). :-) I was barely able to keep from smiling at the chagrin of the bureaucrat! :-)
Bob Nelson, stirring up shit since 1942.
Dear Jake: Actually, I've only been stirring up shit since 1951, but your reversal of the 9 and 4 from 1492 is very witty and creative! :-)
BTW, I have very little sympathy for the professional crew who serves under the local US Attorney, having striven with them (involuntarily) for a good long time...
That involuntary service puzzles me, Bob. Can they force you into serving on a grand jury? I thought it took a lot of time and only people who had lots of time could serve. I don't even know what a grand jury is. (Not for sharing--I'm ashamed of my lack of knowledge of govt and institutions.)
Dear Jake: FEDERAL Grand Jury service is non-voluntary. County Grand Jury service is something else again... The 5th Amendment requires that anybody accused of a serious crime by the feds must be indicted by a Grand Jury. The "Grand" means that there are 23 members of the jury, and when a majority of 12 agrees on an action, it goes forward. Quorum is 16. Only on the first day are all 23 Grand Jurors present together; someone (often several) are usually absent. The standard for taking action (issuing an indictment) is low, and is "probable cause". Compare this with unanimous "guilt beyond a reasonable doubt and to a moral certainty", which is the standard in criminal cases heard by Petit Juries...
Federal Grand Juries issue indictments... A famous recent one was the indictment of baseball player Barry Bonds in the Balco/steroids case. Another high profile federal case was Martha Stewart's indictment and conviction for lying to the feds. It's legal for federal agents to lie to citizens, but not the other way around... The safest response to any federal investigator is to take advantage of the right to remain silent.
For "Petit" juries, where 12 members must agree unanimously in criminal actions, large cattle-calls of citizens are issued, and dozens of prospective jurors are interviewed and rejected. The call for federal Grand Juries is entirely different. They send you a questionaire, then you hear nothing for months. Next, you receive a summons "commanding" (command is the word printed on the summons) you to appear. About 50 Grand Jurors and alternates are needed. About 100 citizens are commanded to appear. Those chosen 100 citizens have been investigated by
the FBI (based on the initial questionaire) and found fit for service. It's possible to get out of it, but not easy...
I think the 5th Amendment requires Grand Jury indictments to avoid politicization of the federal criminal system. It doesn't succeed, in my opinion. The investigations and indictments are completely in the hands of the professional prosecutors who work for the politically appointed US Attorney for the US District Court. In my opinion, federal Grand Juries are mere rubber stamps to the politically motivated prosecutions orchestrated by the local US Attorney. Friends of the current executive branch of the federal government get better treatment than enemies.
A wonderful example of a huge crime that was never properly investigated and for which no indictments were ever issued is that whole package of nightmares that occurred on 9/11/01...
OK, so that's my Civics 101 lesson for today! :-)
And thank YOU for the Civics 101 lesson. I needed it, obviously.
I think I'll come clean and expose my ignorance and print this exchange, because I know I'm not the only one who didn't know. We all could use more lessons in how our govt works.
I'm about to unload on my poor readers a lesson in California finance, courtesy of The Economist. Well, OK, I won't foist it on them, in part because it's too long. But I will make it available to those masochists who will devote the time to reading 16 pages of our sad history in governance and finance--and what's needed if we are to come to grips with our problems. Oy.
Patrick Schlemmer:
Great letter to Fiona Ma, Jake. You really cut through the BS and captured the essence of the issue.
Kerry Kriger:
Good response to Fiona. On May 19th 2010 she gave an extremely ignorant speech to the CA Fish & Game Commission urging them to allow imports on non-native frogs and turtles into the state.
Bert Johnson:
Dear Jake, Your newsletter is the greatest! I am entirely addicted to it. What a "treat" and great "gift" for those concerned about our planet and environment. I just wanted to thank you, and especially Mr. Bruce Grosjean ( his comments in item # 3 of your 5-20-2011 Nature News) for suggesting that readers may want to check out the fantastic writeup about the Mississippi River-Atchafalaya River in the February 23, 1987 issue of the 'New Yorker". What a fascinating piece of work, one of the best I have ever read, and so incredibly authored by Mr. John McPhee. Thanks Jake for your love of earth,and also for sharing that wonderful and inspiring attitude with so many people also in adoration of our natural world. It's time to stop the incessant and selfish destructon of our planet, and time to start giving a hoot about other plants and creatures besides ourselves. Sincerely and thankfully. Bert Johnson
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10. Feedback II - for the stark, raven mad
Patrick Schlemmer:
I once saw a raven swoop down and fly off with a squirming rat near the parking lot at the north end of Ocean Beach—something I don’t think a crow could manage.
Eddie Bartley:
Jake, thanks as always for your efforts in continuing your informative, entertaining and witty nature newsblog. It has become something that I very much look forward to reading and share tasty bits of often.
This is long...sorry....
Regarding Crows and Ravens in SF: Since 1900 National Audubon has organized the local Audubon chapters and their members in conducting an annual mid-winter survey called "The Christmas Bird Count" (CBC). Survey data, once vetted by local compilers and other experts, is meticulously entered into a giant database that can be queried online just by entering a few simple questions such as species name, count area, etc. The surveys are organized and led by local bird experts, some professional ornithologists, mostly experienced amateurs, all volunteers, who pay a small fee to cover the cost of managing the huge amount of data generated. Results naturally vary much by weather, the overall number of participants (which is ever growing) and the degree of experience with birds in a given area.
In the Bay Area where we are lucky to have so many dedicated bird enthusiasts and experts involved in the CBC that I believe the resident and winter bird population trend data is particularly valid and helpful.
Here is an example of the type of useful information that can be found and produced in a graph from the local efforts of Golden Gate Auduboners:
As you can see in this graph, both Ravens and Crows began being counted in numbers about 1984 in SF. Note that the numbers on the left are for number of birds seen per party (count group) hour. Long time CBC compiler Dan Murphy related a story to me about seeing a Raven on the CBC in the early 70s (I think) and no one believed him as they were that rare here then.
