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The Valley Citizen
Learn 100 Valley Birds #8: Northern Flicker
We’re always excited to post another in Jim Gain’s “Learn 100 Valley Birds” series. See more of Jim’s excursions into nature at Reflections of the Natural World. Number 8 in our series, and number 13 overall, the Northern Flicker (Colaptes auratus) is a medium-sized bird of the woodpecker family. It is native to most of North America, parts of Central America, Cuba, and the Cayman Islands, and is one of the few woodpecker species that migrate. Here in the San Joaquin Valley, the Northern Flicker is a common year-round resident.
Beloved Homeless Man Shot in Modesto
By Thursday, news that Richard “Channon” Myers had been murdered on the mean streets of Modesto had swept through the local homeless community. Known for his long “trains” of scavenged treasures — some would say “junk” — Channon was beloved among the homeless for his good nature.
Adam Gray and Mike Barkley for Democracy
A small crowd showed up at Modesto’s Red Center Thursday, September 22, for debates featuring candidates for two of the Valley’s seats in the House of Representatives. John Duarte, running against Adam Gray in Congressional District 13, was represented by his wife Alexandra. Republican Tom McClintock, heavily favored in District 5 against Mike Barkley, didn’t show up.
Homelessness has Closed our Minds and Curdled our Hearts
“Despite enormous funding for homeless programs, and despite the fact that there are many individual successes, overall the system to date has not reduced homelessness.” Stanislaus County Civil Grand Jury, June 2022. Voluminous evidence shows that most people experiencing homelessness suffer from forces beyond their control. Despite this evidence,...
Gavin Newsom: End this Cruelty Now
It’s bad enough that homeless sweeps throughout the state do little more than add to the stress and misery of the poorest among us. Even worse, California Governor Gavin Newsom has taken to bragging about them, especially the sweeps conducted by Caltrans along the state’s highways. One of...
Learn 100 Valley Birds #7: Valley Goldfinches
This is a three-fer post featuring the three species of Goldfinch that occur in the Valley. The first two, American Goldfinch and Lesser Goldfinch are Common Year-round Residents of the valley, while the third species, Lawrence’s Goldfinch, is a bonus species Rare Year-round Resident here. American Goldfinch – Spinus...
Adam Gray Delivers for Valley Rivers
Elated nature lovers celebrated the end of August with news that California Assemblymember Adam Gray had acquired $40 million to further enhance development of wetlands and riparian forests at the confluence of the Tuolumne, San Joaquin and Stanislaus Rivers. Led by River Partners, the project will restore natural habitat and add tremendous value to the nearby San Joaquin River National Wildlife Refuge.
Two Views of Modesto’s Proposed Sales Tax Increase
Former Modesto City Councilmember Bruce Frohman always offers thoughtful analysis on issues involving local government. Below, he argues against Measure H, Modesto’s proposed sales tax increase. Following Bruce’s argument, The Valley Citizen presents its own argument in favor of Measure H. Ever since Proposition 13 passed in 1978,...
Learn 100 Valley Birds #6: Loggerhead Shrike
The Loggerhead Shrike is a Fairly Common Resident in the San Joaquin Valley and can be found in grasslands, freshwater wetlands and chaparral habitats. There are two species of shrike regularly found in the US, the Loggerhead Shrike and the Northern Shrike. However, the Northern Shrike is a very rare vagrant to the Central Valley.
Remembering Bill Amundsen
Modesto resident Bill Amundsen, a founding member of Stanislaus Audubon Society, passed away earlier this week. He was on the Audubon Society’s Board of Directors for almost forty years. His only interruption in service after its establishment in 1973 was during the period he served as his son’s Boy Scout Master.
Josh Harder and Adam Schiff: Standing for America
“I don’t know which line is longer,” said Congressman Josh Harder last Sunday, “the food line or the line to see Adam Schiff.”. For much of the afternoon, it was the line to see Adam Schiff that was by far the longest. The twenty-year veteran of Congress has gained international fame not only as chair of the House Intelligence Committee but especially for his role on the House Select Committee that is investigating the Insurrection of January 6, 2021. Schiff posed for photos, signed books, and chatted with guests at the annual Harder Family Barbecue, held this year on August 21 at the historic Albert Lindley House located along the water in the Port of Stockton.
