Madrona Marsh Preserve and Nature Center Madrona Marsh Preserve and Nature Center Madrona Marsh Preserve and Nature Center Madrona Marsh Preserve and Nature Center Madrona Marsh Preserve and Nature Center -1- -1- -1- -1- -1- Fall 2010 Fall 2010 Fall 2010 Fall 2010 Fall 2010 Let’s Go to Let’s Go to Let’s Go to Let’s Go to Let’s Go to Moonlight Magic Moonlight Magic Moonlight Magic Moonlight Magic Moonlight Magic Because… Because… Because… Because… Because… A magical evening awaits you on October 23 in the middle of the Preserve. The moon will be full and you will be, too, because you will dine on Red Car Brewery food and sip the wines of Pernod Ricard. Gaze at the heavens through a telescope, take an evening stroll and bid on some “available nowhere else” unusual auction opportunities. Have you ever dreamed of a canoe ride through the Marsh Preserve in spring? At Moonlight Magic only, we will auction three Spring 2011 canoe trips. And that’s not all; here is a partial list of more silent auction, live auction and gift basket opportunities: ♦ Weekend at Big Bear Lake. We promise there is no timeshare involved, just a peaceful weekend in a lovely house within walking distance of the lake, and we throw in a fishing rod just for fun. ♦ ♦ ♦ Dinner at the famous Lomeli’s Italian restaurant in Gardena. ♦ ♦ ♦ Lunch with John Bogert, well known Daily Breeze columnist and author, plus a signed copy of his new book, “Grounded.” ♦ ♦ ♦ Pilot Boat tour in Long Beach Harbor; ride the pilot boat and tour the pilot station. Learn how the pilots keep ships moving in the ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles ♦ ♦ ♦ A Red Car Brewery tapping party ♦ ♦ ♦ You pick up your exciting flight at the Torrance Airport Western Museum of Flight where David Bockelman will fly you into the wild blue yonder in an F-1 Rocket (airplane) around the South Bay for an extraordinary view of the place you call home. Aerobatics optional. ♦ ♦ ♦ Two tickets to any Torrance Cultural Art Center event. ♦ ♦ ♦ The art of Stephen West, Jack Ludwick, Bill Wasserman and Connie Vadheim plus our 2010 signa- ture art piece, ‘Moonlight Magic’ by Mark Comon (shown above)––signed, of course! ♦ ♦ ♦ A personal tour ‘behind the gates’ at Ballona Wetlands with renowned birder Bob Shanman of Wild Birds Unlimited. Only at Moonlight Magic! “Magic” continues on page 3. “Moonlight Magic” Photo courtesy of Mark Comon
Transcript
Mad r o n a M a r s h P r e s e r v e a n d N a t u r e C e n t e rM a d r o n a M a r s h P r e s e r v e a n d N a t u r e C e n t e rM a d r o n a M a r s h P r e s e r v e a n d N a t u r e C e n t e rM a d r o n a M a r s h P r e s e r v e a n d N a t u r e C e n t e rM a d r o n a M a r s h P r e s e r v e a n d N a t u r e C e n t e r
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Fall 2010Fall 2010Fall 2010Fall 2010Fall 2010
Let’s Go toLet’s Go toLet’s Go toLet’s Go toLet’s Go toMoonlight MagicMoonlight MagicMoonlight MagicMoonlight MagicMoonlight Magic
Because…Because…Because…Because…Because…A magical evening awaits you on October 23
in the middle of the Preserve. The moon will be fulland you will be, too, because you will dine on RedCar Brewery food and sip the wines of PernodRicard. Gaze at the heavens through a telescope,take an evening stroll and bid on some “availablenowhere else” unusual auction opportunities.
Have you ever dreamed of a canoe ridethrough the Marsh Preserve in spring? AtMoonlight Magic only, we will auction three Spring2011 canoe trips. And that’s not all; here is a partiallist of more silent auction, live auction and giftbasket opportunities:
♦ Weekend at Big Bear Lake. We promise there is no timeshare involved, just a peaceful weekend in alovely house within walking distance of the lake, and we throw in a fishing rod just for fun.
♦♦♦♦♦ Dinner at the famous Lomeli’s Italian restaurant in Gardena.
♦♦♦♦♦ Lunch with John Bogert, well known Daily Breeze columnist and author, plus a signed copy of his newbook, “Grounded.”
♦♦♦♦♦ Pilot Boat tour in Long Beach Harbor; ride the pilot boat and tour the pilot station. Learn how the pilotskeep ships moving in the ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles
♦♦♦♦♦ A Red Car Brewery tapping party
♦♦♦♦♦ You pick up your exciting flight at the Torrance Airport Western Museum of Flight where DavidBockelman will fly you into the wild blue yonder in an F-1 Rocket (airplane) around the South Bay foran extraordinary view of the place you call home. Aerobatics optional.