While the Ravens and Crows are admired almost universally by bird enthusiasts for their cleverness and adaptability, their recent population booms, especially in urban area, are a concern for bird conservationists. Access to landfill food and open garbage cans are some of the prime causes of this expansion in range and population but also their tenacious spirit and ability to live well amongst humans. i.e. Ravens nest under Highway 101 in Potrero district while Crows have taken over raptor nests in parks and backyards here. Laws to protect wild birds and changes in some human's attitudes (these species were historically persecuted mightily in agricultural areas and rangeland) have also assisted their success.
Unfortunately, it turns out they are generally bad neighbors for many other species and predate heavily on other local birds (especially songbirds) eggs, young and even adult birds. They are most aggressive towards raptors and based on raptor nest studies I have been involved in here in SF are excluding some raptors from historical nesting territories here in SF. Local nesting shorebirds, most species already in precipitous declines from loss of habitat, have also been particularly hard hit by the increase in Ravens and Crows.
Nonetheless, there is much to admire about these birds. One good way to tell them apart is by voice: Crows "caw" and Ravens "cackle" or "croak". Once however I was photo studying an obvious Raven and I could hear a flock of Crows coming from behind me. The Raven looked up at them and let out a hoarse "caw!". The Crows were not amused and quickly flew away. Very clever birds indeed!
Eddie: Thanks very much for this feedback. Good information.
I am well aware of the destructiveness of ravens; I know about robbing nests, as I actually witnessed ravens and crows ganging up and robbing a great horned owl nest on Mt Sutro of either eggs or babies--had to drive away the owl first. And I know of their extending their range into the desert and playing havoc with the endangered desert tortoise (they eat the young tortoises). I get so upset by the environmental destruction happening on a planet-wide scale that I take opportunities to escape into the lighter side. I have often remarked that since ravens will inherit the earth I'm glad they have such a playful spirit.
“For my own part I wish the Bald Eagle had not been chosen the Representative of our Country. He is a Bird of bad moral Character. He does not get his Living honestly.” Benjamin Franklin
No, Ben, it's not a bald eagle--you mean raven, Ben, raven.
Eddie, what do you think of this remark by Adrian Cotter?:
One thing -- they weren't in the city because they were hunted out. The city employed a hunter through the 30 and 40s apparently. So they are returning from exile as it were. Last population numbers I saw were from early 2000s. Some 600 or so.
Is that true? Also, someone said some time ago that ravens were reported in the desert (I forget exact time) about early 1900s. True?
Eddie Bartley:
Yes, I have heard that 2 hunters were employed in Golden Gate Park by the City through the late 1950s (at least), specifically targeting egg & chick eating critters such as Ravens and skunks. These hunters were probably sent to the other parks to keep things in, uhh, equilibrium. This no doubt lowered the population of the 'meso-predator" targets. Of course, GGP was mostly dune and scrub prior to the 1890's so who knows what the balance should be? GGP is a Disneyland of habitat out there but wonderful to me nonetheless. There's no going back to the ways it was in human's time anyway. Just a matter of trying to manage for the most marginalized now which is probably the best we can do.
Historically from the early 1800s: Ravens, gregarious carrion eaters who follow around predators, were no doubt negatively impacted by the extirpation of Grizzlies in California, the reduction of marine mammal biomass by the fur traders and then the decimation of the Indians who were primary predators as well.
According to accounts during the Gold Rush era Ravens were common along the coast road between SF and San Mateo. Later, when agriculture greatly expanded in California, death by guns and poison (as with raptors) played a large role in populations through the 1970's and beyond even though by then protections were put in place.
As far as the early 1900s go, hard data is lacking. USGS didn't start the Breeding Bird Surveys until 1965 and there weren't many people doing citizen counts like the CBC here. In the early 1920s Joseph Grinnell (mostly Berkeley) and W. Leon Dawson (Santa Barbara) were the major contributors. Grinnell said Ravens were rare in the Bay Area except for Point Reyes and the Sonoma Coast.
I have Dawson's "Birds of California" published in 1923. Coincidently the first species entry is of Ravens. "Range in California: Resident but wide ranging, hence, of casual occurrence throughout the State; common or abundant locally. The chief centers of distribution are the semi-arid interior coast ranges of south-central California, the larger islands, and the northwestern humid coastal strip. Rare or wanting in the high Sierras (sic) and almost disappearing from the more thickly settled regions".
The more rural parts of the Bay Area such as Point Reyes evidently did not experience the same corvid population explosion in the 80s as SF, Oakland, Palo Alto, etc. Most of the research I've come across points to access to garbage as the primary factor of the 80's boom. I personally believe that in recent years Ravens and Crows have co-evolved with humans. I think my own bill may be getting longer as I write.
Perhaps the absence from the desert of Ravens until the 1900s is so but I haven't come across that info yet. A few years ago Noreen and I drove for miles and miles in the very alkali Amboy Crater volcanic area (Mojave) without seeing any critters alive but there were Ravens. Living off of beetles and the occasional lizard I guess. Amazing isn't too strong of a word for that.
Thanx again Jake for getting me to look a Lil' deeper. Ignorance IS bliss, I know, but truth about nature IS beauty and a lot more interesting. You may not know what an inspiration you are to many aspiring naturalists but I'm here to tell you and that ain't no BS.
Thank you for this voluminous information, Eddie. I have learned a lot from this discussion. As you can see, the topic has elicited much response; it's good that people are observing and thinking about some of the daily sights we all take for granted until someone asks us a question.
Doug Allshouse:
Jake, I think that your original query about those amazing corvids has probably elicited more responses than maybe even population, but certainly more than dogs in the GGNRA. Here are some more thoughts that will touch on some things that were brought up by your readers.
The answer to your question may never truly be known and that's because ravens (and crows) are birds. And what do birds do far better than we? They fly, which means that they move around far better than we. Now putting that last brilliant observation aside for a moment, practically every avian species does something that drives humans batty. They appear in numbers seemingly out of the blue (or gray if it's overcast) or they disappear overnight for no good reason, at least to us. Birders know this as an irruption. The birds have a reason for doing this whether it be food or weather or predator related. Needless to say, something just isn't right, so why not move on?
