Park Stories

After two intensive days of exploration and documentation, the Golden Gate National Parks BioBlitz (March 28–29) captured a vivid snapshot of the unique biodiversity in the parks.

Youth leaders at the Crissy Field Center are putting the finishing touches on their final project, a free, family-friendly event filled with physical challenges, educational exhibits, and prizes. Held at Crissy Field, the event shows how pollution affects our entire community.

On May 10, bring the whole family to Muir Beach and Muir Woods for International Migratory Bird Day! Learn the history of this unique event, now in its 14th year, and discover festivities in honor of our feathered friends across the Redwood Creek Watershed.

Bay Area residents are mighty lucky to be surrounded by parklands and encounter wildlife in our own backyards. But, instead of spotting the occasional raptor, what if you could see all sorts of birds of prey? Here’s your rare chance to identify, count, and band raptors in the Marin Headlands.

Move over, Art in the Parks. It’s time for KART in the Parks—a new project of the Parks Conservancy to bring the family fun of go-kart racing to the Crissy airfield!

In a new podcast, hear from some of the amazing staff and interns working to preserve and restore the Presidio and the Golden Gate National Parks. Then find out how you can add your voice—and volunteer energy—to this chorus of care.

Sure, the newly formed Tamalpais Lands Collaborative (TLC) will play a major role in the long-term stewardship of majestic Mount Tamalpais. But you can make a difference by bringing your own “TLC” to a special hands-on volunteer day, April 26, 2014.

You don’t need a Seussian doctorate to celebrate BioBlitz (March 28–29, 2014)—just a love of learning about all the organisms in our parks! Participate in a species inventory, enjoy the Biodiversity Festival, attend special programs, or volunteer alongside event staff. We’re “counting” on you to make Golden Gate’s BioBlitz the best one yet!

Two weeks before thousands of naturalists and community volunteers perform species inventories in the parks during BioBlitz, a group of high school students will unveil their own hands-on, citizen-science research. Learn how they’re getting “wise” to environmental issues.

Through BioBlitz, you’ll help illuminate biodiversity in the parks. Through this Institute at the Golden Gate event, you’ll understand why it is so important to our community. On March 13, 2014, engage with experts from UC-Berkeley, Free Range Studios, and Green for All.

With our unusually dry winter, you might be wondering what you can do at home to help reduce water usage. Liz Ponzini (Manager of the Tennessee Valley Nursery) shares her expertise, and tips you can use in your own backyard!

Repeated over time, warm and dry winters alter the timing of natural events such as flower blooms, and those changes can produce a ripple effect throughout the food web. Learn more about phenology—the study of seasonal phenomena and how they’re affected by climate change.