♦♦♦♦♦ Two tickets to any Torrance Cultural Art Center event.
♦♦♦♦♦ The art of Stephen West, Jack Ludwick, Bill Wasserman and Connie Vadheim plus our 2010 signa-ture art piece, ‘Moonlight Magic’ by Mark Comon (shown above)––signed, of course!
♦♦♦♦♦ A personal tour ‘behind the gates’ at Ballona Wetlands with renowned birder Bob Shanman of WildBirds Unlimited. Only at Moonlight Magic!
“Magic” continues on page 3.
“Moonlight Magic” Photo courtesy of Mark Comon
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One day late in August, on an early morning, as Iwas unlocking the front door to the Nature Center, arush of warm air blew past me. By nine in the morning,the usual bird chorus had already quieted––indicatingusually that it was going to get hot. Ashley was the firstperson “in” this day, and she slowly started tending ourlive animals. Having only recently started working atthe Nature Center, she was not yet confident workingalone, but within minutes, Beth Scott came in and as-sisted her. Soon the phone was ringing and peoplebegan trickling in––most visiting for the first time. Theday seemed so far to be just another “normal” day.
Though this day was normal––no dayat the Nature Center and Preserve can becalled ordinary. In different ways, with dif-fering talents, every staff member and ev-ery volunteer help create a special environ-ment. As we say so often to people on ourtours, Madrona Marsh is a place where spe-cies/people can sur-vive and thrive. Forthe people involvedhere, it is a placewhere they can worktowards their full po-tential.
As the Managerand Naturalist, I do alot of managing bywandering around or checking in with staff volunteersor programs––and I cannot begin to convey how manytimes I return to my office with a smile in my heart. I amtruly blessed to work with so many special people. I’mnot saying they are perfect or not challenging at times,but week after week, season after season, year afteryear, they make a difference. They make the MadronaMarsh Preserve and Nature Center special for our visi-tors and for each other.
E-mails or letters of gratitude are not uncommonhere. I would like to share with you two gracious lettersthat were given to me over the past two weeks. Thefirst is from Ashley Lawsen. She was a part of the mostrecent Youth Leadership Training Program conductedby the City of Torrance. The second letter is from DonnaMcCreadie, a former teacher, who brings her grandkidsto the Preserve for the Friday Fun Program.
Thank you so much, Ashley and Donna. We ap-preciate your reminding us that what we do is impor-tant. And thanks to all the members of the Friends ofMadrona Marsh. You continue to make extraordinarythings happen.––T.D.
From Ashley Lawsen:“The summer of 2010 has been very productive. I
learned so much, gained a lot of experience, and metso many new people who made me feel welcome at myjob sites. I think the thing I learned the most about isleadership. I interviewed several people about it, reada book about it, and was able to observe people to de-tect signs of leadership or lack of them.
“I noticed many people have great qualities that Ihadn’t noticed before. For example, efficiency, integrity,vision, and drive are skills I have not recognized as lead-ership characteristics. I never really understood whatsome meant, but I looked them up and learned. Integ-
rity, a word I never reallyfully understood before,means having adherenceto moral and ethical prin-ciples; soundness of moralcharacter; honesty.
“Other words I knew,but didn’t know the hiddendefinitions they had.Words like drive and vi-sion. The vision I knowmeans to see or be seen,but it can be used also asthe act or power of antici-pating that which will ormay come to be. When Ithought drive, transporta-
tion came to mind, but now I also see it as a synonymfor energy and initiative.
“This summer really helped me grow profession-ally, and I learned a lot about businesses and how tolead a team. I learned how to deal with disgruntledcustomers properly, how to make a child comfortable ina distressing environment, how to play games with kidscorrectly, and how to pick teams without making any-one feel awkward or left out. Most people my age don’tknow half of how to do those kinds of things, and I feelproud accomplishing the goal of putting my summer togood use. I now feel more mature knowing these things,and it’s pretty cool seeing how things work now that I’mnot one of the kids, but someone who’s in charge.
Everyday is Special at the MarshEveryday is Special at the MarshEveryday is Special at the MarshEveryday is Special at the MarshEveryday is Special at the Marsh––Tracy Drake, Naturalist/Manager
Marsh Mailing is a quarterly newsletter designed toprovide information about activities and upcoming eventsat or relating to the Madrona Marsh Preserve. Contribu-tions are welcome and may be e-mailed to DianeGonsalves at [email protected] or Bill Arrowsmith,[email protected], or dropped off or mailedto the Nature Center.
Continued. . .
A magic possum-petting moment forNikki and Ryan, grandchildren ofDonna McCreadie, is one of the thingsthat makes a Marsh visit so special.
