Fall Bulletin 2008 (788k PDF) - Audubon Canyon Ranch

At 1½ inches 

tall, dwarf 

downingia 

towers over 

dwarf woolly 

marbles. 

ACR PHOTO 

au d u b o n Ca n yo n ra n C h 

number 43 bulletin Fall 2008 

Home to Endangered Species 

California Ve r n a l Po o l s 

by Sherry Adams 

Several years ago when I 

accepted my first job working 

in California vernal pools, I 

was nervous: I had just committed to 

spending many weeks in the hot sun 

of a grassland studying plants. Soon, 

I would discover that being surrounded by tiny, 

colorful, densely packed wildflowers in bloom 

would prove to be one of the most magnificent 

experiences of my life. 

Stunning flowers are just the beginning. 

There are also solitary ground-nesting bees that 

specialize in pollinating one type of flower, 

shrimp the size of ladybugs with 11 pairs of legs 

that swim on their backs, and predatory beetle 

larvae that troll the waters. Welcome to the 

surreal world of California vernal pools. 

Vernal pools are spots in grasslands where 

rainwater collects because of bedrock or clay 

soils, creating a seasonal wetland. California’s 

winter rains fill the small pools or interconnected 

swales, and with the onset of the dry season 

in spring, they become completely desiccated. 

While this environment may be tough for 

the human huddled under a wide-brimmed 

summer hat or slogging in rubber rain gear, 

vernal pool species are specially adapted to this 

challenging environment. Plants grow quickly 

and produce seeds prolifically. Animals either 

leave the habitat in summer (as with amphibians), 

or they have a drought resistant stage 

in their lifecycle. The tiny freshwater shrimp 

that inhabit vernal pools spend the summer as 

cysts — embryos in a sort of ‘arrested development’ 

phase, encased in tiny hard shells, waiting 

for the winter rains. Waterfowl are also an 

important part of the system. When they visit 

vernal pools, they move around plant seeds and 

shrimp, organisms which would not otherwise 

be able to move from pool to pool. 

> Please turn to Vernal Pools, page 4 

The endangered 

native flower 

Sonoma 

sunshine growing 

at the Bouverie 

Preserve 

ACR PHOTO

Page 2 Audubon Canyon Ranch 

audubon Canyon 

ranch 

Board oF direCtors 

OffiCeRs 

Bryant Hichwa, 

President 

Joan Lamphier, 

Vi c e Pr e s i d e n t 

Andy Lafrenz, 

se c r e ta ry 

DiReCTORs 

Leonard Blumin 

Tom Bradner 

Mary Ann Cobb 

suzie Coleman 

sam Dakin 

Roberta Downey 

Leslie flint 

Christina Green 

Diane Jacobson 

Joshua Levine 

Valerie Merrin 

Dan Murphy 

ivan Obolensky 

Alan Pabst 

Judy Prokupek 

Bill Richardson 

Paul Ruby 

Rich schiller 

April starke slakey 

Jean starkweather 

sue stoddard 

Lowell sykes 

francis Toldi 

Patrick Woodworth 

Nancy Young 

eMeritUs direCtors 

Deborah Ablin 

Richard B. Baird 

Nancy Barbour 

L. Martin Griffin, M.D., 

Founder 

Jack Harper 

flora Maclise 

George Peyton, Jr. 

Helen Pratt 

adVisors 

Julie Allecta 

Ruth Baillie 

Tom Baty 

Gordon Bennett 

Patti Blumin 

Noelle Bon 

stephen Colwell 

Hugh Cotter 

Phyllis ellman 

Binny fischer 

James Gallagher, Ph.D. 

Tony Gilbert 

Carol Guerrero 

Robert Hahn 

Jim Horan 

Alan Margolis, M.D. 

Leslie R. Perry 

Marty Rosen 

Gerry snedaker 

Betsy stafford 

Brian Wittenkeller 

Robert Yanagida 

A Note from the President of the Board 

Con s e r V a t i o n sC i e n C e at au d u b o n Ca n y o n ra n C h 

Audubon Canyon Ranch’s mission includes 

the preservation of environmentally-sensitive 

lands in Sonoma and Marin counties. As part 

of ACR efforts at the Bolinas Lagoon and 

Bouverie preserves, we have world-recognized 

environmental education programs for children 

(through school field 

trips), young adults 

(through Bouverie’s 

Juniper Program), and 

adults (through volunteer 

training programs, 

which offer continuing 

lifelong learning opportunities). 

Perhaps 

you support these 

education programs as 

a volunteer or through 

financial donations, 

such as with the 

Partners in Education 

donor circle. 

The preservation 

and education programs 

represent two segments 

of the Audubon 

Canyon Ranch mission. 

