Nature — Page 4

Stumptown Stories: The Biology, Behavior and Benefits of Bats (24-January-2012)

January 23, 2012 by Dave Leave a Comment

The Stumptown Stories series, geared to everyone who loves this city we live in, takes place most Tuesdays at Jack London bar (basement of the Rialto, SW 4th and Alder). Free to get in, but must be 21 or over – there’s a full bar!

On Tuesday, January 24, 2012 Stumptown Stories, with the help of Conservation scientist Chris Hein, PhD, of Bat Conservation International takes a look at a creature of the night with the presentation: The Biology, Behavior and Benefits of Bats.

Bats are essential to the health of our natural world. They help control pests and are vital pollinators and seed-dispersers for countless plants. Yet these wonderfully diverse and beneficial creatures are among the least studied and most misunderstood of animals.

Doors open at 7pm for this free event (21 and over only). Presentation begins at 7:30pm.

Weekend Amusements (January 13-16, 2012)

January 12, 2012 by Dave Leave a Comment

Don’t let the mid-January doldrums get to you, there are plenty of fun things to do this weekend, and Monday is Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Don’t miss PFM’s winter market on Saturday, and please peruse the lovingly curated list of events and activities below!

Friday

Where to Watch Portlandia In Portland

Updated for 2012: season 2!
Don’t have a TV? Don’t have the Independent Film Channel? Watch Portlandia, if you’re into that sort of thing, at the Portland venues listed below.
Portlandia season 2 airs of Fridays, beginning on January 6, 2012. [more]

Saturday-Monday

Fee Free Days at Fort Vancouver

In celebration of Martin Luther King Junior Day (Monday, January 16), admission is free to all National Parks from Saturday, January 14 through Monday, January 16.

This includes Fort Vancouver! [more]

Saturday

J.R.R. Tolkien Birthday Bash

John Ronald Reuel Tolkien‘s birthday is actually January 3rd, but the McMenamins’ 2012 J.R.R. Tolkien Birthday Celebration takes place this Saturday, January 14 at the Kennedy School (5736 NE 33rd).

“Elves, wizards, ents, orcs and all others are welcome to join us for this celebration of one of the 20th century’s most influential authors.” [more]

107ist Annual General Meeting

We are pleased to announce that we have finalized the date and location for our Annual General Membership Meeting.

The meeting will be open to current members of all ages. In addition, you are invited to bring one guest to the meeting who does not need to be a 107ist member.

Important: Because space is limited, both Members and guests must RSVP for the meeting & movie [more]

Sunday

Free Museum Family Day Celebrating Japanese Prints

Join this lively celebration of Japanese printmaking on Free Museum Family Day. Make woodblock prints, create mini-ikebana flower arrangements and transform into fantastical Kabuki characters. Don’t miss this day of traditional and contemporary Japanese visual art, music, dance, and theater. [more]

Buckman-Kerns Brewfest 2012

The second annual Buckman-Kerns Brewfest returns Sunday, January 15, 2012 to The East Burn (1800 E. Burnside), from noon until 8pm.

The neighborhood breweries taking part in this rare January brewfest include Buckman Village Brewery, Burnside Brewing Co., and more! [more]

Monday

Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. once said, “Life’s most persistent and urgent question is: ‘What are you doing for others?'”

Each year, Americans across the country answer that question by coming together on the King Holiday to serve their neighbors and communities.

The MLK Day of Service is a part of United We Serve, the President’s national call to service initiative. It calls for Americans from all walks of life to work together to provide solutions to our most pressing national problems. [more]

And for even more weekend events and activities, check out the Dave Knows Calendar, and visit Around the Sun, Blogging Portland on the Cheap, PDX Pipeline, and Oregon Events at OregonLive.com.