––Suzan Hubert
“I feel that after this summer, I am more preparedto work, maybe not fully ready yet, but more ahead thanI was before, and hopefully in time I can get a job thathelps me reach my full potential.” ––A.L.
From Donna McCreadie“As a retired teacher (26 years high school eco-
nomics) I want to pass along my observations of theprogram you have for children at Madrona Marsh. Ibegan bringing my twin grandchildren, Ryan and Nikki(who are 3) more than a year ago. We had partici-pated in the children’s program at the Botanic Garden,organized by Cindy Reid previously. When she movedthe program to Madrona Marsh, I was skeptical that itcould be duplicated somewhere other than the BotanicGarden. I’m delighted to tell you that Cindy and therest of your staff have created an amazing learning op-portunity for children! My husband retired after 37 yearsin the classroom, so we have a great deal of experi-ence in evaluating educational experiences.
“Nature is the perfect subject for children and theway Cindy incorporates fiction and non-fiction literatureinto the lessons is superb. “Miss Carol” (Devore), aretired kindergarten teacher, is terrific with her interac-tions with the children; whether she is reading or guid-ing the lesson. I knew instantly, the first time I heardCarol reading that she had been a teacher, which I con-firmed later; I can observe years of mastery when Iwatch her with the little ones. “Miss Suzan” (Hubert) iswarm and engages all the children and makes everychild feel special. (Ed. Note: Suzan, and Carol volun-teer, along with Debbie Ovadia. Debbie has been work-ing the front desk for a couple of years and joined thegroup this summer.)
Bob Carr is not part of the Friday Fun programbut he has extended every kindness to my grandchil-dren, who adore him. We arrived early on our very firstvisit and he allowed Ryan to “help raise the flag,” hespeaks with them each Friday and has lent us his per-sonal books on dinosaurs because my grandchildrenshowed an interest. He has gone out of his way toshow them how to use a microscope and points outspecial things. All these gestures by your incrediblestaff go far beyond presenting an informational pro-gram—they change children’s lives.
“As I watch from week to week I can see the chil-dren (all, not just my grandchildren) developing a re-spect and love for nature. On our frequent trips to thelibrary, we often check out the books that have beenselected for the Friday programs to reinforce the con-cepts. I love the hands-on activities that follow the read-ing portion, a great way to get those little people in-volved in learning by participating. The children adorethe insects and animals that they get to see up closeand personal, often having a chance to pet something
OMG I have my ticket to MoonlightMagic! Now what do I wear? It’s all about the shoes–– Think tulle andtennis shoes, rhinestone and Reeboks,sequins and sneakers, leather and lace. Have fun, dress to party, recycle thatprom dress––then accessorize withcomfortable walking shoes. . . or evenboots. What a concept! Remember to bring a warm wrap.
WHAT TO WEARWHAT TO WEARWHAT TO WEARWHAT TO WEARWHAT TO WEARto Moonlight Magic???to Moonlight Magic???to Moonlight Magic???to Moonlight Magic???to Moonlight Magic???
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“Magic” continued from page 1
♦♦♦♦♦ Do you have one of those ‘Honey Do’ lists?We have a contractor who will give you 4hours work time to check off some of thoseitems and a honeydew melon to munchwhile he works. Now that’s magic!
♦♦♦♦♦ A personal tour of the Torrance PoliceStation––greet our guys in blue.
♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ Lots of gift baskets filled with gardening tools,food, art, and more; you will be amazed!
Enjoy the soft rock, oldies and beach music ofThe Vipers and laugh with our Master of Ceremoniesand Auctioneer, Mr. Paul Nowatka. Come dance andcelebrate. Who knows; we may even howl at themoon.
You can buy your tickets at the Marsh NatureCenter, at Wild Birds Unlimited or go to our Friends ofMadrona Marsh website, friendsofmadronamarsh.com,and purchase a ticket through PayPal. (See page 11for parking information.)
they could otherwise only read about. This past weektwo baby possums (Jack and Jill) were the center ofattention! (See photo, page 2.)
“I must say that I am learning a great deal fromthe program. Thank you too for making this programavailable to all. Frequently, I have found the parents orcaretakers don’t take advantage of museums or othereducational opportunities because of the cost involved.
“As you can tell, I’m a great fan. Thank you, Tracy,for all your hard work and effort to put together a spec-tacular program for everyone who visits the Marsh––but particularly for all the children. I’m taking this op-portunity to thank you because they are too small. Youand your staff have made and are making a marvelousimpact on these children.” ––D.M.
Continued. . .
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––Bill Arrowsmith
from the presidentfrom the presidentfrom the presidentfrom the presidentfrom the president
As we go to press it is nearly autumn of 2010 andthere are two issues on which I would like to share myopinion. The two are completely separate and unrelated,but each is of critical importance to the continued useand success of the Preserve we all love. Each issuehas passionate supporters, and each requires that youbecome knowledgeable about it. One requires you totake an action, and one requires you to refrain from ac-tion––at least for now.