All birds of common families flock up during fall and winter because it diminishes the odds of being eaten. Even though ravens do this they tend to pair close to spring. They will defend a territory especially if conditions are favorable to them establishing a territory. I've seen 2 ravens chase a dozen crows away if that's what they REALLY want to do, but generally speaking crows seem to prefer strength in numbers. So it's possible that crows have established themselves in greater numbers in the city by exploiting this behavior. Birds that are missing flight feathers usually have molted them and not had them pulled out. The reason so many birds harass ravens is because corvids eat eggs and young birds from nests.
Just this morning, May 26, I was walking in the park (San Bruno Mt) and a group of Steller's Jays were quite agitated at a raven that was squawking in a cypress. I couldn't see it but I heard it. When I was just outside the park a raven (it could have been the same one) flew into a line of pine trees with a half-dozen Brewer's Blackbirds in pursuit. It eventually moved on. If you ever hear jays, robins or blackbirds squawking loudly in the trees try to locate them. Odds are you'll find a raven, a hawk, or an owl as the center of attention.
Meanwhile, enjoy your environs and all who enter it, whatever they may be. Worry not about those who leave the circle for they may choose to return and gain your welcome.
Come to think of it, where have all the House Finches gone?....just wondering.
On May 26, 2011, at 5:28 PM, Barbara Stevens wrote:
Jake.. over here by my house on Edgewood ave next to sutro forrest there are dozens of ravens cawing and swooping all the time. fASCINATING sometime crows come in large numbers and try to intimidate them, but I think they fail.. I never saw ravens til last year, and now many more of them.' barbara stevens
Thanks for the feedback, Barbara. The plot thickens. I'm trying to find patterns here; instead I just get more complications. It's a jungle out there.
Hans U Weber:
Hi Jake: I share a fascination for corvids and read what I can about them. Perhaps the best experts on crows and ravens are John Marzluff and Bernd Heinrich. Both have have studied and written about these birds for decades. Marzluff is a wildlife biologist at UW in Seattle and worked with Heinrich who is emeritus prof of biology at the Univ of Vermont. Marzluff has written In the Company of Crows and Ravens and more recently Dog Days, Raven Nights.
Like you I miss seeing ravens in my neighborhood (Palo Alto) where crows are abundant. The two species are definitely competitive and it is likely that in some locations ravens may meet with too much competition by crows and gulls. Our urban areas with food wastes are ideal locations for crows and gulls. Ravens may be edged out into areas that are less attractive to crowds of crows and gulls. Marzluff writes about this topic in an appendix in Dog Days, Raven Nights.
There is actually a human parallel to the demographic changes in populations of crows and ravens: an ethnic group can take over a city or suburb from another one that has been dominant before.
By the way, crows and ravens look quite different, especially in shape of tail: a raven's tail is longer than a crow's and looks diamond-shaped compared to the fan-shape of a crow's tail. The raven's head looks craggy compared to the round crow head.
Ted Kipping:
Some pics of a Raven's Nest on warm, south-facing tower of Roosevelt Jr. High @ Arguello & Geary - Note Clothes Hanger
as part of the construction materials of a resourceful urban bird. Just a short hop and glide away from the feeding grounds of the adjacent school yard. Also note the nice overhang and the inaccessibility to predators and potential nest robbers. This is valuable real estate. Location-location-location.
It is presently just a duplication of this newsletter
1. 55 full-time, 10.5-month positions open - deadline June 23
2. Plant Demographics in San Mateo and Santa Clara Counties - botanist Toni Corelli on June 2
3. Supervisor Scott Wiener proposes charter amendment to allow Supervisors to amend ballot measures. Socrates and James Madison might agree
4. Public Workshop #2 - Ocean Beach Master Plan - June 4
5. Roofwater Harvesting DIY booklet
6. Cool compendium of some of latest discoveries of living species/How different organisms likely to be affected by Japanese nuclear accident; Research opps
7. Urgent House vote on eliminating US contribution to UN population fund
8. LTEs on job market for low-skilled/What's good for General Motors - outsourcing?
9. Feedback I: non-raven-ous
10. Feedback II: ravens and crows, Round 7 - for fanatics and masochists only
11. What is a perp walk?
12. The Rapture: The world still awaits God's judgment
13. The Rapture: God screws up?
GGNRA dog management comment deadline is May 30, not May 31, as previously reported. Procrastinators, take note.
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1. AmeriCorps Watershed Stewards Project is now accepting applications with placement sites in Santa Barbara!
WSP is looking to fill 55 full-time, 10.5 month positions at locations throughout California’s Coastal Watersheds, two of these positions will be available in Santa Barbara! Work duties involve a variety of watershed restoration and fisheries monitoring activities. This year's placement sites have extended their reach into Santa Barbara, Ventura County. Members will be hosted at the Department of Fish and Game office in Santa Barbara, and co-mentored by DFG Fisheries Biologist, South Coast Habitat Restoration and the California Conservation Corps.
Applications are due by June 23rd, 2011!
For more information and to apply check out the attached fliers or contact information below:
Watershed Stewards Project
WSP.Recruiter@ccc.ca.gov
www.watershedstewards.com
(707) 725-8601
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2.
California Native Plant Society meeting - free and open to the public
Plant Demographics in San Mateo and Santa Clara Counties
Speaker: Botanist Toni Corelli
Thursday 2 June, 7.30 pm
San Francisco County Fair Bldg
9th Avenue & Lincoln Way in Golden Gate Park
The talk will cover much of San Mateo and all of Santa Clara County, including most of the Santa Cruz Mountains, the Santa Clara Valley, and the southern Diablo Range east of Hwy 101. The chapter area includes many unique local floristic communities, including serpentine, coastal strand, maritime chaparral, coniferous forests, and saltwater marshes (both coastal and baylands), just to name a few.
The talk will focus on the floristic regions within the chapter area, and the plants associated with them, including which plants are the most common, the most locally rare, the most invasive non-natives, and so on. It will also identify local botanical hotspots on public lands rich in species diversity.