Additionally, ACR staff biologists are known 

nationwide for their excellence in conservation 

science research. They provide the stewardship 

of the preserves through a scientific approach 

to conservation. Their expertise ranges from 

wetlands ecology, wetland birds, various 

grass habitats, and the general ecology of 

Northern California. 

by Bryant Hichwa 

A coast live oak acorn sprouts in the Bolinas 

Lagoon Preserve native plant nursery. 

PHOTO: DeNise DeLLA sANTiNA 

Dr. John Kelly, Director of Conservation 

Science and Habitat Protection, says that 

the strength of the Audubon Canyon Ranch 

science team is that we are “a locally-invested, 

agile organization. When we encounter an 

environmental issue, we can adjust our priorities 

and work it out. We 

are stewards of the land 

over the long term.” ACR’s 

locally-driven research, 

the studies of various 

ecosystems, can be and is 

applied globally. 

Among the current 

projects of the conservation 

science program 

is the Four Canyons 

Restoration Project at the 

Bolinas Lagoon Preserve. 

A thorough study of the 

native and non-native 

plant species allowed ACR 

scientists to create a restora- 

tion plan to return these 

areas to native vegetation. 

We are in the midst of 

this project. Last fall and 

spring, seeds from native plants were collected, 

and a native plant propagation program and 

plant nursery was built. Over the last six 

months, these plant species have been cultivated 

by a team of scientists and volunteers. 

We are now poised to begin the revegetation 

process at the beginning of the rainy season 

this fall. 

> Please turn to ConserVation sCienCe, page 5

Bulletin 43, Fall 2008 Page 3 

A Note from the Executive Director 

loo k i n g fo r w a r d at au d u b o n Ca n y o n ra n C h 

In the early years (1960s), Audubon Canyon 

Ranch focused primarily on buying and preserving 

lands and strategic habitat to protect 

the nesting colony of Great Blue Herons and 

Great Egrets at the Bolinas Lagoon Preserve, 

including important habitat in and around 

Bolinas Lagoon. 

In the 1970s, ACR 

began to acquire lands in 

order to protect wetlands 

and important habitat in 

the Tomales Bay area, 

including the Cypress 

Grove Research Center. 

In the 1980s, ACR 

worked to protect 500 

acres of beautiful lands 

at the Bouverie Preserve 

in Sonoma’s Valley 

of the Moon. 

Audubon Canyon 

Ranch also felt a great 

responsibility to the 

community to use these 

lands wisely – first as a sanctuary 

for native plants and 

animals and then, where 

appropriate, ACR developed an award-winning 

education program that is recognized internationally 

and continues with great enthusiasm as 

of this writing. ACR follows a lifelong learning 

model of adult education and also provides an 

excellent hands-on program at no charge for 

schoolchildren – a real experience in nature, 

within a science matrix. 

by Skip Schwartz 

Looking west from the protected hills of the 

Bolinas Lagoon Preserve 

PHOTO: WYN HOAG 

In addition to acquiring exquisite preserve 

lands to protect and to use as a natural 

classroom, Audubon Canyon Ranch realized 

that in order to manage these 2,000 acres 

well and wisely for the benefit of native plants 

and animals, we would need to strengthen 

our science program to 

inform us and provide 

us with good information 

to develop best 

practices. Now, as we 

move forward, Audubon 

Canyon Ranch has 

established a conservation 

science program that 

is providing excellent 

research in the field of 

resource ecology, as well 

as a restoration program 

for the areas of our 

preserve lands that have 

been damaged by human 

activities and/or invasive 

plant and animal species. 