Feel the Magic. . .Feel the Magic. . .Feel the Magic. . .Feel the Magic. . .Feel the Magic. . .The first “issue” is the splendid event planned for
Saturday evening, October 23, called “Moonlight Magic.”As detailed in accompanying articles, Moonlight Magicwill include a delicious menu from the Redcar Brewery,along with Pernod Ricard wine, and will feature soft rock,oldies and beach music performed by popular Torrancecombo, ‘The Vipers’. And then the fun really begins whenformer councilman Paul Nowatka takes the stage as ourdroll master of ceremonies––and auctioneer for an ex-citing array of prizes, from a week-end at a Big Bearhome to lunch with columnist and author John Bogert, toartwork by Comon, Ludwick, West, Vadheim orWasserman, including Comon’s signature photograph,“Moonlight Magic.” It will be a delightfully fun and veryinteresting evening, and I hope to see you all there.
Moonlight Magic has been organized by boardmembers Suzan Hubert, Bobbie Snyder and Mary Garritywith enthusiasm and drive reminiscent of the foundersof FOMM, over 35 years ago; people like Shirley Turner,Venora Lee and Grace Lear organizing bake sales andgarage sales to get that critical initial capital for our fledg-ling organization.
“But,” you say, “we saved the Preserve; why do weneed money now?” The Nature Center and the first tenyears of staff and programs were supported largely withProposition A funds. Those funds are nearly gone nowand although the City has promised continued supportof Marsh programs, we all know that the City of Torranceitself faces severe budget problems. That’s why we need
Continued . . .
fund-raising events like Moonlight Magic, to build upour reserves and allow us to share in the expense ofMarsh programs and maintenance. It’s not as “ex-citing” as fighting developers, but it’s every bit asnecessary if we are to continue the high level of edu-cational classes and programs that have been put inplace under Tracy Drake’s leadership.
That’s the first decision I’m asking you to make:Will you support this event? And can you bring afriend or two? Many of you have expressed yourappreciation for those of us who fought the earlybattles to save the Marsh. This is your opportunityto fight a ‘quiet battle’ that is no less important.
The Second Issue. . .The Second Issue. . .The Second Issue. . .The Second Issue. . .The Second Issue. . .Issue number two: An e-mail has recently cir-
culated saying that our “50-acre Preserve, saved fromdevelopment in the ‘70’s, is under attack again.” Itgoes on to list several causes of concern: “the re-cent draining of the Marsh, right at a most sensitivetime, when baby ducklings needed both protectionand food,” the closing of the Preserve for almost 10days, men with machetes hacking down an area atthe end of August because “there were mosquitoes,”followed by “IN AUGUST??!! There’s no water forthem to breed.”
At this point, the writer (the forwarded version Isaw was not signed) finally identifies the purportedvillain: “Now they are saying they (Vector Control)want our trees cut back, and down.” The e-mail thenencourages the reader to send it to the City Counciland “all your lists.”
The author of this e-mail seems fairly knowl-edgeable about the Preserve, as well as recent ac-tivity there, and is probably disseminating it in whathe or she considers the Preserve’s best interest, tomarshal support against the “attack.” If I felt that wewere truly under attack, from Vector Control or anyother source, I would be at the head of the fray. Butmost of the ‘recent concerns’ in the e-mail were de-scribed in the Spring and Summer Marsh Mailings –along with explanations.
This has been a difficult year to keep our mos-quito population under control. We were unable todo our usual dry season clearing in 2009 because ofequipment problems, and we got behind the curve.Vector Control notified us in February that our mos-quito counts were high and that we would have to doadditional tule clearing to allow their mosquitofish toreach and devour mosquito larvae, our preferredmethod of control.
Overnight, breakfast for two at the SouthBay Marriott––AND parking!
Every Moonlight Magic ticket purchaser hasan equal chance to win this great prize!
All tickets are numbered; each number as-sociated with a purchased ticket will be enteredin a drawing. Must be present to win.
More “Magic”More “Magic”More “Magic”More “Magic”More “Magic”
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The Friends paid for the first round of tule cut-ting, and the City covered later rounds. Still, tule thatchremained and the City had to partially drain the Marshso additional tules could be cut; but we left as muchwater as we could. The Summer Mailing reported that,to our shock, in June yet another sharp increase inmosquitoes had been observed in some of the 6 trapsmonitored on the Preserve.
As a precautionary step, it was the City thatclosed down the Preserve until we could meet withVector Control and agree upon a course of action. Thatmeeting took place at the end of June, as we reported.Additional action agreed upon by the City includedmore tule clearance so that all stands are no morethan 20 feet wide, and bulldozing of the 6 feet chan-nels between tule stands (to remove roots just belowthe surface; otherwise it’s a recurring problem). Thatmeant the remaining water on the Preserve would haveto be drained, starting in July. As we reported, most ofour fledgling birds were nearly ready to fly at that time,but we may have lost a few.
