Shane Brown is a lifelong naturalist and the caretaker at Big Oak Canyon, Earthroots 39-acre property in Silverado, California. This blog is a highlight reel of his experiences at Big Oak Canyon.
Join Shane for a 2-hour casual wander observing the flora and fauna of Big Oak Canyon on second and fourth Tuesdays of the month.
*See schedule for dates and times
Second Tuesdays of the month will be focused on plants, and fourth Tuesdays will be focused on birds and animal tracks and sign.
Big Oak Canyon Highlights
Here’s a peek at what some of the animals and plants at Big Oak Canyon are up to this summer.
Projects and Discoveries
Trivia Questions
Answers from last month:
What animal at Big Oak makes wide and flat burrows that go into the earth at a shallow angle?
Scorpions make flat burrows that we see at Big Oak.
What planet is right above Scorpio in the evening sky right now?
Jupiter can be seen right above the constellation Scorpio in the current evening sky.
What wild plant with sweet, edible fruits and nuts will be ripening at Big Oak in the month of August?
Islay, or holly-leaf cherry has ripened in August.
How are rattlesnakes different from other snakes in the way they reproduce?
Rattlesnakes give birth to live young as opposed to most snakes, which lay eggs.
For this month:
What animal’s skull is pictured above?
What two basic categories of things are needed to build a compost pile?
How does a robber fly digest its prey?
What animal species was extirpated from Orange County 111 years ago?
What does tannic acid, used for tanning animal skins, come from?
All of these questions will be answered in the next Big Oak Canyon highlight blog by our caretaker, Shane Brown.
Blog post was written by Shane Brown.
Shane is the caretaker of Earthroots’ Big Oak Canyon property. He also teaches the Spanish Immersion in Nature and Ancestral Arts programs. He occasionally helps with other Earthroots classes and leads volunteer days at Big Oak Canyon.