For the past five years, Toni Corelli has been at work on a new booklet entitled the Annotated Checklist of Plants for San Mateo and Santa Clara County, using data from the chapter's archived plant lists, recent lists updated by the Natural Resources DataBase (nrdb.org), and herbarium consortium records. This checklist is a floristic snapshot of the plants known to occur within the chapter's region in the past as well as the present. This can be used as a life-long plant checklist for this region, and chapter members and others will be able to contribute information to verify and update this list. The booklet will include the latest scientific name changes from the upcoming 2nd edition of The Jepson Manual. This booklet will be published this summer.
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3. SF supervisor proposes ballot measure change
http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2011/05/27/state/n062024D70
Excerpts from Associated Press story:
...Supervisor Scott Wiener has proposed a charter amendment for the November ballot that would allow supervisors to amend a ballot measure three years after its effective date. The change would require the mayor's approval.
Wiener's proposal would not apply to tax and bond measures, charter amendments and measures placed on the ballot through the initiative signature-gathering process.
Wiener tells the San Francisco Chronicle he does not have any particular laws in mind. But he wants city officials to be able to clean up measures that are technically flawed or outdated without putting them before voters again.
Critics say Wiener's amendment would drastically reduce voters' authority.
JS: At risk of being tarred and feathered, I ask the question: What's wrong with reducing voters' authority? Have you looked at our record? As a partially reformed democrat, I ask people to look at that record as it applies to ballot initiatives. If you're honest you're very likely to have said to yourself at some point "And I VOTED for that!!" I have--and more times than I would like to admit. The Law of Unintended Consequences is the most powerful, even inevitable, law pertaining to human society. If you read the history of either state or city ballot initiatives it makes rather sorry reading. We are not equipped to sift through all the arcane details or the ramifications of what we vote on, nor do we have the requisite background information. We need humility. (Good luck on that, Jake.)
"The best argument against democracy is a five-minute conversation with the average voter." — Winston Churchill
I am finding very late in life that governance is an extremely difficult job, and we laypeople are not up to the job of governing directly. Even authoritarian regimes have difficulty with governance, and how much more difficult it is when people choose to govern themselves (at least we think that's what we're doing--the reality is somewhat different). We don't think things through, and an appalling number of voters really do decide on the basis of advertising--sound bites, as the story on California's present difficulties in The Economist reveal.
And readers: Please spare me your opinion about our San Francisco Board of Supervisors and California Legislature--I'm too painfully aware of what goes on there. Still, the 'cure' of direct democracy via the initiative may worsen rather than improve matters. At any rate, the subject needs an in-depth look, if we're grown-up enough to do it. I have no idea whether Scott Wiener's proposal would improve matters, but I'd like to look at it. It's unlikely to make them worse.
An excerpt from The Economist's recent lengthy article regarding California: "California's democracy is not at all like America's, as conceived by founders such as James Madison. The federal constitution is based on checks and balances within and among three and only three branches of government--executive, legislative, and judicial. That is because Madison feared that popular "passions" would undo the republic, that majorities might "tyrannize" minorities, and that "minority factions" (ie, special interests) would take over the system. America's was therefore to be a representative, not a direct, democracy. "Pure democracies have ever been spectacles of turbulence and contention," Madison wrote, "and have in general been as short in their lives as they have been violent in their deaths."
I have profound respect for our founding fathers. They were an amazingly well-read group of men (sorry, that's what they were--men) who were deeply steeped in the classics; knew their Athens, Sparta, Rome, Montesquieu and the Scottish Enlightenment philosophers. They distrusted democracy--as did Plato and Socrates. Read the Federalist Papers as well as the writings of the anti-Federalists. Direct democracy works well only in small units, where everyone knows each other. The larger the unit the more complicated problems become, and the chance for mischief grows.
“In an ideal state, all citizens could be summoned by the cry of a herald.” Aristotle
For having lived long, I have experienced many instances of being obliged, by better information or fuller consideration, to change opinions, even on important subjects, which I once thought right but found to be otherwise. - Benjamin Franklin
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4. Public Workshop #2 - Ocean Beach Master Plan
www.spur.org/oceanbeach
Please join us at the Golden Gate Park Senior Center on Saturday, June 4th for Ocean Beach Master Plan Public Workshop #2.
The project team has been hard at work analyzing the impacts of different courses of action at Ocean Beach. You will have a chance to review several "test scenarios" and compare their outcomes in categories like ecology, infrastructure, and public access over a 100-year period. You can then work with us to assemble an approach that best serves the future of Ocean Beach.
If you missed our first workshop or would like a refresher on the complex issues at Ocean Beach, please read our article in the SPUR Urbanist, or have a look at the workshop materials here.
WHEN: Saturday, June 4th, 10am-1pm
WHERE: Golden Gate Park Senior Center, 6101 Fulton St. (@37th Ave)
TRANSIT: Muni 5-Fulton to 37th Ave.
DIRECTIONS: http://bit.ly/mtX6tn (limited parking available)
PROJECT PARTNERS:
San Francisco Planning and Urban Research Association (SPUR)
California State Coastal Conservancy
US National Park Service
San Francisco Public Utilities Commission
San Francisco Dept of Public Works
ACCESSIBILITY:
This is an ADA accessible facility. Assistive listening devices, sign language, or translation services are available on request.
QUESTIONS/CONTACT: oceanbeach@spur.org
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5. Hey Roofwater Harvesting enthusiasts,
We wanted to let you know about the latest Occidental Arts & Ecology Center WATER Institute’s DIY booklet called: “Low Cost Agricultural Roofwater System”, which provides plenty of clean drinking water to our hens without the use of any electricity via gravity.
This booklet visually & verbally debuts (after nearly 20 decades of usage by many colleagues) our infamous “Wonder Gutter” design – so named cuz at first you wonder what the heck we are doing, and then when you see how simple it is you wonder why the heck you didn’t think of it first? Ha Ha!