As we look forward, 

we want to enrich each 

of these programs with 

the lessons learned from the others and from 

our community. For example, ACR’s education 

programs are dependent on a highly trained, 

committed volunteer corps of docents, guides 

and junior naturalists to bring ACR education 

programs to the community. The ACR 

Conservation Science program has a Heron and 

Egret Project that also relies on a network of 

> Please turn to looking Forward, page 5 

staFF 

Maurice A. “skip” schwartz, 

Executive Director 

John Petersen, 

Associate Director 

Ed u c at i o n, 

co n s E r vat i o n sc iE n c E 

a n d Ha b i tat Pr o t E c t i o n 

John Kelly, Ph.D., 

Director of Conservation 

Science & Habitat 

Protection 

sherry Adams, 

HPR Project Leader, BP 

emiko Condeso, 

Research Coordinator 

Denise Della santina, 

HPR Project Leader, 

Marin 

Dan Gluesenkamp, Ph.D., 

Director, Habitat 

Protection & Restoration 

Gwen Heistand, 

Resident Biologist, 

BLP/Co-Director of 

Education 

Claire Hutkins seda, 

Weekend Program 

Facilitator, BLP 

Christine Rothenbach, 

Helen Pratt Research 

Fellow 

Jeanne Wirka, 

Resident Biologist, 

BP/Co-Director of 

Education 

Pr E s E r v E st E wa r d s H iP 

Bill Arthur, 

Land Steward, BLP 

David Greene, 

Land Steward, CGRC 

John Martin, 

Land Steward, BP 

Matej seda, 

Maintenance 

Assistant, BLP 

ad m i n i s t r at i o n 

Yvonne Pierce, 

Administrative 

Director/BLP Manager 

suzanna Naramore, 



Leslie sproul, 

Receptionist/Office 


Nancy Trbovich, 


Coordinator, BP 

Barbara Wechsberg, 

Cashier/Receptionist 

Fi n a n cE a n d dE v E l o P m E n t 

Cassie Gruenstein, 

Director of Development 

& Communications 

Jennifer Newman, 

Development Manager 

stephen Pozsgai, 

Controller 

BLP Bolinas Lagoon 

Preserve 

BP Bouverie Preserve 

CGRC Cypress Grove 

Research Center


Dwarf downingia 

growing in a 

recently burned 

portion of the 

Bouverie Preserve 

ACR PHOTO 

Vernal Pools from page 1 

These fascinating little plants and animals 

are only one part of the story; vernal pools are a 

habitat in peril. You likely know of endangered 

species and some of the factors that caused the 

decline of grizzly bears or California condors, 

for example. Think now of what might make a 

habitat threatened. California vernal pools are 

found in valleys — fairly flat locations, easily 

accessed — just the sort of spot where we put 

our cities, towns, farms and vineyards. As a 

result, more than 80 percent of California vernal 

pools are already gone, and more continue to 

be destroyed. 

California vernal pools are also the site of 

some of the most inspiring stories of conservation 

collaboration anywhere. One thing we 

have learned in the last 10 years is that cattle 

grazing, when done in a controlled fashion, is an 

important part of keeping vernal pool grasslands 

healthy, since cattle specialize in eating the fast 

growing grasses introduced from Europe. These 

grasses were brought here accidentally or sewn 

for forage in decades past and now often choke 

out many of our California native plant species. 

Resulting is the opportunity for some unexpected 

but very productive partnerships between 

ranchers and conservationists to simultaneously 

protect this habitat and sustain cattle ranching 

in California. 

At ACR’s Bouverie Preserve in Sonoma 

Valley, we have promoted many collaborative 

efforts to protect vernal pools and the world 

of tiny organisms that rely on them. As a part 

of our prescribed grazing program, our vernal 

pool grassland is lightly grazed for three months 

out of the year by a local rancher. With financial 

support from ACR Partners in Conservation, 

the Community Foundation Sonoma County, 

and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, we have 

been working to provide one of the few refuges 

to the endangered vernal pool plant Sonoma 

sunshine, a tiny sunflower found only in a 

handful of locations in Sonoma County. 

One thing we have learned at Audubon 

Canyon Ranch is that conservation must 

> Please turn to Vernal Pools, page 6


ConserVation sCienCe from page 2 

The lessons learned through these scientific 

studies are shared openly in local forums, as well 

as national peer reviewed journals. We work on 

local small scale projects, done with the very 

best conservation science methodology. The 

applicability of these scientific studies to the 

“landscape” or regional scale has been shown 

to be an effective and economical means to 

predict what will happen in larger ecosystems. 

We want to encourage you to get involved 

with ACR’s conservation science programs. 

Opportunities abound. Become a citizen scientist 

with the Heron and Egret Project, which 

studies the nesting success of heron and egret 

colonies over the entire North Bay. Join the 

restoration team under Dr. Dan Gluesenkamp 

on the Four Canyons Restoration Project. Get 

involved in fire ecology studies with Bouverie 

Preserve’s Resident Biologist Jeanne Wirka. 

looking Forward from page 3 

volunteers to census the status of nesting colonies 

throughout the San Francisco Bay Area. 

The ACR Habitat Protection and Restoration 

program takes advantage of the many willing 

hands of our restoration volunteers to help 

DRAWiNGs: ANe CARLA ROVeTTA 

Plant with the Bouverie Stewards, who you 

can learn more about in Sherry Adams’ article 

in this Bulletin. 

Aside from these fantastic volunteer opportunities, 

we hope you will support ACR’s restoration 

ecology and conservation science projects with 

a generous donation by joining the Partners in 

Conservation donor circle. 

Your participation is important and makes 

a difference. 

Bryant Hichwa is ACR’s Board President. 

monitor and restore damaged habitat. Many 

ACR volunteers are shared between these programs. 

Good conservation science shapes and 

informs program content, goals and methods. 

It gives me great pleasure as executive director 

to see the enthusiasm and mutual enrichment 

generated by the interplay of professional staff 

and volunteers working in Education, Conservation 

Science and Habitat Restoration and 

Protection at Audubon Canyon Ranch. Please 

remain active in or consider joining an ACR 

volunteer group, and I hope to see you out at 

the Ranch. 