That brings us to August 25, when once againLA County West Vector Control District (LACWVCD)notified us of a sharp spike in adult mosquito counts inthree of the 6 monitoring traps––in each case, to over100. That is very unusual for August, I agree, but Ihave seen the trap counts. They told us they wouldcome to the Preserve the next day to search for a watersource, and that is exactly what they did, led by dis-trict supervisor Robert Saviskas. Tracy Drake and Iand some other Torrance officials were there, as well.Some tules were cut in areas suspected of havingwater, but there was no mass destruction. No majorsource of water was found, either, other than the knownponding at drains along Madrona Avenue (which Vec-tor Control monitors and treats). They did locate threesmall leaks in our quick-connect watering systems,which have since been fixed.
My point is that this was done in the presence ofCity officials and Friends, not in secret. And there wasdiscussion at that time of what further clearing neededto be done. I admit that there have been reports of acouple later visits by Vector Control and some addi-tional cutting and clearing without coordination withManager Drake, which is frustrating.
But Tracy has put together a very good, detailedplan for this fall’s clearing and that was sent toLACWVCD this week. We hope to get quick approvaland I would urge your inaction on mass e-mailing untilthe system has had a chance to work. It is clear thatbetter lines of communication should be establishedbetween LACWVCD and the City of Torrance, and thetwo recent meetings were a step in the right direction.
I asked Manager Tracy Drake what interesting in-sects she’d seen lately and she responded, “Well, therewas the beewolf.”
“What’s a beewolf?” I asked. This was her emailedresponse:Hi Bill,
Here is a photo and some interesting facts aboutthis tiny wasp––which is neither a bee nor a wolf! I amnot yet positive about species of the one in my photo butis likely Philanthus multimaculatus.
From Wikipedia:Beewolves (genus Philanthus), also known as bee-
hunters, burrowing wasps, or philanthuses, are solitary,predatory wasps, most of which prey on bees, hence theircommon name. The adult females dig tunnels in theground for nesting, while the territorial males mark twigsand other objects with pheromones to claim the territoryfrom competing males.
As with all other sphecoid wasps the larvae arecarnivorus, forcing inseminated females to hunt for otherinvertebrates (in this case bees), on which to lay her eggs,supplying the larvae with prey when they emerge. The
adults collectnectar from flow-ers or fromsqueezing thebees they cap-ture as prey; thenectar is theirenergy sourcefor flight.
They arenotable in sting-ing their prey ina membranouslocation on theventral surface
where the venom quickly paralyzes major voluntarymuscles, yet does not kill the prey. The prey may attemptto sting in return, but it is always grabbed in such a waythat only well-armored portions of the beewolf’s body arepresented. The beewolf carries the prey back to a tunnel,but usually only stores it temporarily, until it is later usedto provision a cell burrow, where an egg is laid.
In a nutshell, it is truly remarkable that this wasp willdig a tunnel in the ground, go catch from 4 to 20 bees,paralyze them with its sting, place the caught bees in theback of its tunnel, lay an egg on one bee only, seal off thechamber and when the egg hatches, the larva has all thoseother bees to feed on! Multiple chambers can be made ina single tunnel!
Amazing survival technique eh? Take care,Tracy
––Bill ArrowsmithWhat’s a “Beewolf?”What’s a “Beewolf?”What’s a “Beewolf?”What’s a “Beewolf?”What’s a “Beewolf?”
*All activities and classes meet at the Madrona Marsh Nature Center, located at 3201 Plaza del Amo(between Maple and Madrona) on the north side of the street. **See Artists Corner, page 11. *** No feecharged for Friday Fun , but reservations are required. For the latest event information, consult website,www.friendsofmadronamarsh.com.
Madrona Marsh Preserve and Nature CenterMadrona Marsh Preserve and Nature CenterMadrona Marsh Preserve and Nature CenterMadrona Marsh Preserve and Nature CenterMadrona Marsh Preserve and Nature CenterSchedule of Events*
*All activities and classes meet at the Madrona Marsh Nature Center, located at 3201 Plaza del Amo(between Maple and Madrona) on the north side of the street. **See Artists Corner, page 11. *** No feecharged for Friday Fun, but reservations are required. For the latest event information, consultwebsite, www.friendsofmadronamarsh.com.
Brought to you byFriends of Madrona Marsh
Nature Center (310) 782-3989Gift Shop (310) 320-8255
“What’s Up for Kids Around the South Bay" and"L.A. Parent" are now available in a digital edition. Wesubmit the monthly Preserve press releases to thesemagazines. They have much to offer parents with youngchildren, and we thank each one for its support.