Here is a link for the booklet: http://oaecwater.org/low-cost-agricultural-roofwater-system
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6. From Jeff Caldwell:
A cool compendium of some the latest discoveries among the species of living things: http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/13500847
This article talks a little about how different organisms are likely to be affected and the research opportunities the Japanese nuclear accident affords:
http://www.nature.com/news/2011/110527/full/news.2011.326.html
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7. Urgent House Vote on Eliminating US Contribution to UN Population Fund
Within the next week, the U.S. House of Representatives is expected to vote on a bill that would eliminate the entire U.S. contribution to the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA). Currently, the U.S. gives UNFPA $40 million a year to support a wide range of programs benefiting women in the developing world, including family planning, obstetric care, and prevention of HIV/AIDS.
Improving health outcomes.
UNFPA’s core programs expand access to reproductive health care for the poor and other hard-to-reach groups, including refugees and displaced persons, help mothers survive pregnancy and childbirth, deliver healthy newborns, enable couples to determine the number and spacing of their children and reduce the incidence of HIV/AIDS. UNFPA also supports data collection and research to encourage appropriate population and development policies, activities to improve the status of women, and advocacy to galvanize political and financial backing for reproductive health care and development. UNFPA also plays an important leadership role in global efforts to prevent and repair obstetric fistula, to eradicate female genital mutilation, and to improve access to reproductive health supplies, including contraceptives and condoms.
(JS: How could anyone be opposed to this? Fiscal conservatism can't explain it, nor can morality. The only answer I can think of is a non-answer: because they're Republicans. Republicans have not always been stupid, but something has happened to them in the last 30-40 years. If they're not interested in relieving human pain and suffering you'd think they would be interested in relieving crowding, stress, and disease--and saving money. Or do they view the increased numbers as consumers they can sell things to?)
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8. LTEs, The Economist
SIR – Your article addressed the problem of the difficult job market for low-skilled Americans. You pointed out that these types of jobs are becoming less plentiful in America. This would seem to underscore the fact that allowing ever more unskilled illegal immigrants to enter the country to work at low-skilled jobs is a bad policy, yet every article I read of yours unfailingly addresses any immigration as a positive thing. The Economist is pro-immigration to the point of being contradictory.
Kenneth Mundy
Los Angeles
SIR – In the days when what was good for General Motors was good for the country, manufacturing firms paid their workers well, provided health-care benefits and bought parts from local suppliers. They probably also paid taxes.
In recent years the desire for profits has led to the outsourcing of production to countries where labour costs are less, with a consequent loss of jobs in America. The use of offshore tax havens to protect these profits deprives the Treasury of funds to compensate the unemployed. You are right to castigate the politicians for their failure to deal with the problem but they are not the only villains.
Ronald Macaulay
Claremont, California
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9. Feedback I (non-raven-ous :-)
Kurt Menning:
The Anthropocene is a key concept gaining traction in scientific circles. Don't be quick to dismiss: there is a subtlety you may be missing: the idea is that humans have had such a profound impact that a record of our impact is visible in currently-forming geological strata (the rocks of the future). Everyone, even George Bush, knows we've been impacting the planet for a long. It is a completely different notion, however, to acknowledge that the impact--and its timing--will be visible in rocks when examined in the distant future.
Dismiss? Far from it, in fact I "wrote the book", figuratively speaking. Laypeople have been talking about it for 20 years now--we originally called it the Homogocene. Same thing.
No, I'm taking a dig at The Economist, which deserves it. The journal is well named, as it is almost exclusively concerned with the human-built world, with only an occasional item about the biological world--even then limited and/or inaccurate. So it is progress to see the subject on its front cover. The magazine comes to me on Fridays (today), and it will be the first article I read. Depending on the contents I may write an LTE.
(Written later, after I read the article): I shouldn't have gotten excited; I found the article a bit boring. Why? I think it was because the "changed kind of thinking" still didn't get down to basics--there was little mention of the biological world. Perhaps when there are only a few dozen species of plants or animals left on the planet it may finally take notice. Or maybe that's too optimistic.)
"Our planet has a skin disease; it's the human race." Anonymous
Bob Nelson:
Dear Jake: I have a little local color to add about the "Homeland Security, Fighting Terrorism Since 1492" image. :-) I first encountered a blurry Xerox copy of the image a few years ago after hours in an office cubicle. It was tacked to the cubicle wall... I borrowed it and made a few copies. At the time I was serving (involuntarily) on a federal grand jury. One of my fellow conscripts on the jury clued me in that the image was blurry because it was copied from a T-shirt!
At the end of my 18 month term of jury service, I returned an official binder to a typically arrogant official of the US Attorney's office with that "Homeland Security" image slipped under the clear plastic of the binder's back cover! :-) This particular official was not even the least bit amused when I observed their eye contact with the irreverent image shouting out from the Government binder! (I made a point of handing it over with the image prominently visible). :-) I was barely able to keep from smiling at the chagrin of the bureaucrat! :-)
Bob Nelson, stirring up shit since 1942.
Dear Jake: Actually, I've only been stirring up shit since 1951, but your reversal of the 9 and 4 from 1492 is very witty and creative! :-)
BTW, I have very little sympathy for the professional crew who serves under the local US Attorney, having striven with them (involuntarily) for a good long time...
That involuntary service puzzles me, Bob. Can they force you into serving on a grand jury? I thought it took a lot of time and only people who had lots of time could serve. I don't even know what a grand jury is. (Not for sharing--I'm ashamed of my lack of knowledge of govt and institutions.)
Dear Jake: FEDERAL Grand Jury service is non-voluntary. County Grand Jury service is something else again... The 5th Amendment requires that anybody accused of a serious crime by the feds must be indicted by a Grand Jury. The "Grand" means that there are 23 members of the jury, and when a majority of 12 agrees on an action, it goes forward. Quorum is 16. Only on the first day are all 23 Grand Jurors present together; someone (often several) are usually absent. The standard for taking action (issuing an indictment) is low, and is "probable cause". Compare this with unanimous "guilt beyond a reasonable doubt and to a moral certainty", which is the standard in criminal cases heard by Petit Juries...
