Environmental News

A curated set of environmental news stories brought to you by the Gottlieb Native Garden team.

The Vanishing Butterfly Groves of California

Action is urgently needed to address the challenges facing monarch butterfly overwintering sites.

Why we need a variety of ways to protect wildlife

We must fight for the Endangered Species Act and build up other lines of defense

California’s monarch butterflies remain critically low for second year

The western monarch butterfly population wintering along California’s coast remains critically low for the second year in a row, a count by an environmental group released Thursday showed.

Cookies, Honey, Tangerines, Manure—These Birds Have Some Strange Scents

There’s still a lot scientists don’t know about odor in the avian world, but this much is clear: Some species really smell.

Birds in California’s desert are dying

As heat rises and weather patterns change, our storied California desert bird populations have fallen.

Vomiting bumblebees show that sweeter is not necessarily better

A new study using bumblebees has found that the sweetest nectar is not necessarily the best: too much sugar slows down the bees.

Urgent Action to Protect California Spotted Owls Recommended by Wildlife Biologists

In the Pacific Northwest, the range expansion of Barred Owls has contributed to a conservation crisis for Northern Spotted Owls, which are being displaced from their old-growth forest habitat. 

California’s trees could shift as global warming forces birds to move out


Song surveys show that species key to spreading seeds are shuffling up and down the mountain.

California Condor

Although it can be found in several southwestern states and in Mexico, the California Condor is a distinct part of California’s natural heritage

Over a million snow geese have arrived in California: How you can see them

And for the past 20 years, there’s been Chico’s Snow Goose Festival of the Pacific Flyway celebrating the birds’ landing.