THERE IS MORE IN LIFE TO WATCH THAN THECLOCK (a catchy caption for a birding tour ad in themagazine, Birder’s World).
Years ago one person always mentioned thehealth benefits of the Marsh in support of its preserva-tion. In walking for health, there is no better place toobserve the life force in the world than at the Marsh.Life force was a term used by Dr. Norman Vincent Pealein a book he wrote about solving ten difficult problems.
Observing the buds on trees in spring was oneway to catch that life force feeling and use it everydayto improve what ails you. That life force in this seasonis exemplified by lilies that bloom now with only thestem and flower above ground. Such beauty, whenyesterday there was only a dry bulb showing above thesoil surface. In winter they have clusters of strap-shapedleaves that die back with warm weather. There are lil-ies planted at the Marsh.They are difficult to grow dueto animals eating the bulbs.
Sunflowers planted by a neighbor are a sight tobehold with birds feeding on the seeds. They wereenjoyed by a couple walking their dog who scared twoparrots to a nearby tree. Waiting in a parking lot, I sawthree palm trees that made me think of life force. Oneat the top had a single shoot thickened at the tip. Thenext tree point was split. On the last were severalleaves. Technical terms escape me. Other trees in therow were fully developed. One can draw on life forcefor health. And well being.
Another example, from Daily Guideposts, foundon the back of Ruth’s birthday card was:
When we moved to the farm, I discoveredseveral columbines blooming in a weed-filledflower border. I was delighted. They were thesame as the ones my mother had lovingly nur-tured in the garden I knew as a child.
I weeded, fertilized and gave them lovingcare. One day an elderly neighbor told me thatshe, too, recalled this hard-to-find columbinehybrid in her own mother’s garden.
I longed to give her some, but I had so few.I didn’t want to risk losing them. Then, on im-pulse, I grabbed a spade and dug up the larg-est plant. After wrapping it carefully in dampnewspapers, I handed it to her. “Here,” I said,“I want you to enjoy them too.”
Several years later, during an especially bit-ter winter, my columbines died. When the snowmelted, I watched in vain for the first greenleaves and searched the border for seedlings.Nothing remained.
One May morning the telephone rang. Itwas my elderly friend. “I understand your col-umbines winter-killed,” she said. ” I plantedmine by a south wall, and they‘re coming upbeautifully. In fact I just discovered severaldozen seedlings. I’ll bring some over this af-ternoon.”
So again I have my beloved columbines be-cause I shared.” Give and it shall be given you,”the Bible says. Yes, of course. Grant me thewisdom to know that sharing doesn‘t mean los-ing.
––Aletha J. LindstromReprinted with permission 1982
I think Tracy Drake manages the Preserve withlife force.
I raised a blue and white columbine for manyyears. I was surprised and pleased to find the westernred and yellow columbine planted in the shade nearthe north door of the Nature Center.
Tony Baker (Native Landscape, 310-377-2536)informed me that he had planted the calochortus ormariposa lily in the Native Garden and around the build-ing. Other lilies on the property are golden stars,bloomeria and blue dick or wild haunch. Several of ourmembers have had him design their gardens. I thinkhe is to be commended . . . and recommended.
Connie Vadheim also needs to be appreciated andcommended for all she has done for the Friends andmany others. Her class resumes in November. Heraccomplishments are great. A remarkable person toknow and love.
**FALL SALE****FALL SALE****FALL SALE****FALL SALE****FALL SALE**Friends of Madrona Marsh Gift Shop
All T-Shirts and Jewelry 25% off
Sale ends December 10, 2010
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––Emile Fiesler
Eucalyptus trees were introduced to Californiaby Australians during the California Gold Rush in the1850s. Over the years, many native, fire-resistantoak trees were cut down and replaced by forests ofthese Australian trees. Eucalyptus trees promote firebecause of the volatile and highly combustible oilsproduced by their leaves. Their leaves are also highin phenols, which are chemicals related to alcohols,that prevent their breakdown by fungi and hence theleaves accumulate as large amounts of dry, combus-tible fuel.
The reason for planting Eucalyptus forests wasto use their wood for making furniture and railroadties, among other items. It turned out to be a blunder,as railroad ties made from their wood tend to twistwhile drying, and become so tough that it is nearlyimpossible to hammer rail spikes into.
Eucalyptus trees are harsh on our local envi-ronment. They are notorious for their allelopathic na-ture, which means that they kill off surrounding plantlife by releasing phenolic acids and other chemicalsinto the soil to which native plants have no resistance.They also draw enormous amounts of water from thesoil via transpiration, or loss of water vapor, mainlyfrom their leaves. In some areas in the world theyare planted to lower the water table.