Federal Grand Juries issue indictments... A famous recent one was the indictment of baseball player Barry Bonds in the Balco/steroids case. Another high profile federal case was Martha Stewart's indictment and conviction for lying to the feds. It's legal for federal agents to lie to citizens, but not the other way around... The safest response to any federal investigator is to take advantage of the right to remain silent.
For "Petit" juries, where 12 members must agree unanimously in criminal actions, large cattle-calls of citizens are issued, and dozens of prospective jurors are interviewed and rejected. The call for federal Grand Juries is entirely different. They send you a questionaire, then you hear nothing for months. Next, you receive a summons "commanding" (command is the word printed on the summons) you to appear. About 50 Grand Jurors and alternates are needed. About 100 citizens are commanded to appear. Those chosen 100 citizens have been investigated by
the FBI (based on the initial questionaire) and found fit for service. It's possible to get out of it, but not easy...
I think the 5th Amendment requires Grand Jury indictments to avoid politicization of the federal criminal system. It doesn't succeed, in my opinion. The investigations and indictments are completely in the hands of the professional prosecutors who work for the politically appointed US Attorney for the US District Court. In my opinion, federal Grand Juries are mere rubber stamps to the politically motivated prosecutions orchestrated by the local US Attorney. Friends of the current executive branch of the federal government get better treatment than enemies.
A wonderful example of a huge crime that was never properly investigated and for which no indictments were ever issued is that whole package of nightmares that occurred on 9/11/01...
OK, so that's my Civics 101 lesson for today! :-)
And thank YOU for the Civics 101 lesson. I needed it, obviously.
I think I'll come clean and expose my ignorance and print this exchange, because I know I'm not the only one who didn't know. We all could use more lessons in how our govt works.
I'm about to unload on my poor readers a lesson in California finance, courtesy of The Economist. Well, OK, I won't foist it on them, in part because it's too long. But I will make it available to those masochists who will devote the time to reading 16 pages of our sad history in governance and finance--and what's needed if we are to come to grips with our problems. Oy.
Patrick Schlemmer:
Great letter to Fiona Ma, Jake. You really cut through the BS and captured the essence of the issue.
Kerry Kriger:
Good response to Fiona. On May 19th 2010 she gave an extremely ignorant speech to the CA Fish & Game Commission urging them to allow imports on non-native frogs and turtles into the state.
Bert Johnson:
Dear Jake, Your newsletter is the greatest! I am entirely addicted to it. What a "treat" and great "gift" for those concerned about our planet and environment. I just wanted to thank you, and especially Mr. Bruce Grosjean ( his comments in item # 3 of your 5-20-2011 Nature News) for suggesting that readers may want to check out the fantastic writeup about the Mississippi River-Atchafalaya River in the February 23, 1987 issue of the 'New Yorker". What a fascinating piece of work, one of the best I have ever read, and so incredibly authored by Mr. John McPhee. Thanks Jake for your love of earth,and also for sharing that wonderful and inspiring attitude with so many people also in adoration of our natural world. It's time to stop the incessant and selfish destructon of our planet, and time to start giving a hoot about other plants and creatures besides ourselves. Sincerely and thankfully. Bert Johnson
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10. Feedback II - for the stark, raven mad
Patrick Schlemmer:
I once saw a raven swoop down and fly off with a squirming rat near the parking lot at the north end of Ocean Beach—something I don’t think a crow could manage.
Eddie Bartley:
Jake, thanks as always for your efforts in continuing your informative, entertaining and witty nature newsblog. It has become something that I very much look forward to reading and share tasty bits of often.
This is long...sorry....
Regarding Crows and Ravens in SF: Since 1900 National Audubon has organized the local Audubon chapters and their members in conducting an annual mid-winter survey called "The Christmas Bird Count" (CBC). Survey data, once vetted by local compilers and other experts, is meticulously entered into a giant database that can be queried online just by entering a few simple questions such as species name, count area, etc. The surveys are organized and led by local bird experts, some professional ornithologists, mostly experienced amateurs, all volunteers, who pay a small fee to cover the cost of managing the huge amount of data generated. Results naturally vary much by weather, the overall number of participants (which is ever growing) and the degree of experience with birds in a given area.
In the Bay Area where we are lucky to have so many dedicated bird enthusiasts and experts involved in the CBC that I believe the resident and winter bird population trend data is particularly valid and helpful.
Here is an example of the type of useful information that can be found and produced in a graph from the local efforts of Golden Gate Auduboners:
As you can see in this graph, both Ravens and Crows began being counted in numbers about 1984 in SF. Note that the numbers on the left are for number of birds seen per party (count group) hour. Long time CBC compiler Dan Murphy related a story to me about seeing a Raven on the CBC in the early 70s (I think) and no one believed him as they were that rare here then.
While the Ravens and Crows are admired almost universally by bird enthusiasts for their cleverness and adaptability, their recent population booms, especially in urban area, are a concern for bird conservationists. Access to landfill food and open garbage cans are some of the prime causes of this expansion in range and population but also their tenacious spirit and ability to live well amongst humans. i.e. Ravens nest under Highway 101 in Potrero district while Crows have taken over raptor nests in parks and backyards here. Laws to protect wild birds and changes in some human's attitudes (these species were historically persecuted mightily in agricultural areas and rangeland) have also assisted their success.
Unfortunately, it turns out they are generally bad neighbors for many other species and predate heavily on other local birds (especially songbirds) eggs, young and even adult birds. They are most aggressive towards raptors and based on raptor nest studies I have been involved in here in SF are excluding some raptors from historical nesting territories here in SF. Local nesting shorebirds, most species already in precipitous declines from loss of habitat, have also been particularly hard hit by the increase in Ravens and Crows.
Nonetheless, there is much to admire about these birds. One good way to tell them apart is by voice: Crows "caw" and Ravens "cackle" or "croak". Once however I was photo studying an obvious Raven and I could hear a flock of Crows coming from behind me. The Raven looked up at them and let out a hoarse "caw!". The Crows were not amused and quickly flew away. Very clever birds indeed!
Eddie: Thanks very much for this feedback. Good information.
