Save the Date | Skippers in your yard! | Public Hearing
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Umber Skipper (Poanes melane)
The photo above, taken by Janet Rudolph who lives on Marlborough Terrace, features an umber skipper (Poanes melane). "We’ve had a lot of skippers recently, and it’s fun to see them frolic in my garden. This skipper was in my front garden on one of my roses."
Umber skippers are easy to spot this time of year flittering on grassy areas, roadsides, open oak woodland, and yards. They belong to the Hesperiidae family and are best identified by their umber brown upperside and a forewing with darker disc and pale spots (read more here).
Fun fact: there are about 30 species of skippers in the Bay Area—you can read more about these "dazzling aerialists" in this Bay Nature article "Skippers: Between Butterfly and Moth". Also visit Kay Loughman's wildlife website to see more species found in the canyon.
November 1 Planning Commission Meeting
Friday October 20th was the 32nd anniversary of the Tunnel Fire which took 25 lives and destroyed 3,000 homes here in our neighborhood, the hills of Oakland and Berkeley above the Claremont Hotel. The City of Oakland has been working for several years on a comprehensive Vegetation Management Plan. The Conservancy and neighborhood groups in our area support the plan (read David Kessler's post representing the board of the North Hills Community Association).
On Wednesday, November 1st at 3:00 P.M., the city will have a public hearing to discuss the revised plan and EIR. Come to the City Council chambers, 1 Frank Ogawa Plaza. You can find the revised draft EIRhere and click the button below for more about the Planning Commission meeting.
Annual Meeting—November 12 from 4-6 P.M. at the Claremont Club and Spa
We are pleased to announce our invited speakers—Janani Ramachandran, District 4 Councilmember (left) who represents the Oakland Hills neighborhoods, will be the key speaker at the Claremont Conservancy Annual Meeting. She will be accompanied by Joe DeVries, Oakland's Deputy City Administrator (right), who has been coordinating the city's work to reduce the risk of wildfire. You can read more about them on our website here and in our fall print newsletter coming to you in your mailbox.
The annual meeting will be an opportunity to learn about Oakland's revised vegetation management plan and assess whether the plan and EIR merits support. The meeting is open to the public and all are welcome to attend, whether or not they are Conservancy members.
Location: Upstairs in the Skyline room of the Claremont Club and Spa. Light refreshments and beverages will be available. (RSVP optional).
Visit this 13-acre park and help restore its native wild habitat (we meet year-round). Meet at the Fireplacebelow the Evergreen Lane entrance. For more informationor questionscontactWyllie.
Join us at Signpost 29for a day of restoration (1.5 miles up Claremont from the intersection of Ashby/Tunnel Rd.) aswe work to restore and maintain pathways, remove invasive broom and collect litter. More information Here. Questions? Contact us at info@claremontcanyon.org..
Volunteer- Meet every 1st and 3rd Saturday of the month from 9am-noon.
Adopt a Spot!-Volunteeron a different day and time by yourself, with friends and/or family, or bring your local group. Contact the GPStewards at gpstewards@gmail.com to sign up.
We would love to hear from our members and others who are out hiking or otherwise observing nature in the canyon. Send us your pictures and we will feature one each month.
The photo above, taken by Courtney Walker in her yard, features a painted lady butterfly (Vanessa cardui). "My partner, Reed, has been cultivating native pollinator plants in our yard, so I was excited to see this painted lady spending a good amount of time sampling the yarrow." This beautiful butterfly is also known as the "Thistle Butterfly because of the caterpillars' food preference and also as the Cosmopolitan because it is the most widely distributed butterfly in the world." You can read more about them here and also visit Kay Loughman's wildlife website to see more species in the canyon.
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The photo above was taken by Marilyn Goldhaber along the Stonewall-Panoramic Trail.
Trails are open
All trails are open and accessible throughout Claremont Canyon. For maps and complete information on trails click here. Please stay safe and take all items and pet waste out with you.