Skip Schwartz is ACR’s Executive Director.


Sonoma sunshine, 

dwarf woolly 

marbles, dwarf 

downingia, 

popcorn flower 

and hedge-hyssop 

at the Bouverie 

Preserve 

ACR PHOTO 

Vernal Pools from page 4 

happen at multiple levels simultaneously to be 

successful. That means that though it is important 

to work on conserving Sonoma sunshine 

on the 500 acres of the Bouverie Preserve, it is 

not enough. We must partner with different 

organizations in Sonoma County working to 

preserve vernal pools if we hope to provide 

protection for this habitat. Accordingly, 

Bouverie Preserve science staff has been active 

in a regional vernal pool network and hosted 

an acclaimed vernal pool symposium in 2007. 

When the invasive medusahead grass threatened 

our vernal pool grassland, through collaboration 

with the local CAL FIRE station we used one 

of the most effective eradication tools know 

for this species: fire. 

Audubon Canyon Ranch volunteers are crucial 

collaborators in conservation, providing critical 

help to save these and other habitats. From the 

vernal pool project’s beginning, volunteers have 

been involved in vernal pool conservation — 

through the weekly Bouverie Stewards group, as 

well as with the stalwart help of work day volunteers, 

who got hundreds of propagated plants 

into the ground on a rainy day last winter. 

ACR volunteers, crucial collaborators in conservation, 

got hundreds of propagated plants into the ground on 

a rainy day in January. 

PHOTO: DeNise DeLLA sANTiNA 

If you visit a California vernal pool this fall, 

you will see a dry depression in a grassland. Look 

a little closer and you will see the little dried up 

parts of wildflowers and the cysts of freshwater 

shrimp. Once you get to know this habitat, you 

will realize there is much more going on here 

than meets the eye. It is in these little depressions 

that a bevy of plants and animals found 

nowhere else on earth live their entire lives and 

important partnerships are forged, which make 

conservation possible in California grasslands. 

Sherry Adams is ACR’s Habitat Protection 

and Restoration Project Leader for 

the Bouverie Preserve.


Ca r o l y n ti m m i n s C re a t e s l a s t i n g l e g a C y a n d 

is re m e m b e re d f o n d l y a t ACR 

Carolyn Timmins, a longtime Audubon 

Canyon Ranch docent who died at her Greenbrae 

home February 13, 2008, at the age of 73, 

has remembered ACR in her estate plan with a 

$300,000 bequest from her IRA. 

Former ACR Board President and current 

Director and Ranch Guide Sue Stoddard 

recalled receiving a handwritten note from 

Carolyn after an article on the Stoddard IRA 

commitment to ACR appeared 

in a past Bulletin. 

“Who sends handwritten 

notes anymore?” Sue said. “That 

was the sort of person Carolyn 

was. I was very touched.” 

Sue and Carolyn first met as 

Marin Environmental Forum 

XVII classmates studying 

environmental awareness and 

advocacy. The Forum numbers 

ACR founder Marty Griffin, 

Senator Barbara Boxer and 

Marin Agricultural Land Trust 

founder Phyllis Faber among its founders and 

early graduates. “I still remember the presentation 

Carolyn made on the great tradition of 

women environmentalists in Marin as part 

of her training,” Sue recalled. 

One training day they visited Audubon 

Canyon Ranch where they met Executive 

Director Skip Schwartz, ACR’s first naturalist 

Clerin Zumwalt, and former ACR naturalist/ 

entomologist Ray Peterson. “As a result of that 

visit,” Sue said, “I became a Ranch Guide and 

Carolyn became a Bolinas Lagoon Preserve 

by Phil Murphy 

Docent.” Carolyn recently also trained as an 

ACR Ranch Guide. 

Carolyn’s brother Richard Colby, a retired 

journalist living in Portland, Oregon, said that 

Carolyn, a native of Oregon, loved Marin 

County. “She stayed close to home and was 

active in the community,” he said. Besides ACR, 

she supported the Marin Agricultural Land 

Trust, Hospice By The Bay, and the San Francisco 

Symphony and Opera. 

An IRA distribution at death 

to charity is considered a tax-wise 

strategy, since such distributions 

avoid both estate tax and income 

tax. Those taxes can in some 

cases reduce an IRA’s value as 

much as 60%. 

Coast live oak 

leaves and 

acorns. 

DRAWiNG: 

ANe CARLA ROVeTTA 

“It’s also simple to do and easy 

to distribute,” Sue said. “I think 

that appealed to Carolyn. I know 

it appealed to me.” 

Carolyn Timmins was a 

member of ACR’s Clerin Zumwalt 

Legacy Circle, which honors those who have 

included ACR in their estate plans, and she 

attended its annual luncheons over the years. 

