Effie Yeaw Nature Center

Good information if you are going to get outside!

Mystery Monday! We zoomed in on an object from nature. It’s very hard, can have many points, and sheds every year. Hint: It may look like wood, but it does come from an animal! Post your guesses in the comments below! Check back at 5 pm for the answer in a new post!

Tracks and Scat Whose scat is that? who left that track? This week we are dividing into the world of identifying animals simply by what they leave behind. This week, Tuesday-Friday & Sunday on Discovery Nature Community, small group in-person programs, Salmon Run. Join Us!... Pre-registration is required: https://www.sacnaturecenter.net/events/discover-nature/ Tuesday November 10th - Friday November 13th Starting at 2:30p.m. Saturday November 14th & Sunday November 15th Starting at 9 a.m. Raccoon Tracks Photo CC by lostinfog https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/

Have you registered for our Corvids of California program? Join today to learn all about this family of birds from crows to magpies to jays with Christy Berger from Gold Country Wildlife Rescue. Meet a crow animal ambassador both virtually (and in-person if you register for the field study as well). Check our website for more details and where to enroll today! https://www.sacnaturecenter.net//adult-p/nature-of-things/

Unleash Generosity: Giving Tuesday, December 1st! Every year on Giving Tuesday, millions of people mobilize across the globe to show up, give back, and change their communities. The goal is to create a massive wave of generosity that lasts well beyond that day and touches every person on the planet. All of us here at Effie Yeaw Nature Center will see you there!... #GivingTuesday #UnleashGenerosity #EffieYeawNatureCenter

Registration for Fall AND Winter camps is now open! Kids ages 5-11 discover the wonders of nature in each season. Learn more: https://www.sacnaturecenter.net/education/nature-camps/

It's rutting season! Join us tomorrow at 11 am to learn why bucks clash and collide their antlers! Photo credit: Canva

However you think of grasshoppers, it can't be denied that they are very helpful in maintaining an ecosystem. Learn how grasshoppers support their habitat as well as other animal populations! https://www.sacnaturecenter.net/visi/nature-blog/news.html

What's that? Wednesday! We love it when people ask us to help them identify something they saw or heard while on a hike. Photos and videos are always a great help! Recently we were asked which gull this is. Gulls can be hard to identify, especially when juveniles are in the mix! When identifying gulls it helps to have a field guide handy. Be ready to note the size and the color of the legs/feet, the color(s) of the bill, the colors of the eye, and the color(s) on the back, w...ings and wing tips. It's hard to tell in this photo, but this gull has pink legs and feet, a yellow bill with a red spot near the tip of the lower mandible, and yellow eyes. This species is not often noted in our area because it usually sticks closer to the coast. But this individual has been noted in the Effie Yeaw section of the American River in the fall-winter seasons for at least the past 10 years. If you are walking the trails today be sure to go down to the river to see if you can spot our Western Gull visitor! If you want to bone up on your gull species identification we recommend visiting the Nimbus Fish Hatchery this time of year. You will have lots of opportunity to observe several gull species at several ages.

Get ready! The annual Effie Yeaw Nature Center Holiday Sale is coming, Saturday, December 5th. Stay tuned for more info!

We're often asked what should be done if you find an injured animal. Like you, we want to help that animal, but there are a few things to be aware of when approaching a wild animal in need of help and ways to keep both the animal and yourself safe. Check out our latest Ask a Naturalist to find out what to do if you find an injured animal. https://www.sacnaturecenter.net/visit-us/nature-blog/

Mystery Monday Answer! This snag was being consumed by a colony of dampwood temites. Unlike the common subterranean termites that often damage homes and make their nests in the soil, dampwood termites live entirely within wood. Dampwood colonies include a queen who lays the eggs; some soldiers with large, fierce-looking mandibles; and lots of smaller nymphs, which are the workers. In late summer, winged male and female reproductive may be produced, but these move on to mate a...nd create new colonies once mature. The individuals you see here are the workers. They carry out all the maintenance work of the colony, expanding tunnels and chambers, feeding the queen and soldiers, grooming each other and their nest, tending the eggs and managing the microbial reserves of the colony. Although they grow larger, most worker nymphs never become reproductive adults. As they become weak, injured or sick, older workers are consumed by younger ones as a source of protein. Very few animals can digest wood, and termites are very important in recycling wood in the forest ecosystem. Termites have many tiny bacteria and protozoa in their guts that breakdown cellulose in wood into sugars that the termites can digest. It is estimated that one-third of a termite’s body weight is made up of these microorganisms. The termites are gradually turning this rotting log into a pile of debris. Look carefully and you may be able to see the cylindrical fecal pellets that distinguish dampwood termites from other termite groups.

Mystery Monday! Along the pathway to the Nature Center building one of the snags fell over. We stopped to inspect the stump and became fascinated with all that we could notice and observe. How many different things are you noticing in the photo below? Who made that hole? Please share your ideas below and check back at 5pm for the answer and more information.

It's Salmon Run Season! What does that mean? How is the Salmon Run important? Learn about why salmon migrate between fresh and salt water with a Naturalist! Discover why these fish are so amazing! This week, Tuesday-Friday & Sunday on Discovery Nature Community, small group in-person programs, Salmon Run. Join Us! Pre-registration is required:... https://www.sacnaturecenter.net/events/discover-nature/ Tuesday November 3rd - Friday November 6th Starting at 2:30p.m. Saturday November 7th & Sunday November 8th Starting at 9 a.m. Photo CC by Pacific Northwest National Laboratory - PNNL https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/