California’s Magnificent Oaks with Kate Marianchild
April 1, 2021 | 7:30 pm – 8:30 pm
California’s iconic and magnificent oaks support a more diverse array of organisms than any other terrestrial ecosystem in the state. In a presentation filled with wood ducks, woodrats, woodpeckers, and many other species, author and naturalist Kate Marianchild will discuss the keystone role oaks play in oak woodland food webs. We’ll learn about symbiotic connections between oaks and other organisms, such as fungi, jays, and caterpillars, and we’ll marvel at the tiny wasps who bend enormous oak trees to their bidding. We will crawl with Kate through woodrat mansions, fight for breeding opportunities with acorn woodpeckers, and defend mistletoe with bluebirds. Who could stay away?
Register HereAbout the Speaker
Kate Marianchild
When Kate Marianchild migrated to the oak woodlands of inland Mendocino County in 2001, she promptly fell in love with an ecosystem. After writing for Audubon and other nature-oriented nonprofits for several years, she began the research that led to the writing of this book. Marianchild studied Chinese language and literature at UC Berkeley and New Asia College in Hong Kong, graduating Phi Beta Kappa from Berkeley with a degree in comparative literature. Following years of grassroots political activism, she moved to Mendocino County in 1980 and supported herself as a carpenter while founding and running Rising Tide Sea Vegetables, a company that is still thriving today under new ownership. For the past thirteen years she has lived in a cozy twenty-five-foot-diameter yurt with no indoor plumbing except a sink and a two-gallon hot water heater. In addition to watching wildlife, leading nature walks, and giving slide presentations, Marianchild sings with two community choirs, kayaks, swims, and participates in the events of her beloved community. (Kate Marianchild was known as Kathy Roberts before she changed her name to honor her deceased mother.)