I am well aware of the destructiveness of ravens; I know about robbing nests, as I actually witnessed ravens and crows ganging up and robbing a great horned owl nest on Mt Sutro of either eggs or babies--had to drive away the owl first. And I know of their extending their range into the desert and playing havoc with the endangered desert tortoise (they eat the young tortoises). I get so upset by the environmental destruction happening on a planet-wide scale that I take opportunities to escape into the lighter side. I have often remarked that since ravens will inherit the earth I'm glad they have such a playful spirit.
“For my own part I wish the Bald Eagle had not been chosen the Representative of our Country. He is a Bird of bad moral Character. He does not get his Living honestly.” Benjamin Franklin
No, Ben, it's not a bald eagle--you mean raven, Ben, raven.
Eddie, what do you think of this remark by Adrian Cotter?:
One thing -- they weren't in the city because they were hunted out. The city employed a hunter through the 30 and 40s apparently. So they are returning from exile as it were. Last population numbers I saw were from early 2000s. Some 600 or so.
Is that true? Also, someone said some time ago that ravens were reported in the desert (I forget exact time) about early 1900s. True?
Eddie Bartley:
Yes, I have heard that 2 hunters were employed in Golden Gate Park by the City through the late 1950s (at least), specifically targeting egg & chick eating critters such as Ravens and skunks. These hunters were probably sent to the other parks to keep things in, uhh, equilibrium. This no doubt lowered the population of the 'meso-predator" targets. Of course, GGP was mostly dune and scrub prior to the 1890's so who knows what the balance should be? GGP is a Disneyland of habitat out there but wonderful to me nonetheless. There's no going back to the ways it was in human's time anyway. Just a matter of trying to manage for the most marginalized now which is probably the best we can do.
Historically from the early 1800s: Ravens, gregarious carrion eaters who follow around predators, were no doubt negatively impacted by the extirpation of Grizzlies in California, the reduction of marine mammal biomass by the fur traders and then the decimation of the Indians who were primary predators as well.
According to accounts during the Gold Rush era Ravens were common along the coast road between SF and San Mateo. Later, when agriculture greatly expanded in California, death by guns and poison (as with raptors) played a large role in populations through the 1970's and beyond even though by then protections were put in place.
As far as the early 1900s go, hard data is lacking. USGS didn't start the Breeding Bird Surveys until 1965 and there weren't many people doing citizen counts like the CBC here. In the early 1920s Joseph Grinnell (mostly Berkeley) and W. Leon Dawson (Santa Barbara) were the major contributors. Grinnell said Ravens were rare in the Bay Area except for Point Reyes and the Sonoma Coast.
I have Dawson's "Birds of California" published in 1923. Coincidently the first species entry is of Ravens. "Range in California: Resident but wide ranging, hence, of casual occurrence throughout the State; common or abundant locally. The chief centers of distribution are the semi-arid interior coast ranges of south-central California, the larger islands, and the northwestern humid coastal strip. Rare or wanting in the high Sierras (sic) and almost disappearing from the more thickly settled regions".
The more rural parts of the Bay Area such as Point Reyes evidently did not experience the same corvid population explosion in the 80s as SF, Oakland, Palo Alto, etc. Most of the research I've come across points to access to garbage as the primary factor of the 80's boom. I personally believe that in recent years Ravens and Crows have co-evolved with humans. I think my own bill may be getting longer as I write.
Perhaps the absence from the desert of Ravens until the 1900s is so but I haven't come across that info yet. A few years ago Noreen and I drove for miles and miles in the very alkali Amboy Crater volcanic area (Mojave) without seeing any critters alive but there were Ravens. Living off of beetles and the occasional lizard I guess. Amazing isn't too strong of a word for that.
Thanx again Jake for getting me to look a Lil' deeper. Ignorance IS bliss, I know, but truth about nature IS beauty and a lot more interesting. You may not know what an inspiration you are to many aspiring naturalists but I'm here to tell you and that ain't no BS.
Thank you for this voluminous information, Eddie. I have learned a lot from this discussion. As you can see, the topic has elicited much response; it's good that people are observing and thinking about some of the daily sights we all take for granted until someone asks us a question.
Doug Allshouse:
Jake, I think that your original query about those amazing corvids has probably elicited more responses than maybe even population, but certainly more than dogs in the GGNRA. Here are some more thoughts that will touch on some things that were brought up by your readers.
The answer to your question may never truly be known and that's because ravens (and crows) are birds. And what do birds do far better than we? They fly, which means that they move around far better than we. Now putting that last brilliant observation aside for a moment, practically every avian species does something that drives humans batty. They appear in numbers seemingly out of the blue (or gray if it's overcast) or they disappear overnight for no good reason, at least to us. Birders know this as an irruption. The birds have a reason for doing this whether it be food or weather or predator related. Needless to say, something just isn't right, so why not move on?
All birds of common families flock up during fall and winter because it diminishes the odds of being eaten. Even though ravens do this they tend to pair close to spring. They will defend a territory especially if conditions are favorable to them establishing a territory. I've seen 2 ravens chase a dozen crows away if that's what they REALLY want to do, but generally speaking crows seem to prefer strength in numbers. So it's possible that crows have established themselves in greater numbers in the city by exploiting this behavior. Birds that are missing flight feathers usually have molted them and not had them pulled out. The reason so many birds harass ravens is because corvids eat eggs and young birds from nests.
Just this morning, May 26, I was walking in the park (San Bruno Mt) and a group of Steller's Jays were quite agitated at a raven that was squawking in a cypress. I couldn't see it but I heard it. When I was just outside the park a raven (it could have been the same one) flew into a line of pine trees with a half-dozen Brewer's Blackbirds in pursuit. It eventually moved on. If you ever hear jays, robins or blackbirds squawking loudly in the trees try to locate them. Odds are you'll find a raven, a hawk, or an owl as the center of attention.
Meanwhile, enjoy your environs and all who enter it, whatever they may be. Worry not about those who leave the circle for they may choose to return and gain your welcome.
Come to think of it, where have all the House Finches gone?....just wondering.
