Written by Horticulturist Paul Hormick; Bee photos by Intern Jocelyn

With the winter rains and cooler temperatures, the flowers of our Native Pollinator Garden, as well as the rest of our landscaping, will soon be showing off their blooms of yellow, blue, and magenta. We hope that the flowers and aromas inspire you to plant a native pollinator garden of your own.

The rains and cool temperatures also make this time of year a perfect opportunity to plant a pollinator garden. A garden can be any size, from a few plants along your house to your entire backyard. Before you start digging, keep these pollinator points in mind:

• Use plants native to your area. The pollinators in your neighborhood are adapted to pollinating and living with native plants. Your local chapter of the California Native Plant Society (CNPS) has more information.

• Plant a variety of plants that bloom at different times of the year. This way, the butterflies and bees have something to eat all year long.

• Help pollinators find their food by clustering plants in groups. They will have an easier time pollinating if they can go easily from one sage to the next or one sunflower to the next.

• Include plants that the pollinators’ larvae feed on as well. You can find out more about this through your local chapter of CNPS or the Xerces Society.

• Don’t use pesticides. Besides killing pests, pesticides kill pollinators, too. Most plants native to southern California have good defenses against pests and don’t need help from pesticides. If you do wind up with an infestation of aphids or whitefly, try targeted pruning or releasing ladybugs, which you can get from your local garden supply store.

• Most bees native to southern California nest in the ground. Be sure to leave some areas of bare ground without mulch for the bees to make their nests. They also like old pieces of wood and logs.

• Pollinators need water. Include a freshwater source. It can be small, like a dish or bowl, a birdbath, or a full-blown water feature or fountain.

• Leave apple cores, banana peels or other fruit or vegetable scraps for butterflies. They feed on these as well as flowers.

On your next visit, come visit our Native Pollinator Garden for inspiration and please share with us any experiences or insights that you’ve had with native bees, butterflies, or the native plants on which they depend.

Paul Hormick has worked at the Living Coast for 5 years. Although he’s responsible for much of our landscaping, Paul is passionate about all of wildlife and became interested in plants through his love of birds.

There are plenty of arbitrary “holidays” out there, but World Octopus Day is not one of them. It’s October, and it’s the eighth- the sea stars could not be more aligned! So, we’ve put together 8 reasons to celebrate giant Pacific octopus. 

1. A body like no other- As you may have guessed, the giant Pacific octopus is the largest of the octopuses, and can weigh over 50 pounds and extend 15 feet. What looks like the head of the octopus is called a mantle and next to the mantle is the siphon. Water goes into the gills and is expelled through the siphon. The rest of their body is eight arms that work independently and are covered in suckers. Oh yeah, did we mention they have nine brains and three hearts? 

2. Wave your arms in the air-  Eight arms is a lot to tangle with, but on top of that, giant Pacific octopuses have over 2,000 suckers! Each sucker works independently to taste, smell, and grasp. And their suction is strong enough to leave hickeys!

3. Kinda chameleon- Octopuses can change their skin color and texture using chromatophores- cells that contain pigment. When the muscles expand and contract, they push color closer to or further from the surface of the skin. Octopus colors can change based on mood, for camouflage, to scare predators, and to communicate with potential mates. 

4. Unleash the Kraken- Extremely strong for its size, the giant Pacific octopus can lift rocks and open jars. Their eight arms make them quite the predators to many ocean creatures, including crustaceans, fish, and other mollusks.

5. Are you smarter than an octopus- Octopuses are considered some of the most intelligent animals on Earth. They can solve puzzles, navigate a maze, unscrew lids, and discern some shapes. It’s even theorized they can use tools. 

6. I’d like to be under the sea- Ever heard of an “octopus’s garden?” Like a beachcomber looking for the perfect shell, octopuses will grab some ocean floor objects like shells or rocks and place them around their den. Females will then lay their eggs and cover the outside of the den to hide it. 

7. Short & sweet- The lifespan of a giant Pacific octopus is quite short- about 3-5 years. The end of their life cycle begins after breeding. The male dies within a few months of mating and the female dies shortly after her eggs hatch. When the female lays her 20,000-100,000 eggs (pictured), she will spend the rest of her life protecting them and will stop eating. It can take months before she passes on and her young fend for themselves. 

8. Support the ocean- If you’ve enjoyed learning more about octopuses, consider a gift to support our animals, like the giant Pacific octopus, and our mission of connecting people with local wildlife. Could we suggest $8- one per arm? 

Have you heard of Plastic-Free July? This global movement aims to raise awareness of plastic pollution and encourage global action to minimize single-use plastics. As we continue to discover the drastic effects of plastic in our oceans and environment, we need to start taking action on an individual level. Small changes in our daily life can add up to a big difference! If you feel overwhelmed, start with the first thing on the list and work your way down slowly. You can Be the Change! 

1. Cups- When buying iced coffee or fountain drinks, bring your own reusable. They’re sold at almost every coffee shop and some places offer discounts when you bring your own.

2. Grocery bags- try a trendy burlap reusable or opt for paper.

Her name is Betsy Ross! 

Meet one of our newest animal ambassadors: a young, female bald eagle. We estimate her to be approximately 4 years old, based on her coloration. Young eagles do not have a white head or tail.  It takes around 5 years for them to mature into the recognizable coloration we are all used to.  The brown and white coloration shows that the bird is an adult and ready to mate.

We all are familiar with bald eagles, but have you ever wondered where the name came from?  You might guess that its white head makes it look bald, but that’s not it! There is an old English word, “balde” which means white.  We get the word “piebald” from this as well.  Piebald means a mix of dark and white coloration, so it is easy to see why eagles would get a name relating to this word.   So the name “bald eagle” originated from the old English word “balde”.

Our new bald eagle came to us from a rehabilitation facility in Ramona, CA after suffering an injury to her wing. This resulted in the loss of sustained flight, and so she was not a suitable candidate for release back to the wild.  Instead, she came to her forever home at the Living Coast Discovery Center.

How did she get her name? Well, many of you already may know that we have a second bald eagle – an approx. 25-year-old male named Franklin (after Benjamin Franklin).  We opened up the naming of our new eagle to a contest among visiting students. We got a lot of submissions, but one stood out: Betsy Ross.  Going with a patriotic theme with our eagles, Betsy Ross is credited with sewing the first American flag.

Betsy (the eagle) resides in Eagle Mesa where you can come visit her and learn about eagles and other birds of prey.