Eucalyptus trees, like other non-native plants,are usually not palatable, or recognized as edible, byour native herbivores. Hence, they support very littleof our native fauna. They do however have their ownbiotope, as they often harbor a variety of Australiananimals, most of which were brought over as unno-ticed stowaways during transportation from the landdown under.
One of those Australian animals is the Red GumLerp Psyllid (Glycaspis brimblecombei). It was dis-covered in 1998 in Los Angeles County, and has sincespread throughout much of California.
Psyllids are insects in the family Psyllidae. Psyl-lid nymphs, which are the immatures, and adults feedby sucking plant phloem sap through their straw-likemouthparts. The nymphs excrete a sugary substancecalled honeydew, like aphids do. Redgum Lerp Psyl-lid nymphs form a protective cover called a ‘lerp,’ whichis a small white, hemispherical cap composed of so-lidified honeydew and wax. 'Lerp' is a term derivedfrom an aboriginal Australian language describing thiscover. Lerps on leaves can be up to about 3 millime-
Guests--Invited and Uninvited. . .Guests--Invited and Uninvited. . .Guests--Invited and Uninvited. . .Guests--Invited and Uninvited. . .Guests--Invited and Uninvited. . .ters (1/8 inch) in diameter and 2 mm (1/12 inch) tall; seefigure 1 below. Nymphs enlarge their lerp as they grow,or they move and form a new covering. The yellow orbrownish nymphs resemble a wingless aphid, and arerarely seen, as they spend most of their time coveredbeneath their lerp.
Figure 1
An adult Redgum Lerp Psyllid is about 3 mm (1/8inch) long, and has resemblance to a tiny cicada. Figure2 shows a mating pair. They can fly, occur openly on
foliage, and do not live under lerp covers. High RedgumLerp Psyllid population densities lead to the secretion ofcopious honeydew and cause premature leaf drop. Ex-tensive defoliation weakens trees, can increase tree sus-ceptibility to damage from other insects and diseasesaffecting eucalyptuses, and contributes to prematuredeath of some highly susceptible species.
Redgum Lerp Psyllids infest over two dozen Euca-lyptus species. In California, their favorite eucalyptus isthe River Red Gum (Eucalyptus camaldulensis), whichwe have on the Madrona Marsh Preserve.
“Guests” Continues on page 11.
Figure 2
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––Dr. Connie Vadheim, CSU Dominguez Hills
South Bay Native Plant CornerSouth Bay Native Plant CornerSouth Bay Native Plant CornerSouth Bay Native Plant CornerSouth Bay Native Plant Corner
Coyote BushBaccharis pilularis
Fall is an interesting season in the Preserve – andin native plant gardens and natural areas throughoutSouthern California. At a time when many native plantsare dormant, certain species in the Sunflower Family(Asteraceae) are coming into full bloom. Nativesunflowers from the Annual Sunflower to large shrubforms brighten the landscape with yellow or whiteblooms. The Coyote Bush (Baccharis pilularis) isamong the more showy examples.
Coyote Bush is a native shrub that grows wildalong the western coast from Oregon to Baja California.It is a common shrub in Coastal Shrublands, CoastalSage Scrub and Chaparral. In our area, native varietiesgrow as medium to large-size shrubs (6-12 feet tall andwide). Other varieties from the Northern California coastare low-growing groundcovers. All are dense,evergreen (or nearly so) shrubs with small, leatheryleaves.
Coyote Bush is extremely drought tolerant. It hasboth deep and shallow roots that allow it to extract soilmoisture efficiently. It can die back (or be cut back)nearly to the ground and still recover after a prolongeddrought or fire. In short, it is one tough plant!
As a habitat plant, Coyote Bush offers manyadvantages. The dense foliage provides cover androosting spots for birds and small animals. Coyote
Bush provides food to many insect species year-round.But the insect show during the fall bloom season isspectacular! Be sure to spend some time watching thebutterflies, bees and countless other insects visiting theflowers. Of course, all the insects attract insect-eatingbirds such as Phoebes.
Coyote Bush makes a wonderful shrub for thehome garden. With just a little summer water it will bea handsome shrub year-round. You can prune it into ahedge or shape it to your garden’s needs after the fallbloom period. Several low-growing cultivars (‘PigeonPoint’ and ‘Twin Peaks’) make good woodygroundcovers or low hedges. It does best in full sun,and thrives in any local soil from sandy to clay.
Coyote Bush is an easy to grow shrub with manyexcellent qualities. There are separate male and femaleplants - if that’s important to you, ask before purchasing.The female plants form showy fluffy seeds while maleplants have gold flowers. Both are showy in bloom.So, enjoy this shrub in the Preserve – and consider itfor your home garden. It thrives on neglect and is anadaptable and reliable native shrub.
Learn more about local native plants at our “Outof the Wilds and into Your Garden” series on the firstSaturday of each month. Plant Information Sheets andPlant Lists are also available at the Nature Center.