Learn 100 Valley Birds #5: Dark-eyed Junco
Among the many joys of birding, the arrival of winter visitors is an ongoing thrill. With September looming, birders and nature lovers will be looking forward to the arrivals of White- and Golden-crowned Sparrows as well as the distinctive “little birds with the hoods.” Here, Jim Gain gives us his usual spectacular images and the proper name of our distinctive winter visitors, those, “little birds with the hoods.” They should start arriving in mid-September, though arrival dates can vary.
Linda Scheller’s Wind and Children: Heartbeats from the Classroom
Each school day for thirty-six years, the children walked into now- retired Ceres teacher Linda Scheller’s fifth-grade classroom, eager to learn but “often burdened by grinding poverty and difficult family situations at home.”. “A lot of my students’ families were very, very poor,” Ms. Scheller recounted recently when...
On Water: Josh Harder gets it Right
Right until the bitter end, Jeff Denham insisted he was against Jerry Brown’s twin tunnels, the key features of the now defunct California Water Fix. The facts showed otherwise; Denham consistently supported the program with votes he figured would never be exposed to his northern San Joaquin Valley constituents.
Learn 100 Valley Birds #4: Western Kingbird
Number 4 in Jim Gain’s “Learn 100 Valley Birds” series is the Western Kingbird. Anyone who’s driven along the Valley’s many country roads during spring and summer has seen Western Kingbirds, whether or not they know the name. Below, Jim describes the field marks for these beautiful birds, and also alerts observers to watch for the far less common Cassin’s Kingbird.
Homeless: The Accountability Papers #3
“Given the significant dollars spent to address homelessness, this lack of accountability is problematic and can undermine the public’s confidence in our public agencies.” Stanislaus County Civil Grand Jury, June, 2022. It was only last year that Stanislaus County added “accountability” to its plan for reducing regional homelessness....
Learn 100 Valley Birds #3: Common Valley Owls
Today’s post is another three-fer offering that includes the three owls that most Valley Visitors are likely to encounter in an urban setting: Great Horned Owl, Barn Owl and Western Screech-Owl. There are other possible owl species that one might come across in the grasslands and foothill woodlands away from town. One of those, the Burrowing Owl, will have its own future post and the others are considerably less likely to be seen.
Caltrans: Sweeping your Tax Dollars Away
We’re still waiting for a report from Caltrans on how much it costs to sweep the average homeless camp along one of California’s freeways. We do know that last November, Caltrans estimated it would spend $36 million on homeless camp cleanups in this year alone. Caltrans workers assigned...
Learn 100 Valley Birds #2: Anna’s Hummingbird
Jim Gain calls Anna’s Hummingbird, the second in the “Learn 100 Birds” series, a “three-fer” because it illustrates one of the basic tactics for building a local birding list. This tactic involves knowing a birding fundamental: Learn the most common bird and you will often also learn one or two other similar but less common birds. The Anna’s Hummingbird offers a classic case. In the San Joaquin Valley, if you see a hummingbird, the high probability is that it’s an Anna’s Hummingbird, because this is by far the most common species. The second and third most common are Black-chinned and Rufous Hummingbirds. Learn the Anna’s and when you see something that doesn’t fit its field marks, the next likely species is Black-chinned, followed by Rufous. Did we say you’re going to need binoculars? There are lots of used bargains on Ebay and you will need them if you want to experience the special joy of hummingbirds up close. See more of Jim’s fine work here.
More on Mapes Ranch Water Sales
July 25, attorneys for “Lyons Land Management and Mapes Ranch” issued a strong rebuttal to a letter to the Modesto Irrigation District (MID) from its former General Counsel that raised questions about Mapes Ranch’s use of MID water. The rebuttal argued the letter, “contains false accusations and incorrect information.” We summarized portions of the letter from Ronda Lucas on July 19.
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