Become a volunteer naturalist at the Placerita Canyon Nature Center. Learn about the natural environment; teach children about nature; make a difference in your community. No special background needed, just a willingness to attend training and to volunteer at least twice a month. Training starts Tuesday,...

Create and decorate your own holiday wreaths, centerpieces, candles and ornaments using a large assortment of fresh-cut greenery, pine cones and other beautiful natural treasures. The Holiday Craft Fair this weekend (Dec. 2-3) is a fundraising event hosted by the Placerita Canyon Nature Center Associates,...

A long time ago, the Placerita Canyon Nature Center needed some work done on our taxidermied animals. A search by Nature Center board member Bob Moss searches led him to an interesting young man. Bob came back from his first visit full of mixed feelings but also amazement about the talent of this new...

At the Placerita Canyon Nature Center, we regularly welcome school groups coming for a tour. One of the first questions the docents get from the children is, “Are we going to see bears?” or, “What animals are on the trails?” We try gently to explain that many animals hide when a group of 10 grade-schoolers...

As I was preparing to write this article, I decided to do a little informal survey of my family and friends, to gauge their reaction. I started by asking my grandchildren what color they would use to draw a fox. I handed them a box of crayons. The situation became impossible when both started fighting...

All of the bird books say the hooded oriole comes back to California from Mexico in late March. They spend the winter on the Southwestern coast of Mexico and are permanent residents in Baja, the Mexican east coast and Belize. Very rare are the ones that winter in Southern California. I am always fascinated...

[PCNCA] – RuthAnne Murthy has been named 2017 Volunteer of the Year by the Placerita Canyon Nature Center Associates board of directors. RuthAnne was a third-grade teacher in the Castaic Union School District, and we knew we had found a rare pearl when she started her docent training at Placerita...

If you come into a crowded room and start loudly expressing your political views, you can expect the tone of the conversation will go up, arguments will be coming from all directions, faces are going to get red … it could turn ugly. If you enter the room and throw a few religious statements in the...

Sometimes the change in nature around you is subtle, and you have to pay close attention to notice anything at all … a tree is in bloom for just a week and you will have to wait until next year if you miss it. You might get only a quick glimpse of the Western tanager right now in your backyard; it...

Let’s imagine you have a new neighbor. He is middle-aged, very reserved, and you wave at each other only when you pull out the garbage cans for the weekly pickup. One evening you notice three black cars in his driveway. They stay for about an hour, and you never see your neighbor again. There was obviously...