Audubon Canyon Ranch is deeply grateful 

for Carolyn’s generous bequest. 

For information on the Clerin Zumwalt 

Legacy Circle, contact Cassie Gruenstein, ACR 

Director of Development and Communications, 

at 415-868-9244 ext. 13 or at cassie@egret.org. 

Phil Murphy is ACR’s planned giving specialist.


DistinguisheD 

benefactors 

($100,000 +) 

Estate of Carolyn Timmins 

Major benefactors 

($50,000 – 99,999) 

Frank A. Campini Foundation 

benefactors 

($25,000 – 49,999) 

Estate of Georgiana De Ropp 

Ducas 

The Marin Community 

Foundation 

Patrons 

($15,000 – 24,999) 

Anonymous 

Chris & Bob Hunter, Jr. 

Carolyn Moore on behalf of 

The George L. Shields 

Foundation 

The John A. Sellon Trust 

leaDing sPonsors 

($5,000 – 14,999) 

Arthur & Deborah Ablin 

Bishop Pine Fund 

Sheila & Francois Brutsch 

Community Foundation 

Sonoma County 

Jan & Louis Lee 

Outrageous Foundation 

Estate of William Stanton Picher 

Kenneth & Marjorie Sauer 

The San Francisco Foundation 

Joel Toste 

Major sPonsors 

($1,000 – 4,999) 

Anonymous 

Julie Allecta 

Donald & Nancy Barbour 

Barbara R. Barkovich 

Jobst Brandt 

Estate of Mary Bresler 

Helen Cahill 

Johnna Coats 

Mary Ann Cobb & Peter Wilson 

Duncan Dwelle 

Binny & Chuck Fischer 

Kristina Flanagan 

Leslie L. Flint 

James J. Gallagher Family Fund 

Tony Gilbert & Laurel Wroten 

Tony & Caroline Grant 

John Gruenstein & Carolyn 

Buffington 

Phillip & Naomi Holm 

Susan H. Hossfeld 

Dwight L. Johnson 

Kern Family Fund of the 

San Francisco Foundation 

The generosity of Audubon Canyon Ranch supporters makes it possible to 

continue our mission of nature preservation, education, and research. We 

thank all the individuals and organizations who contributed during this 

last fiscal year (July 1, 2007 to June 30, 2008). A permanent list of donors 

whose cumulative gifts are $5,000 or more—ACR’s Grove of Honor—is 

Laurie Lewis 

Paul & Barbara Licht 

Alan Margolis 

Marin Audubon Society 

Dorothy C. Martin 

Valerie Merrin & Bill Deyo 

National Semiconductor on 

behalf of Bruce Roberts 

Edna O’Connor 

Alan & Virginia Pabst 

Diane E. Parish & Paul Gelburd 

Lewis & Joanna Picher 

Estate of Jane M. Fehrensen 

Jeanne Price 

Margaret Saulsberry 

The Upjohn California Fund 

Westminster Presbyterian Church 

Ted & Lisa Williams 

sPonsors 

($500 – 999) 

Anonymous 

Gayle A. Anderson 

The Barth Foundation 

Leonard & Patti Blumin 

Bolinas Community 

Roy Bouque 

Tom Bradner 

Brian Cluer 

Nancy & Dale Cox 

Elizabeth Crispin 

Barbara E. Dittmann 

John & Betty Edwards 

Emergency Management 

& Safety Solutions 

Joan Finkle 

Robert Glauz 

Susan Gray 

Robert E. & Julie M. Hahn 

Gerald & Madelon Halpern 

Jack F. & Deyea Harper 

Jan Harrelson 

Jake & Kim Hobson 

Alan Humphrey & Eleanor Boba 

James & Rosemary Jepson 

Mike & Carol Katz 

The Keon-Vitale Family 

Peter & Annette Kerner 

Harriet & Tom Kostic 

Everdina Lampe 

located in the display hall at Bolinas Lagoon Preserve. 

John & Carolyn Longstreth 

L. G. & Flora Maclise 

Art & Lyn Magill 

Linda Marshik 

Virginia Martin 

Don & Mara Melandry 

Dan Melvin 

Mill Valley Market 

Jane Miller 

John Odell 

George S. Peyton, Jr. 

