I had the chance to visit the California Wildlife Center during their recent Open House and was completely blown away by all the amazing work they do. The Center is located about halfway between Malibu and Calabasas off Malibu Canyon Road. It’s tucked away in the middle of the woods surrounded by hills and greenery,… [read more]
Great time to see elephant seals
Now is the perfect time to go see the elephant seals! December through March is breeding and birthing time for Northern elephant seals and according to the Friends of the Elephant Seal website the peak birthing time is the middle of January. So that means this coming weekend is the best time to visit Piedras… [read more]
Elephant seals are lucky to be alive
I just learned about some fascinating elephant seal history that is a must share. It turns out that the two male elephant seals going head to head in the photo are truly lucky to be alive. In fact all northern elephant seals are lucky to be alive for reasons that are both predictable and shocking.… [read more]
Climate change near the equator
Climate change in warmer parts of the globe could also mean a loss of habit. It’s the reverse of losing ice habitat because where is all that excess water going to go? Three words…sea level rise. All that excess water has to go somewhere and it’s quite possible that it could end up flooding crucial… [read more]
Climate change at the poles
Well, I have been seriously neglecting my project to blog through the entire Encyclopedia of Marine Mammals, so it’s time to revisit the “C” section, which brings us to climate change. The concept of climate change has become so political that it’s easy to ignore sometimes. But based on all the numbers I’ve seen something… [read more]
Northern elephant seals heading home
What better way to start the week than by watching a heart warming video of two northern elephant seals heading back to the ocean. The two stars of this video were rescued as pups by the Pacific Marine Mammal Center in Laguna Beach, rehabilitated and just released on the beach. One of the seals is… [read more]
Sea lions, weasels and bears oh my!
Classifying animals is a messy business. Back in the day before genetic analysis, seals, sea lions and walruses were classified as members of the order Pinnipedia. They were considered to be “separate from but closely related to the terrestrial carnivores of the order Carnivora” as told by the Encyclopedia of Marine Mammals. And of course… [read more]
Classifying marine mammals, clades shmades
As of the writing of this post, there are four clades of marine mammals. Things could change if some crazy fossil is found that alters all current knowledge, but for now we only have to know about four clades. Now is a good time to explain what a clade is. According to the fabulous glossary… [read more]
Windkessel
Well, some of the “C” section of the Encyclopedia of Marine Mammals is serious science, so much so that it can be extremely mind numbing to read. This holds true for the article titled Circulatory System. So instead of getting into the nitty gritty details of the anterior vena cava or the hepatic sinus, I’m… [read more]
Oceans movie is worth seeing
I don’t dare post the actual Oceans poster image for fear of being sued by Disney, but I have to say the movie is definitely worth seeing on the big screen. There is amazing underwater footage of sea creatures you will most likely never have the chance to see and of course many great shots… [read more]