On May 26, 2011, at 5:28 PM, Barbara Stevens wrote:
Jake.. over here by my house on Edgewood ave next to sutro forrest there are dozens of ravens cawing and swooping all the time. fASCINATING sometime crows come in large numbers and try to intimidate them, but I think they fail.. I never saw ravens til last year, and now many more of them.' barbara stevens
Thanks for the feedback, Barbara. The plot thickens. I'm trying to find patterns here; instead I just get more complications. It's a jungle out there.
Hans U Weber:
Hi Jake: I share a fascination for corvids and read what I can about them. Perhaps the best experts on crows and ravens are John Marzluff and Bernd Heinrich. Both have have studied and written about these birds for decades. Marzluff is a wildlife biologist at UW in Seattle and worked with Heinrich who is emeritus prof of biology at the Univ of Vermont. Marzluff has written In the Company of Crows and Ravens and more recently Dog Days, Raven Nights.
Like you I miss seeing ravens in my neighborhood (Palo Alto) where crows are abundant. The two species are definitely competitive and it is likely that in some locations ravens may meet with too much competition by crows and gulls. Our urban areas with food wastes are ideal locations for crows and gulls. Ravens may be edged out into areas that are less attractive to crowds of crows and gulls. Marzluff writes about this topic in an appendix in Dog Days, Raven Nights.
There is actually a human parallel to the demographic changes in populations of crows and ravens: an ethnic group can take over a city or suburb from another one that has been dominant before.
By the way, crows and ravens look quite different, especially in shape of tail: a raven's tail is longer than a crow's and looks diamond-shaped compared to the fan-shape of a crow's tail. The raven's head looks craggy compared to the round crow head.
Ted Kipping:
Some pics of a Raven's Nest on warm, south-facing tower of Roosevelt Jr. High @ Arguello & Geary - Note Clothes Hanger
as part of the construction materials of a resourceful urban bird. Just a short hop and glide away from the feeding grounds of the adjacent school yard. Also note the nice overhang and the inaccessibility to predators and potential nest robbers. This is valuable real estate. Location-location-location.
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11. I kept running across the term perp walk but couldn't figure out what it meant from the context. 'Perpendicular' was all that came to mind. I finally got around to looking it up on Wikipedia--and, just in case there should be anyone else as benighted as I:
Perp walk
A perp walk is taken by an arrested suspect (or "perp", short for "perpetrator") through a public place so that the media may observe and record the event. The suspect is typically handcuffed or otherwise restrained, and is sometimes dressed in prison garb. It is primarily practiced in the United States, especially in New York City. The practice arose incidentally from the need to transport a defendant from a police station to court after arrest, and has since become a custom. It has been criticized as a form of public humiliation.
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12. The Rapture
Paradise postponed
The world still awaits God’s judgment
May 26th 2011 | AUSTIN | from The Economist print edition
11. I kept running across the term perp walk but couldn't figure out what it meant from the context. 'Perpendicular' was all that came to mind. I finally got around to looking it up on Wikipedia--and, just in case there should be anyone else as benighted as I:
Perp walk
A perp walk is taken by an arrested suspect (or "perp", short for "perpetrator") through a public place so that the media may observe and record the event. The suspect is typically handcuffed or otherwise restrained, and is sometimes dressed in prison garb. It is primarily practiced in the United States, especially in New York City. The practice arose incidentally from the need to transport a defendant from a police station to court after arrest, and has since become a custom. It has been criticized as a form of public humiliation.
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12. The Rapture
Paradise postponed
The world still awaits God’s judgment
May 26th 2011 | AUSTIN | from The Economist print edition
Left behind
ON MAY 16th the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, in an odd attempt at light-heartedness, published a brief guide to emergency preparedness in the event of a zombie invasion or other catastrophes. Useful advice, but zombies were far from anyone’s mind. America was girding for an even more serious event. Word had spread that the Rapture would take place on May 21st. There would be a horrible earthquake, and Jesus would take believers to heaven. Those left behind would suffer Armageddon, concluding with the earth’s total annihilation (scheduled for October).
These predictions came from Harold Camping, the California-based founder and president of Family Radio, a national network of Christian radio stations. He argued that the world was in moral decline, with the widespread acceptance of gay marriage the clearest sign. His followers took the message to billboards and flyers. Some thoughtfully arranged for atheists to look after their pets.
Mr Camping, who now says that the Rapture did occur, but invisibly, may be outside the mainstream, but the end-of-days is hardly a marginal obsession. A surprisingly large number of Americans are keenly interested in the subject. Several years ago, for example, the “Left Behind” books—a series of novels dramatising the tribulations of those not taken up to heaven—sold tens of millions of copies. And those who do not anticipate the Apocalypse may nevertheless subscribe to a dramatic view of God’s justice. Earlier this year a pastor in Michigan published a book questioning whether hell exists, triggering a fierce counter-attack from evangelicals.In the run-up to the predicted Rapture, non-believers prepared for a field day. Some composed careful tableaux of empty clothing and abandoned dinners. On Facebook, more than 800,000 people signed up to attend post-Rapture looting parties.
The scoffers proved correct. May 21st came and went with only the usual suffering of a day on earth. It was a lucky escape; the political and economic ramifications would have been severe. And it may be that the prospect of it led some people to reassess their morals, never a bad thing.
But if the world is to be judged it will not be on Mr Camping’s terms. Shortly after the Rapture failed to materialise, an interview appeared with Jim Daly, the president of Focus on the Family, probably America’s most powerful conservative Christian organisation. He noted that most of the younger generation favours gay marriage. “We’ve probably lost that,” he concluded. Heaven can wait.
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13. Rapture (cont.)
(From Name Withheld)
________ will appear within the next half hour to see if he can restore my front door bell to functioning status. Perhaps I should get dressed?
If you show up at the door naked he will probably just assume that God screwed up on The Rapture--took your clothes up to Heaven and left the body.
After all, she was just trying to please Mr Camping, and she's never done this before; gotta give her a little breaking-in room: After all, this is Rapture 1.0
Jake
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