Tim & Pat Preston 

Judy Prokupek 

Patricia M. Ramey 

Bill & Betty Rhoades 

Ron Rosano & Susan Morrow 

Neil Rudolph & Susan Cluff 

Phyllis Schmitt 

Richard Shiffrin 

Marion & Willis Slusser 

Lisa Teot 

Petaluma Rotary Club 

Peter & Nancy Young 

Sue Zimmerman 

frienDs 

($250 – 499) 

Christopher & Jane Adams 

Robert & Linda Alwitt 

Richard Baird 

Julie Barney 

Lorraine Bazan 

Kate Bordisso & Ken Schwartz 

Jerry & Lynnette Bourne 

La Dolce V Fine Chocolates 

Patricia Brennan 

Bunker & Company 

Elizabeth Burridge 

Peter & Eugenia Caldwell 

Linda & Stephen Cederborg 

Dave & Margaret Chenoweth 

Earl & Sue Cohen 

Frank Colin 

Anthony & Robyn Contini 

Hugh Cotter & Susan Coghlan 

Nancy Kent Danielson 

John Daugherty & Jeanie Ahn 

Ann & Ken Davis 

Patricia Donchin 

Sheldon P. Donig & Steven R. 

Dehart 

Wendy & John Doughty 

Empire Waste Management 

Sharon Enright 

Katie & Serge Etienne 

Bill & Gisela Evitt 

Carolyn M. Farren 

Francoise Fleishhacker 

Mark Forney 

Ellen Gilkerson 

Marya Glass & Geof Syphers 

Jill & Rocky Hammond 

Harvey & Judy Heikel 

Diane Holycross 

Mark Jackson & Esperanza 

Uruena 

Don & Louise Johnston 

Dr. Nancy Olmsted Kaehr 

& Mr. Michael Kaehr 

Nathan Kaufman & Lynn Franco 

Andy & Diane Lafrenz 

Lam Research Corporate 

Community Affairs 

Kit & George Lee 

Eileen & Gordon Libby 

Stephanie & William MacColl 

Donna Maier 

G. Steven & Gail Martin 

Alice T. May 

Julian & Charlene McCaull 

George & Marie McKinney 

Purple Lady/Barbara J. Meislin 

Fund 

Anna H. Meyer 

Ross & Jess Millikan 

Mission Avenue School 

David Morell 

Dan & Joan Murphy 

Mary Belle O’Brien 

ACR keeps careful records of every contribution we receive. We regret that limited 

space makes it impossible to publish the name of every donor. In case of errors and 

omissions, we apologize and ask that you contact us with corrections.


PG&E Corporation Campaign 

for the Community 

Kevin & Nancy Padian 

Kirk Pessner & Russ Miller 

Ryan & Stewart Phelan 

Christine Pielenz & William Laven 

Bill & Yvonne Pierce 

Julia Pollock 

Sausalito Woman’s Club 

Joyce Schnobrich 

Maria & David Scott 

Maggie & Contee Seely 

Lee Seidner 

Elizabeth & Frank Smith 

Robert Smith & Janet Huseby 

Nicki & Tom Spillane 

Craig & Jane Spriggs 

April Starke Slakey 

Joan Steinberg 

Susan Stoddard 

Natsu Ota Taylor 

Ruth & Alan Tobey 

Francis & Leigh Toldi 

Peter John Watkins 

Whole Foods Market 

Diana Woehle 

Patrick Woodworth & Lee Brewster 

Lyle & Timathea Workman 

trilliuM 

($5,000+) 

John & Ruth Baillie 

Estate of David Pleydell 

Bouverie 

Josephine Lawrence 

Hopkins Foundation 

Jane Sinclair 

Jan Gerrett Snedaker 

& Diane Krause 

Diogenes lantern 

($2,500 – 4,999) 

Lenore & Howard Klein 

Foundation 

Lisa Salamone & Tony 

Pisacane 

Glenda & Harold Ross 

Partners in conservation 

ACR’s Partners in Conservation directly support 

exciting conservation science and habitat protection 

work being conducted on ACR’s 2,000 acres of protected 

wildlands in Marin and Sonoma counties. With gifts 

of $5,000 or more annually, Partners in Conservation 

are helping ACR scientists provide solutions to regional 

problems in conservation biology that affect the 

ecological landscapes in central coastal California. 

$25,000 + 

Dennis & Carol Ann Rockey 

Fund of the Marin 

Community Foundation 

The Dean Witter Foundation 

corPorate Partners 

in conservation 

Wilbur Ellis Company 

$5,000 - 9,999 

Julie Allecta 

John & Ruth Baillie 

Roberta & Paul Downey 

Robert J. & Helen H. Glaser 

Family Foundation 

Charles Greshamengelberg 

Friends & Family of 

Barbara Hammond 

Matthews Family Trust 

Jean Starkweather 

frienDs of bouverie 

Friends of Bouverie make a special annual contribution of $500 

or more to support the programs of the Bouverie Preserve. 

