Explore the Creek for the Birds

Last Sunday morning, May 3rd, about 30 people gathered at Jack Hill Park in east Elk Grove to assemble bird and duck boxes.

Explore (and help) the Creek!

We are all familiar with the sound of a woodpecker drumming on a tree searching for food or building a nest site. But what about the many other bird species that nest deep inside tree limbs but don’t have the means to create their own home? Join the Laguna Creek Watershed Council this Sunday as we lend a helping hand (wing?) to some of our feathered, cavity-nesting friends.

Creek Week is Right Around the Corner

We all know Creek Week is a time to get out on the creeks and get our hands dirty, but did you know it’s also a great time to go on local tours, or celebrate with other creek volunteers? Sign up to view beavers, birds, blooms, fish, or habitat restoration efforts on one of the […]

Cliff Swallows- Coming to a Bridge Near You!

Have you ever seen a flock of birds flying near a bridge in Elk Grove, zipping about like a tiny squadron of fighter planes?  Chances are, you were looking at a nesting colony of cliff swallows.  Swallows are known aerial acrobats and they feed by catching insects on the wing. They were named for their natural […]

Mather Vernal Pool Work Day, March 22, 2015

The vernal pool open space area along Morrison Creek was the gathering place for a group of watershed council members and friends this past Sunday morning. We came to prune and wrap oak trees planted along the creek, adjacent to the Independence at Mather community. The voles seem to be eating the bark on a […]

An endangered species near you!

Spring is the time of year when California’s vernal pools are the busiest. There are abundant small crustaceans living out their short lives in these seasonal wetlands. One, listed as endangered, is the Vernal Pool Tadpole Shrimp– Lepidurus packardi.

The Return of the Kingbird!

With Swainson’s hawks beginning to trickle back into the area and sandhill cranes leaving, now is a great time to be on the lookout for returning resident birds.  One bird in particular to keep an eye out for is the western kingbird. Returning from wintering grounds in southern Mexico and Central America, this flycatcher typically […]