White-tailed Kites! Although sightings of White-tailed Kites have been rare in this fifth year of the drought, we are happy to report that a pair of these special birds have been seen, very recently, on the eastern side of More Mesa, and on the western portion as well. While these two sightings may be of…
Earthquake on More Mesa? On the very first day of last month, at 8:42 in the morning, a magnitude 2.7, earthquake was reported for the More Mesa area. This event was incorrectly labeled in the press as the “Goleta Earthquake”. However in fact, the longitude and latitude of the quake epicenter placed it near a…
Time to Migrate The underlying reason for bird migration is survival: moving to areas with better food resources for the time of year. Birds move northward in spring, where they find abundant insects, flowering plants and in the less inhabited Northern Hemisphere, a higher number of nesting sites. However, as winter approaches and the availability…
A Tiny Bright Light In a world dominated by talk of drought, we offer a tiny bright spot … about a lovely native plant; Seacliff Buckwheat. While almost all of our More Mesa native wildflowers bloom in spring, this cliff and dune dwelling plant flowers in the middle of summer, providing nectar to many butterflies and insects….
Why Collect Seeds Anyway? Last month we discussed the Coastal California Poppy and how the Cheadle Center for Biodiversity and Ecological Restoration (CCBER) collects seeds of this native plant on More Mesa. However, in addition to poppies, More Mesa is a very valuable source in the collection of many other important native plants. These include…