WooDlanD star 

($1,000 – 2,499) 

Julie Allecta 

Dorcas Allison 

Atwood Ranch 

Phillip & Naomi Holm 

Ellie Insley 

Messing Family Charitable 

Foundation 

Mid & Cissie O’Brien 

Heidi Stewart & John 

Weinstein 

sky luPine 

($500 – 999) 

Robert & Michelle Friend 

Foundation 

Jack F. & Deyea Harper 

Bryant & Diane Hichwa 

Diana Hindley 

$10,000 + 

Tommy F. Angell 

Suzie Coleman 

Fullerton Family Foundation 

of the Marin Community 

Foundation 

John Osterweis & 

Barbara Ravizza Osterweis 

$5,000 - 9,999 

Shirley & Peter Bogardus 

Jane & Douglas Ferguson 

Robert & Michelle Friend 

Foundation 

L. Martin Griffin, Jr., M.D. 

& Family 

Quigley/Hiltner Fund of the 

San Francisco Foundation 

Chris & Bob Hunter, Jr. 

Marian Kirby 

Gaye & John LeBaron 

Al & Jane Milotich 

Karen & Ted Nagel 

Robert & Agnes Perry 

Frank & Anna Pope 

Linda & Jeff Reichel 

John & Dianne Samples 

Marilyn & Don Sanders 

Diana Sanson 

Noellene & Michael 

Sommer 

Deborah & Joe Votek 

Don & Annette Wild 

Courtenay R. Wood 

& H. Noel Jackson, Jr. 

Partners in eDucation 

Audubon Canyon Ranch Partners in Education make 

an annual commitment of $5,000 or more to directly 

support ACR’s environmental education programs. 

corPorate Partners 

in eDucation 

Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & 

Walker 

ANe CARLA ROVeTTA


trail Day at the 

bouverie Preserve 

Monday, September 15, 2008 

8:30 a.m. to noon 

You are invited to join Bouverie Stewards 

and other restoration volunteers for Trail 

Day at the Bouverie Preserve in Glen 

Ellen. We will prepare the hiking trails 

of this 535-acre nature preserve for 

the coming season of school field trips. 

Join us for a fun and active morning 

of clipping, lopping and other trail 

maintenance tasks. Long sleeves and 

long pants recommended due to poison 

oak in some locations. 

Space is limited to 25 volunteers 

RSVP to nancy@egret.org or 707/938-4554. 

ACR Staff 

oPen house at the 


Saturday, September 27, 2008 

10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. 

Explorers of all ages welcome! 

Take a short walk (approximately 45 

minutes) on the trails of this 535-acre 

preserve with a trained volunteer. (Last 

hike of the day is at 1:15 pm) Wander 

the display hall and learn about mammal 

skulls, bird specimens and other native 

flora and fauna. Play a Native American 

game. Stamp your own mammal track 

card. Make a nature journal for recording 

the plants and animals you see. Don’t 

miss this rare opportunity to explore 

the Bouverie Preserve of Audubon 

Canyon Ranch. 

ACR Staff 

Ca l e n d a r o f eVe n t s 

fall & sPring Work Days 

bolinas lagoon Preserve 

Saturday, October 4, 2008 – 

Volunteer Canyon 

Sunday, March 1, 2009 – 

Picher Canyon 

9:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. 

1:00 p.m. LUNCH 

Help us with trail work, library work, 

pulling weeds, planting native flowers 

or cooking the lunch (we provide). 

Bring your favorite tool and gloves 

for outdoor projects! 

Email leslie@egret.org or call 

415/868-9244 to register. 

Free, but please e-mail or call to register so 

we can plan on enough food! 

ACR Staff 

unDer the heronry 


Saturday, October 25 

9:30 a.m. social, 10:00 am start, 

ends at noon 

Join former Bolinas Lagoon Preserve 

Resident Biologist Ray Peterson, for an 

exploration Under the Heronry at Bolinas 

Lagoon Preserve. You’ll be able to see the 

amazing architecture of Great Egret and 

Great Blue Heron nests and you’ll learn 

about ACR’s history in this very special 

setting. Don’t forget to bring friends for 

this short walk. 

Free, but please email leslie@egret.org 

or call 415/868-9244 to register. 

Space is limited to 20 participants. 

ACR Staff 

guiDeD nature Walks 


Saturdays, Oct. 25, Nov. 1 and 8, 2008 

March 14, April 4 and 18, May 2, 9 

and 16, 2009 

9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. 

Here’s your chance to experience the 

beauty and rich natural history of 

this 500-acre Preserve. Our half-day 

guided nature walks are on Saturdays 

throughout fall and spring. We will begin 

accepting reservations a month before 

each respective hike date. To make a 

reservation, email nancy@egret.org or 

call 707/938-4554. 

No charge but donations appreciated. 

Docent Council of Bouverie Preserve 

toMales bay 

WaterbirD survey 

Saturday, December 20, 2008 

9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. 

Since 1989, teams of 12 to 15 volunteer 

observers have conducted winter 

waterbird censuses from survey boats 

on Tomales Bay though ACR’s Cypress 

Grove Research Center. The results 

provide information on habitat values 

and conservation needs of 51 species, 

totaling up to 25,000 birds. Join us! 

