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The White-crowned sparrow visits, Liquidambars show their colors

Bat populations migrate westward

Close up of a White-crowned Sparrow perched on a branch.
Close up of a White-crowned Sparrow perched on a branch.

The White-Crowned Sparrow Is A Common Winter Visitor throughout San Diego and even deep into southern Mexico. Its range is due to its unihemispheric slow-wave sleep, in which one half of the brain rests while the other half remains alert; the eye that corresponds to the resting side of the brain closes while the eye on the other side remains open. This allows the bird to stay half-awake for up to two weeks during migration. This avian visitor is easily recognizable by its black-and-white striped head, colorful pink or yellow bill, and gray breast. They typically forage in small flocks, digging through leaf litter for weed seeds, buds, and fruits, as well as scrap seeds underneath backyard bird feeders. Look for them in open areas close to brushy habitat or perched on low branches within shrubby hedgerows, and listen for their whistled songs ringing out during winter’s shorter days and colder mornings.

Sweet Gum sap can be chewed on like chewing gum and was also believed to be a cure for sciatica.

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Liquidambar Trees, Or Sweet Gums – deciduous trees gracing front yards, parks, and campuses throughout the San Diego area — have been putting on an exceptionally colorful show of late. The leaves of some varieties turn to purple or red; the leaves of other varieties fade to golden yellow. Still other varieties hold on to their green leaves until sometime in December. Most liquidambars in our area regain their light green foliage by late February.

The Mexican Free-Tailed Bat prefers roosting in caves but will roost in any building with a dark recess.

Bat Populations Increase In Coastal Areas Of San Diego County during the fall and winter due to migration. Not only do bats that  migrate to and through the county coastal areas on north-south migration routes, they also migrate locally: bats from inland areas move closer to the coast for winter. You can usually see bats in locations where open water occurs near riparian trees and close to exposed rocky habitat, places such as Mission Trails Regional Park near the old Mission dam, or Los Peñasquitos Canyon Preserve near the waterfall. And if they seem to be swooping down towards you, rest assured, they aren’t after you, but rather the mosquitos, gnats and other insects typically hovering around you. The most common bats in San Diego County include the Mexican free-tailed bat, big brown bat, and the California leaf-nosed bat.

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Close up of a White-crowned Sparrow perched on a branch.
Close up of a White-crowned Sparrow perched on a branch.

The White-Crowned Sparrow Is A Common Winter Visitor throughout San Diego and even deep into southern Mexico. Its range is due to its unihemispheric slow-wave sleep, in which one half of the brain rests while the other half remains alert; the eye that corresponds to the resting side of the brain closes while the eye on the other side remains open. This allows the bird to stay half-awake for up to two weeks during migration. This avian visitor is easily recognizable by its black-and-white striped head, colorful pink or yellow bill, and gray breast. They typically forage in small flocks, digging through leaf litter for weed seeds, buds, and fruits, as well as scrap seeds underneath backyard bird feeders. Look for them in open areas close to brushy habitat or perched on low branches within shrubby hedgerows, and listen for their whistled songs ringing out during winter’s shorter days and colder mornings.

Sweet Gum sap can be chewed on like chewing gum and was also believed to be a cure for sciatica.

Sponsored
Sponsored

Liquidambar Trees, Or Sweet Gums – deciduous trees gracing front yards, parks, and campuses throughout the San Diego area — have been putting on an exceptionally colorful show of late. The leaves of some varieties turn to purple or red; the leaves of other varieties fade to golden yellow. Still other varieties hold on to their green leaves until sometime in December. Most liquidambars in our area regain their light green foliage by late February.

The Mexican Free-Tailed Bat prefers roosting in caves but will roost in any building with a dark recess.

Bat Populations Increase In Coastal Areas Of San Diego County during the fall and winter due to migration. Not only do bats that  migrate to and through the county coastal areas on north-south migration routes, they also migrate locally: bats from inland areas move closer to the coast for winter. You can usually see bats in locations where open water occurs near riparian trees and close to exposed rocky habitat, places such as Mission Trails Regional Park near the old Mission dam, or Los Peñasquitos Canyon Preserve near the waterfall. And if they seem to be swooping down towards you, rest assured, they aren’t after you, but rather the mosquitos, gnats and other insects typically hovering around you. The most common bats in San Diego County include the Mexican free-tailed bat, big brown bat, and the California leaf-nosed bat.

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"Christmas Berry" is decorating our landscape, Longest meteor shower of the year

Full "cold moon," extremely high tides
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A history of the house on the hill at Ivanhoe Ranch

From Apolinaria Lorenzana to Jane Goodall
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4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
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