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| Leucistic Scrub Jay Spotted in El Portal |
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Birdwatcher, photographer, and YA supporter Dan
Horner recently came across a rare sight near the
National Park Service warehouse building in El Portal.
Among a flock of normal individuals, he spotted
a "leucistic" scrub jay that stood out like, well, a bright
white bird.
What does leucistic mean? Albino birds lack pigment on
the body, so a full albino has white feathers and pink
eyes. A partially albinistic bird, with white patches
in its plumage, is said to be "leucistic", although
this term is also used to describe very pale individuals
which might also be called "dilute albinos."
We thank Dan for sharing his photographs with us and
our readers. You can meet him and many other top-
notch birders during next year's 2nd Annual
Yosemite Birding Festival. Watch this newsletter
for more information and final dates.
For larger photos of the leucistic scrub jay... »
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| Special Price on New Ahwahnee Book |
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A beautiful new coffee-table volume entitled The
Ahwahnee - Yosemite's Grand Hotel has just
been published cooperatively by DNC Parks & Resorts at
Yosemite and the Yosemite Association. A
comprehensive study of the hotel and all its facets, the
book features the engaging full-color photography of
Keith Walklet, who also prepared the text.
Walklet details the dramatic story of this remarkable
hotel, designated as a national historic monument, from
conception to completion to contemporary times in a
carefully researched narrative.
Chapters are included about the site's history and the
hotel's architecture, interior decoration, and celebrity
guests. There's also coverage of The Ahwahnee's
winter traditions, including a chapter on the
Bracebridge Dinner, the visit of Queen Elizabeth, the
Navy's use of the hotel as a convalescent hospital
during World War II, and the present status of the
building.
This beautiful gift book is a great way to remember
your visits to and experiences at The Ahwahnee, and
to appreciate the development and history of what
many believe is the finest hotel in the national park
system. The volume retails for $19.95, but for a limited
time we are offering a 20% discount to our
readers, who can purchase this handsome new work
for only $16.96. (The normal YA member
discount does not apply to this special.)
For more about the book and to purchase... »
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| No Winners in YA's Spring Contest |
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What a disappointment! Not one of our readers was
able come up with all three correct answers to the
questions we posed in our last newsletter. Alas, we
won't be awarding the dynamic prizes we had picked
out for somebody, but we promise to go easier next
time.
The question that gave people the most problems was:
In 1923, W. L. Dawson wrote about a secretive
Yosemite bird in his classic work, The Birds of California.
He noted that "If a martian in black livery were to sidle
up on the dark side of our planet to spy upon us, he
could scarcely keep his business so well concealed as
this ghoulish avian mystery." In recent years, however,
researchers have discovered that in optimum habitat,
this is probably the most common bird of its family in
the Sierra Nevada. What Yosemite bird was Dawson
referring to?
Only one lonely soul knew that Dawson had been
mystified by the flammulated owl, a species known to
occur in Yosemite at Henness Ridge and elsewhere.
(Photo courtesy of U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service.)
Unfortunately, he missed one of the other questions.
To learn the answers to the other Spring Contest
questions, please use the link below.
For all the answers to YA's Spring Contest... »
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| Listen to Nevada Barr's Yosemite Mystery on CD! |
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Noted national park mystery writer, Nevada Barr, has
recently issued the first Anna Pigeon adventure based
in Yosemite. Entitled High Country, the
book is based loosely on the infamous incident that
involved a modern-day gold rush in the park's
backcountry.
In 1977. a plane laden with marijuana crash-landed in
Yosemite's Lower Merced Pass Lake. Because the
wreckage was frozen below the lake's surface, park
rangers left it for spring retrieval. In the meantime, a
number of entrepreneurs heard about the plane and
began a major extraction program. When the NPS
figured out what was happening, a fascinating
interchange resulted.
Barr uses the incident as an element in her book,
painting a dark portrait of Yosemite featuring a cast of
unsavory drug runners and lost souls.
The new mystery has been very popular in its hard
cover edition, and now it is available as an audiobook
on CD. Veteran actress and reader Barbara Rosenblatt
does a wonderful job of capturing Anna Pigeon's
personality through her narration. Regularly retailing for
$34.99, the recorded book is available to YA members
at a 15% discount for only $29.74!
To purchase the High Country audiobook... »
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| Chiura Obata Fine Art Prints Available |
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The Yosemite Association is pleased to announce the
publication of four fine art prints with images
reproduced from original woodblock prints created
by Chiura Obata in 1930.
Besides Obata's remarkable treatment of "El
Capitan" (shown above), the prints include
"Evening Moon" (which graced the cover of
Obata's Yosemite), "Life and Death,
Porcupine Flat," and the darkly ominous "Before
Thunderstorm, Tuolumne Meadows."
The images, 10 inches by 14.4 inches on a 12 inch by
16.5 inch sheet, are reproduced in full color with a
white border on 100% cotton, Hahnemühle Photo Rag
308 gsm paper using archival pigment inks and the
giclee process. The fine art prints have a life
expectancy of over 100 years.
Never available to the public before now, the prints are
remarkable for their trueness to the originals. It's
possible to have "Obatas" of your own with these
stunning reproductions. Each print is priced at $45, but
with their 15% discount, YA members pay only
$38.25. You can afford to buy all four!
For details about the Obata prints and to order...
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