FLORA, FAUNA ABOUND AT PLACERITA CANYON; COUNTY PARK VISITORS IN FOR NATURAL TREAT.Byline: Stacy Brown Daily News Staff Writer Pay your $3 parking fee and enter Placerita Canyon Park and immediately the beautiful oak woodland- and chaparral-draped surroundings warmly greet you. If you tour the nature center, you might find birds, tarantulas, snakes and other species native to the area. Frank Hoffman Frank Hoffman (born December 19, 1909) was an American football player. He was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame in 1978. has been a recreation services leader for three years and is still excited when a scrub jay scrub jay n. A blue and gray jay (Aphelocoma coerulescens) with a long slender body and no crest, found in dense brush or scrub especially in the Florida peninsula. , black Phoebe The Black Phoebe (Sayornis nigricans) is a distinctive tyrant flycatcher native to western North America, ranging from southwestern Oregon and California to west Texas and northern Mexico. , mockingbird mockingbird: see mimic thrush. mockingbird Any of several New World birds of a family (Mimidae) known for their mimicry of birdsong. The common, or northern, mockingbird (Mimus polyglottos) can imitate the songs of 20 or more species within 10 or a raven is spotted on one of the park's nature walks. ``I love this. I left a real estate career so I can do this,'' Hoffman said. ``You can see possums, falcons and all sorts of things out here.'' Situated in one of Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. County's designated natural areas, the park's nature center features exhibits on ecology, geology, local history as well as live animals that are on display. Tour guide Robert Fischer leads a 45-minute hike through the park every second Saturday of each month. ``He has you listen for animals and then he points out things like tracks and kind of shows you their sanctuary,'' Hoffman said. The park is nestled at the northwestern end of the San Gabriel Mountains San Gabriel Mountains, S Calif., E and NE of Los Angeles, running c.50 mi (80 km) westward from Cajon Pass. San Antonio Peak (10,080 ft/3,072 m) is the highest of the range. Citrus fruits are raised on the southern foothills. and its 350 acres stretch from a vernal vernal /ver·nal/ (ver´n'l) pertaining to or occurring in the spring. stream up to the backside of the mountains. Hoffman said every year thousands of schoolchildren schoolchildren school npl → écoliers mpl; (at secondary school) → collégiens mpl; lycéens mpl schoolchildren school visit the park to learn from people like Fischer. The park runs programs called Student Naturalists and Junior Rangers for children interested in the care of animals and learning about nature. Cub Scouts, Brownies, Boy Scouts and many other youth groups regularly visit the park to perform service projects for their rank advancement, Hoffman said. The park's volunteer organization, Placerita Canyon Nature Center Associates, leads most of the school programs and organizes fund-raising events and activities. Fischer leads the bird walk once a month and each weekend the park presents guided nature hikes and animal shows for the public. Located at 19152 Placerita Canyon Road in Newhall, the park and nature center are open daily from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is $3 per vehicle. For additional information on bird and nature walks at the park, call (805) 259-7721. CAPTION(S): 3 Photos Photo: (1--3) An acorn woodpecker, above, works on a tree near the nature center at Placerita Canyon Park. Recreation services leader Gini Shadwick, left, points out birds for Lindsey ZumMallen and Matthew Suedkamp. Below, Shadwick guides a group of visitors along a trail during a bird- and animal-watching hike. John Lazar/Special to the Daily News |
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