It’s a promising start when you flip open a book and the words at the top of the page are Long-Tailed Tits. Reading further it becomes clear that this is actually the common name for the family of birds Aegithalidae, sharing small bodies, short wings and long tails. What a relief, I am reading National… [read more]
Hummingbird is Superbird
The last thing I expected to see while walking into my yoga class was a hummingbird. Even though hummingbirds are so tiny, she stuck out like a sore thumb perched on a bright-yellow pipe running along an equally bright yellow-brick wall. It was thrilling to see a hummingbird so close, but terrible as soon as… [read more]
Blue Whale: the largest animal to ever live on Earth
And now ladies and gentlemen…drum roll please…introducing the largest animal to ever live on earth, bigger than the largest dinosaur, as long as two school buses stacked end to end a whopping 80 feet, weighing on average 85 tons with a heart the size of a Volkswagen Beetle…I now present to you—the blue whale. Yes,… [read more]
Bottlenose Dolphin: the fin you want to see
Finally, you left the security of your beach towel to take a dip in the ocean and now you’re swimming and wondering why you wasted so much time on the sand. But wait, is that a fin? Trying to remain calm, you pray you didn’t see anything. There it is again, the fin is closer,… [read more]
Scrub Jay: that’s not a blue jay
“Oh look, a Blue Jay!” If you made that exclamation in the South Bay, then it’s not a Blue Jay…it’s a Scrub Jay, more specifically the Western Scrub Jay or Aphelocoma californica. Blue Jays and Scrub Jays are members of the family Corvidae, the scientific name for the closely related group of birds that includes… [read more]
California Sea Lions: size doesn’t always matter
Imagine the challenges of dating someone four times your size, especially during the intimate times. This is the reality of a female California sea lion. Well-known residents of the South Bay, California sea lions, officially named Zalophus californianus, are frequently seen swimming near shore, chasing fish or lounging on buoys. But what goes on behind… [read more]