Space is limited. To participate, contact 

Emiko Condeso at emiko@egret.org or 

415/663-8203. 

ACR Staff 

restoration Work Days 

bouverie Preserve anD 


Support ACR’s Habitat Protection and 

Restoration Program by signing up for 

restoration work days. 

For Bouverie Preserve, email Sherry 

Adams at sherry@egret.org. 

For Bolinas Lagoon Preserve, email 

Denise Della Santina at denise@egret.org.


Calendar oF eVents from page 10 

the bouverie backyarD naturalist series 


9:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. u $25 per seminar u Saturdays 

October 11, 2008 – The Wonders of Bugs with Ray Peterson 

November 15, 2008 – Sudden Oak Death with Emiko Condeso 

January 17, 2009 – There’s Fun in Fungi with Jeanne Wirka 

February 14, 2009 – All About Amphibians with Jeanne Wirka 

March 28, 2009 – Bouverie Preserve Wildflowers with Jeanne Wirka 

The Bouverie Backyard Naturalist field seminars are geared toward the adult amateur 

naturalist. These Saturday seminars will include time in the classroom, as well as on the trail. 

The hike will range from one to three miles on mildly to moderately strenuous terrain. 

Please bring lunch and water for the trail. 

Class size is limited. Please email leslie@egret.org or call 415/868-9244 to register. 

ACR Staff 

ranch guiDe training 


Saturdays, January 31 through 

march 14, 2009 

(Orientation January 24, 2009) 

This eight-day Saturday program prepares volunteer 

trainees to become Ranch Guides at the Bolinas 

Lagoon Preserve, where they will share knowledge 

and appreciation of nature to the visiting public on 

weekends through spring and summer. Learn about 

the history of Audubon Canyon Ranch, the Bolinas 

Lagoon Preserve, trail techniques, pond life and 

the preserve’s colony of nesting herons and egrets 

… and become part of an active and enthusiastic 

group of volunteers! Interested? Please email leslie@ 

egret.org or call 415/868-9244 to sign up for the 

orientation class on January 24, 2009. 

Gwen Heistand 

Bolinas Lagoon Preserve Resident Biologist 

The Mission of Audubon CAnyon RAnCh 

Audubon Canyon Ranch protects the natural resources of its sanctuaries while fostering 

an understanding and appreciation of these environments. We educate children and adults, 

promote ecological literacy that is grounded in direct experience, and conduct research 

and restoration that advances conservation science. 

acr’s e-neWsletter 

To keep up-to-date on latest Audubon Canyon Ranch 

happenings, sign up for the ACR e-newsletter. 

Published once every two months, the free email 

newsletter highlights updates from the Preserves, 

including school group visits, latest findings from 

ACR science staff, volunteer opportunities, ways 

to come explore ACR nature sanctuaries and more. 

Visit www.egret.org and click e-newsletter 

to sign up or to view past issues. 

DRAWiNG: ANe CARLA ROVeTTA

the headquarters of 

audubon Canyon ranch is located 

at the Bolinas lagoon Preserve. 

www.egret.org 

email: acr@egret.org 

when to Visit 

Bolinas lagoon Preserve 

Mid-March to mid-July: saturday, sunday 

and holidays. 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. 

Weekdays by appointment only; call 

415/868-9244. Closed Mondays. 

Bolinas Lagoon Preserve is adjacent to 

Bolinas Lagoon on shoreline Highway One, 

three miles north of stinson Beach. 

Cypress grove research Center 

By appointment only. 415/663-8203. 

Bouverie Preserve 

By appointment only. 707/938-4554. 

see schedule of events, inside. 

Audubon Canyon Ranch 

4900 Shoreline Highway One 

Stinson Beach, CA 94970 

415/868-9244 

www.egret.org 

acr@egret.org 

CyPress 

groVe 

PreserVe 

Bolinas 

lagoon 

PreserVe 

BoUVerie 

PreserVe 

The Audubon Canyon Ranch 

Bulletin is published twice 

yearly by Audubon Canyon 

Ranch as a free offering to 

ACR donors and supporters. 

Edited by Jennifer Newman 

Designed by Sarah Bolles 

Photos by Wyn Hoag unless 

otherwise noted. © 2007 

Audubon Canyon Ranch. 

Printed on recycled paper 

(30% post-consumer) 

using soy-based inks. 

Audubon Canyon Ranch — wildlife sanctuaries and centers for nature education and research. 

Bolinas Lagoon Preserve • Cypress Grove Research Center • Bouverie Preserve 

Non-profit 

Organization 

U.s. Postage 

PAiD 

Mailcom 

ANe CARLA ROVeTTA

Fall Bulletin 2008 (788k PDF) - Audubon Canyon Ranch

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