Muir Woods National Monument

This glistening mushroom cap may look beautiful, but it is definitely not edible. The sulfur tuft (Hypholoma fasciculare) is a poisonous mushroom, but this does not mean it's bad for the forest. The sulfur tuft grows all over the United State and Europe. It will grow in clumps in many woodland areas from fallen trees and logs. If you see the sulfur tuft growing from a fallen tree you can assume it is feeding off tree roots underground. #FungiFriday Forging for mushrooms is n...ot allowed at Muir Woods. Many fungi species, including the sulfur tuft, are inedible and can cause sickness and even death. The sulfur tuft can be tough to distinguish from similar edible varieties. Have you seen the sulfur tuft mushroom where you live? #FungiFriday #Mushrooms #FindYourPark #EncuentraTuParque Image Description: Mushrooms grow out of a moss covered log with sorrel below Image Credit: NPS Stephanie Weinstein

If you go walking in Muir Woods this winter, you may encounter a special sight: thousands of red ladybugs with black spots, congregating in tight clusters amidst fallen leaf litter near streams. These are convergent ladybugs (Hippodamia convergens), one of the Bay Area's most common native ladybug species. They are currently overwintering in "aggregates" of up to hundreds of thousands. Moving slowly and rarely eating, the insects will pass the winter in a state of mild hi...bernation until temperatures rise in late winter or early spring. Though scientists don't know all the details about why ladybugs do this, some benefits are clear: clustering ladybugs keep each other warm throughout the coldest months, and when spring arrives, there's a bounty of potential mates close by to choose from Once they've mated, ladybugs will disperse to lowland habitats along the coast or Central Valley to give birth, die, and begin the annual ladybug lifecycle anew Unfortunately, introduced ladybug species, like the seven-spotted and multicolored Asian ladybugs, have begun to displace native ladybugs in California. You can help scientists research this pattern by submitting your photos and observations of ladybugs to http://ow.ly/3PuF50DlcKy or uploading them to iNaturalist Happy ladybug spotting! NPS / Kirke Wrench [Image description]: Many small ladybugs cluster tightly together on a a wooden post. #FindYourPark #EncuentraTuParque #OptOutside

Muir Woods National Monument is closed today, January 27, 2021, as park staff clear tree limbs that fell with Tuesday's storm. For information about parking reservations, please visit the Ace Parking website at http://ow.ly/ykvS50DjTsI. For the status of other areas of the park, please visit http://ow.ly/Frll50DjTsH.

Happy #TrailTuesday! When you arrive at Bridge 4 on Muir Woods’ Main Trail, you will see another trail continuing along the creek. This is the Bootjack Trail, following the Redwood Creek up a steep hill through the redwood forest. This trail provides a challenging hike as well as beautiful vistas of the redwood forest canopy, the Pacific Ocean and the Bay Area. The hike begins at Muir Woods in the redwood forest, as you climb up the trail, the forest changes to Douglas-fi...r, tanoak and bay laurel. What is your favorite trail near Muir Woods? #FindYourPark #FindYourTrail #EncuentraTuParque #hiking Image Description: A creek with fallen trees runs through the redwood forest Image Credit: NPS Stephanie Weinstein

It is the time of year for these small fragrant flowers to bloom. The fetid adder’s tongue (Scoliopus bigelovii) is generally restrictive to the coastal fog belt from the Santa Cruz Mountains northward, to slightly beyond the Oregon border. It occurs in redwood and mixed conifer forests and can be found in shady areas. It is a perennial herb and can be visible for only two to four months per year. The plant can vary in size, but the ones at Muir Woods are close to 3 or 4 inch...es tall. It is well known for its strong smell, which may not attract humans, but does attract the gnats that pollinate it. This plant has unique leaves as well, bright green ovals speckled with deep purple spots. Have you seen this flower in the woods? To learn more about this wild flower and other flowering plants watch the Jepson Herbarium videos: Scoliopus bigelovii (fetid adder's tongue) - YouTube #FindYourPark #FindYourFlower #Fetidadderstongue #EncuentraTuParque Image Description: A purple and white striped flower (fetid adder's tongue) grows out of green and purple leaves on the redwood forest floor. Image Credit: Emma Lasky NPS

At Muir Woods we strive to create a place where everyone can feel safe and welcome! Our main trail is accessible and we offer the National Parks and Federal Recreational Lands Pass for U.S. citizens or permanent residents with permanent disabilities. To learn more about accessibility at Muir Woods, you can watch the Muir Woods episode of That’s How We Roll! #accessibility http://ow.ly/KW7J50Df5cG

Its #BatWeek! How do bats help where you live? The big brown bat is one of the bat species at Muir Woods. These bats can be found in many different kinds of habitats and numerous feeding studies of big brown bats exist indicating that they consume significant crop and forest pests. Like many bat species, reproductive females often can consume their body weight in insects each night. In fact, a colony of 150 big brown bats can consume enough adult cucumber beetles in one summ...er to prevent egg-laying that would produce 33 million of their root-worm larvae, a major pest of corn. Creating habitat for bats to eat pests is much more sustainable and cost effective than using pesticides. Learn more about these awesome bats here:

Happy 48th birthday, Golden Gate National Recreation Area! How will you celebrate with us? #FindYourPark #EncuentraTuParque

Its #BatWeek Ten species of bats have been observed by researchers in Muir Woods National Monument! California's central coast is known to support 17 species and there are around 45 species in the United States. There are lots of differences between bat species that make them unique and interesting!... One of the bats species at Muir Woods in the Townsend’s Big Eared Bat! Learn more about them here:

Muir Woods National Monument will be closed on Tuesday, October 27 due to a PG&E public safety power shutoff. While GoMuirWoods.com continues to accept reservations for future dates, all reservations for 10/27/20 will be canceled and refunded in full. For more information, please visit the Marin County Sheriff's Office's website.