Stumptown Stories: The Missoula Flood, Evidence of Disaster (27-December-2011)

December 26, 2011 by Dave Leave a Comment

This Tuesday, December 27, 2011 author, artist, and photographer Rick Thompson presents The Missoula Flood, Evidence of Disaster, based on his findings from 10 years of research uncovering the effects of the Missoula Flood in Oregon and Southwest Washington. With color photos, topographical maps and space photos Rick will show some of the effects still visible today.

This catastrophic ice age flood propelled over 500 cubic miles of water, ice, rock and mud across eastern Washington, further cut the Columbia River Gorge, covered the Willamette Valley with up to 400 feet of water and left gravel bars miles long and hundreds of feet high.

Doors open at 5pm for this free event (21 and over only). Presentation begins at 7:30pm.

November 23, 1874: Elijah Jones Davidson Discovers the Oregon Caves

November 23, 2011 by Dave Leave a Comment

Elijah Jones Davidson was born in Illinois but grew up in Williams, Oregon, where as an adult he tried his hand at hunting, farming, and gold mining. On November 23, 1874 Elijah and his dog Bruno were out hunting in the Siskiyou Mountains when they came upon a bear. Elijah followed as Bruno chased the bear, until suddenly both creatures disappeared! It was then he noticed a stream that seemed to spring from between rocks and brush, and a large dark hole. He hesitated as he heard growling and barking emanating from the hole.

His moment of indecision came to an abrupt end when he heard a loud, high pitched yelp spring from the cavern before him. He set down his rifle…too long and cumbersome in such a small place, pulled out his knife and grabbed some matches from his pouch. He broke off a few, struck them on the rocks, and lit the way ahead of him into a dark, damp underground realm. He paused for a moment just inside the hole to let his eyes adjust to the twilight. In the enclosed space, the smell of the sulfur matches stung his nostrils, but he hardly noticed, for what lay before him held his concentration. He looked down at the floor of the small room in which he crouched, and saw the telltale sign of a bear’s having slept there. Creeping onward he heard echoes of the stream inside the walls of stone, and soon came to the water’s edge. Crawling among the rocks to avoid getting his feet soaked in the cold water, he made his way, matches and knife in hand, past uneven walls of ghostly shapes. Never had he seen such a place, but the growl of the bear brought him back to the matter at hand.

His matches burned downed to his fingertips and he pulled out the block and broke off some more. Holding them up to see as well as possible, he pushed onward, listening for dog or bear, his concentration broken now and then by the odd-looking white and tan rocks that glistened in the dancing light. He continued in this manner until he realized he was down to the last of the matches, his only source of light.

He found his way back to daylight by following the stream. The next day he returned to the cave with his brother. He had stumbled upon the Marble Halls of Oregon, now known as the Oregon Caves National Monument.

November 19, 1983: Blue Magpie Runs Aground at Yaquina Bay North Jetty

November 19, 2011 by Dave Leave a Comment

At 7:38pm on Saturday, November 19, 1983 the 350 foot freighter Blue Magpie, on its way to pick up a load of lumber, hit the rocks at the north tip of the Yaquina Bay north jetty (The Sunday Oregonian, 20 November 1983).

The Coast Guard had advised the freighter earlier in the evening to lay off the bay because of the rough seas, which were breaking across the bar in 14-foot, flat-sided waves. [Coast Guard Cmdr Clinton W.] Carter said a pilot could not be dispatched to guide the freighter into the bay. However, he said, the unidentified skipper “ignored our advice to stay out there.”

After the empty freighter hit the rocks all 19 crew members were lifted to safety by Coast Guard helicopters. That was the good news.

The abandoned freighter proceeded to break up into three pieces and had leaked at least 3000 gallons of oil by Sunday night (The Oregonian, 21 November 1983). Within three days 10,000 gallons of diesel fuel had escaped, and within five days another 60,000 gallons of bunker C oil had leaked out of the wreck. Ultimately hundreds of seabird deaths were attributed to the spill, which was one of the worst in Oregon history (The Oregonian, 4 February 1988).

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