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Scientists have been looking for ways to keep thenumber of Redgum Lerp Psyllids under control. Theywant to avoid using pesticides, as most pesticides aretoxic to the environmentin general, humans in-cluded. They travelleddown under, to the landof plenty, and found atiny Encyrtid parasitoidwasp: Psyllaephagusbliteus; see figure 3.This wasp appears tobe an effective controlagent with a life cycleclosely interwoven withthat of the RedgumLerp Psyllid. The RedGum Lerp Psyllid Waspis very small, about 2 mm or 1/10 inch long, and is harm-less to humans and other animals, except psyllids.
The life cycle of this parasitoid wasp is as follows.The adult male and female wasps mate, and the fe-males hunt for psyllid nymphs of a suitable size. Theadult female wasp lays an egg inside a psyllid nymph;the egg hatches and the larva consumes the psyllid.After about two weeks, the wasp immatures pupate toadults, and chew a hole in the lerp covering to emergeand continue their life cycle.
I photographed and identified the lerps many yearsago. In the beginning of the biological inventory projectwe are currently conducting at the Preserve, I identi-fied the adult Redgum Lerp Psyllid, and recently foundand identified the Red Gum Lerp Psyllid Encyrtid Wasp.This prompted the writing of this article, which can beseen as a case study accompanying my previous MarshMailing article with the title “Invisible Friends.”
Sources include UC-IPM, VoA News, andWikipedia.
Figure 3
Beth Scott, Senior Recreation Leader at the Na-ture Center and Preserve, has responsibility for manyof the activities and programs there––including care ofthe live animals housed in the Nature Center. Some ofthese animals are native to the Preserve, like the go-pher snake and California Kingsnake, which we keepto allow our visitors a closer look at an animal they mayget only a fleeting glimpse of on the Marsh. Many oth-ers are animals native to other habitats that have beendonated or abandoned here.
They all require, and receive, tender loving carefrom Beth and the staff. But occasionally our animals,especially those which are abandoned at the preserve,need professional care. Beth has ofen raved about“Doctor Mike,” a local veterinarian who is always avail-able to provide excellent care for our latest emergency. And that's not all. Here is a tribute to Doctor Mike thatBeth asked permission to include in the newsletter:
We would like to recognize Dr. Michael Zareskiand the staff at the Western Veterinary Group locatedat 1950 Pacific Coast Highway, Lomita, who have givenus free veterinarian care for the last 4 years. Duringthis time he has seen a wide variety of animals. He’sseen a bullfrog, mouse, rat, kingsnake, and severaltypes of turtles and tortoises. The care he has pro-vided at no cost has been much appreciated by every-one at the Madrona Marsh -- the staff, the volunteers,the visitors and the Friends of Madrona Marsh. Thankyou, Doctor Mike!
“Doctor Mike”--Friend to All“Doctor Mike”--Friend to All“Doctor Mike”--Friend to All“Doctor Mike”--Friend to All“Doctor Mike”--Friend to All
Moonlight Magic ParkingMoonlight Magic ParkingMoonlight Magic ParkingMoonlight Magic ParkingMoonlight Magic ParkingPark at the Nature Center parking lot. Please
carpool if you can, as parking is limited. We will haveoverflow parking at the Del Amo Mall, at the old GoodYear Tire store just northwest of Ralphs, with a shuttleto the Nature Center. Just take Plaza del Amo west 0.2miles from the Nature Center, just past Madrona Av-enue. We will also have a separate golf cart shuttlefrom the front gate of the Preserve to the event loca-tion.
The shuttles will run from 6 to 7:30 p.m. and from9:30 to 10 p.m. See you there!
Artists’ CornerArtists’ CornerArtists’ CornerArtists’ CornerArtists’ CornerWorks of local artists and photographers inspired
by the beauty of the Madrona Marsh are regularly ondisplay at the Nature Center. Everyone is invited toattend each artist’s reception where the artist talksabout his/her work or gives a demonstration. Snacksand beverages are included.
Through Oct. 15 - Beth Shibata, A Photogra-phy Exhibit.
Oct. 19 - Dec.3 - Paul Blieden, A PhotographyExhibit. Artist Reception, Friday, Nov. 5, 6:30-8:30p.m.
Jan. 25-March 4 - Al Hagan, Various Mediums-Pacific Arts. ––Ellen Petersen, Treasurer
Donations of $100 or MoreDonations of $100 or MoreDonations of $100 or MoreDonations of $100 or MoreDonations of $100 or More DATE WHO DONATIONApril 2010 Mrs. E.C. Barnett $5,000June 2010 The Caslers $100July 2010 Samuel & Adelaide
Rockwood Trust $5,000August 2010 Iris L. McKinley $200
Membership ApplicationWe appreciate your support. Thank you!