Its #BatWeek and it’s #MutualismMonday! Bats are important members of the redwood forest ecosystem. Bats are important predators, pollinators and seed dispersers. When a bat eats a seed, it will fly it somewhere else. This gives this plant a new place to grow. Many of these plants and the bats at Muir Woods have a mutualistic relationship! Muir Woods will be celebrating bats and their contributions all week! ... What kinds of bats live in your area? How do they contribute to your environment? To learn more about bats at Muir Woods click the link help:

Muir Woods National Monument will be closed on Monday, October 26 due to a PG&E public safety power shutoff. While GoMuirWoods.com continues to accept reservations for future dates, all reservations for 10/26/20 will be canceled and refunded in full. Thank you for your understanding. For more information, please visit the Marin County Sheriff's Office's website.

For a long time there were three main stories told about Muir Woods: The story of how it was founded: in 1908 William Kent donated this land to the federal government and Theodore Roosevelt made it a National Monument. Franklin D. Roosevelt created the Civilian Conservation Corps in the 1930s who worked on much of the infrustrute found at Muir Woods today.... The United Nations held Franklin D. Roosevelt’s memorial service at Muir Woods. Who is present in these stories? Who is missing from this narrative? All the stories above are true, but they only center three powerful white men and they skip over long periods of time in history. It is not uncommon to find that there were a lot of people behind the scenes to make these histories happen. It turns out that these 3 major landmarks in Muir Woods history are all connected. What connected them was strong intelligent women who are now viewed by the LGBTQ+ community as some of their own. There is a historical string that connects all these events. This shows how the past is not created by isolated dates but by relationships and movements. Read more about this history here:

If a tree could look at a crowd of people, they might assume that everyone looks the same. Likewise, when people look at a forest of trees, we may think all of the trees seem identical. But when you look closely, you may start to see differences in the bark, color, and texture. These differences not only help us greet the trees like old friends, but diversity in a forest helps it thrive and overcome any challenges it may face. How does diversity help you thrive? ... : Jason Fournier #MUWOYes Image description: Several large redwood trees that look beautifully different

Its LGBTQ+ History Month! Today we want to celebrate Rupert Barneby. Rupert Barneby was a botanist and expert on legumes. He was Jewish and openly gay, something rare in the science community during his time. He had over 25 species of beans named after him. Barneby was a successful taxonomist, categorizing plants into groups that helped to enable future research and organization. He spent years going on botanical expeditions with his partner through California, particularl...y helping to research drought resistant plants. With a changing climate and unpredictable weather patterns, it is more important than ever that we understand how different plants respond to drought conditions. Rupert Barneby's research helps us to better understand our parks relationship with drought. How will your local environment be able to adapt to a changing climate? Image Description: Rupert Barneby kneeling next to a desert shrub in the middle of a dessert. Image Credit: The LuEsther T. Mertz Library of the New York Botanical Garden

"It seems to me that we all look at nature too much, and live with her too little." - Oscar Wilde How will you live with nature today? : Alex May... Image Description: A hand holding a clear sphere reflecting a redwood grove canopy. #MUWOYES #Redwoods #MuirWoods #FindYourPark #EncuentraTuParque

There are so many ways to keep celebrating National Latinx/Hispanic Heritage month. We will continue to celebrate the rich culture and contributions of Latinx heritage in your national parks. How do you celebrate your culture?

Mt. Tam State Park is going into Red Flag on Monday, 10/19/20 at 2300 hours, and will be lifting the closure on Wednesday, 10/21/20 at 0800 hours. Upper Mountain will be closed to vehicles at Pantoll/Panoramic and W. Ridgecrest/Bolinas-Fairfax during the closure. Bikers and Hikers may still access the upper mountain. All fires at Pantoll, Bootjack and Steep Ravine will be prohibited. Please visit Mt. Tam State Park's webpage for up-to-date information.

The Latin name for redwood trees is Sequoia Sempervirens, which means ‘always green’. But are the trees ALWAYS green? Very rarely, the needles of the redwood trees are actually albino! These albino redwoods confused scientists at first. The white needles don’t photosynthesize, so were assumed to be a parasite for the tree. However, scientists have since suggested that the albino redwoods do help! When they tested the albino needles, they found high levels of heavy metals. ...These heavy metals could inhibit photosynthesis for the rest of the tree. In this particular albino, the entire tree isn’t white- just the sprouts growing at the base of the redwood. Sometimes you have to make sacrifices to ensure your long term health. What have you been doing in 2020 to stay healthy? : NPS Image description: Image 1: A tall redwood tree stands in the background of the picture, and at it’s base there are sprouts from the redwood tree that appear off white. Image 2: Same image, but with two arrows pointing at the albino sprouts.

Keep your face always toward the sunshine - and shadows will fall behind you. Walt Whitman How do you feel when the sun shines on you? : Shelleven House... Image Description: A view of Redwood Creek during golden hour and sunrays seeping through a redwood forest ecosystem. See more