Naturalist, Author, Artist John Muir Laws and Biologist Ramiro Aragon
Describe the Magnificence of The Great Gray Owl

Critter Chat hosts and producers Marney Blair and Susan Brandt are delighted to present this ninth episode featuring the Great Gray Owl - the largest owl in California and North America. But did you know a subspecies lives in the Sierra Nevada?

In conjunction with the launch of John Muir Laws' new book, the second edition of Laws Guide to Sierra Birds featuring his painting of the Great Gray Owl on its cover, Critter Chat listeners get to hear directly from this author - a dynamic speaker and educator - about his observations of, and stories about this fantastic bird.

In the second half of the show, biologist Ramiro Aragon of The Institute for Bird Populations, speaks to his direct experience gathering information about the owl’s behavior in the wild - quite special as this elusive bird, known at the “Ghost of the Forest” is very hard to find and observe.

School teachers are encouraged to use Critter Chat for their students. Blair and Brandt are developing teaching notes that include vocabulary words such as “snag” and “subspecies” to bring concepts to students.

Critter Chat is written and produced by Marney Blair and Susan Brandt and edited with Claudio Mendonca at KVMR. Each episode features one species of the many species that live in the Sierra Nevada foothills and mountains.

Want to learn how to draw owls? Check out this free, fun, and empowering 2-part owl drawing class taught by John Muir Laws! Free but registration required. $25 suggested donation to support the Wild Wonder Foundation, a nonprofit cofounded by John Muir Laws:
https://www.wildwonder.org/store/p/drawowls

To order a signed copy of the Laws Guide to Sierra Birds AND receive an exclusive bonus sticker of John Muir Laws’ beautiful Great Grey Owl illustration from the cover, visit
https://johnmuirlaws.com/product/the-laws-field-guide-to-sierra-birds/

BONUS: 25 lucky folks who order a signed copy of the book through John Muir Laws’ store (picked at random) will also receive a beautiful embroidered Critter Chat patch!

Image credit: Great Grey Owl Illustration COPYRIGHT JOHN MUIR LAWS johnmuirlaws.com

In Critter Chat episode 8, hosts Marney Blair and Susan Brandt chat with Dr. David Herbst of the Sierra Streams Institute at Little Deer Creek in Pioneer Park in Nevada City as he dredged up an aquatic critter living in the sediment of the stream, a little dragonfly nymph. While we spend many hours of our lives pondering the agile aerial flyer that is the dragonfly, we rarely get to see the early stages of the dragonfly nymph which spends years developing underwater, molting 5-10 times, and eventually emerging to become the enchanting creature we see in the air. Dr. Herbst gives us lots of information about the intriguing lives of these little critters and their stream habitat.

This nymph in particular, will become the elusive dragonfly, the Grappletail Dragonfly. With cryptic coloring and secretive manner, this dragonfly is very successful as an apex predator in both aquatic and aerial phases, eating insects, mating and lasting only til the end of the warm seasons of a year.

In the second half of the show, we hear from experts, Greg Kareofelas of the Bohart Museum of Entomology; and UC Davis PhD candidate Christofer Brothers, who specializes in the predatory nature of the dragonflies, about what is unique about this particular Grappletail Dragonfly.

School teachers are encouraged to use Critter Chat for their students. Susan and Marney are developing teaching notes that include vocabulary words such as “teneral” and “metamorphosis” to bring concepts to students.

Critter Chat airs on KVMR the first Wednesday of every month at 6:30-7:00pm. The Grappletail dragonfly episode will broadcast on Wednesday, November 6 at 6:30pm. See critterchat.org for podcast available the day of the show and more links to Grappletail Dragonfly resources.

Photo: Grappletail Dragonfly, courtesy Greg Kareofelas, Bohart Museum of Entomology, UC Davis

In 2023 the California legislature voted to make the Pallid bat (antrozous pallidus), the only flying mammal, a symbol of California. Bat biologist Dr. Dave Johnston has studied the Pallid bat for over 40 years and was the first to make the suggestion that this unusually golden-furred bat be the one to represent the Golden State. Then with the help of ninth grader and bat enthusiast, Naomi d’Alessio and wildlife advocates, they made a convincing argument noting the Pallid bats critical, beneficial role in California agriculture helping farmers manage insects without pesticides. In Modoc County alone, bats saved farmers $50 million by eating grasshoppers and significantly reducing the cost of pesticides.

In November 2023, the charismatic Pallid bat was selected to join the other great state symbols: the California Grizzly bear, the California valley quail, and the California golden poppy.

In this episode of Critter Chat, hosts Marney Blair and Susan Brandt interview Dr. Johnston and Ms. d’Alessio as well as meet an actual Pallid bat that is in the care NorCal Bat rescue expert Corky Quirk. Why was this particular bat selected as the state bat? Why is it important to elevate the awareness of the health of bats in California? We discuss these questions with the experts bringing listeners a new found fondness for this little blonde beauty.

School teachers are encouraged to use Critter Chat for their students. Blair and Brandt are developing teaching notes that include vocabulary words such as “echolocation” and “roosts” to bring concepts to students.

Critter Chat airs on KVMR the first Wednesday of every month at 6:30-7:00pm. The Pallid bat episode will premiere on Wednesday, October 2 at 6:30pm. See critterchat.org for show notes and more links to Pallid bat resources.