Conservatory of Flowers - Envelope # 16

It was a rather dreary foggy morning in the Inner Sunset when we arrived at the Conservatory of Flowers in Golden Gate Park. Opened in 1879, this is the oldest municipal greenhouse on the West Coast. Spending time in 5 rooms exploding with exotic flowers and plants turned the dreary day around. 

Carnivorous Aquatic Plants such as the bladderwort will vacuum trap insects. Unable to photosynthesize, these plants need bugs to survive.

 Gorgeous Orchids

Exotic Orchid 

Hundreds of Dahlias, outside of the Conservatory....

San Francisco via iPhone

Wildlife in San Francisco - Envelope 15

Wildlife in San Francisco... An interesting envelope to open.  When I think of wildlife I think of an all night-er somewhere in the Tenderloin.  But this wasn't the San Francisco wildlife that this envelope had intended.

There is an abundance of wonderful wildlife in the city. From the zoos, the aquariums and the seals; to the hawks, raccoons and coyotes that naturally roam my neighborhood; I settled that this "assignment" fell somewhere in-between...

First Visit - The Bison of Golden Gate park

A permanent fixture in the city, these American Bison have transformed this corner of the park into a piece of the Wild West. These creatures move slowly behind the protective fence. Deceivingly so, as they have been reported to be able to run up to 40 miles an hour.

These are among the last surviving species of the American Bison or Buffalo. The park has a successful breeding program which has contributed more than 100 calves to the remaining 200,000 North American Bison population. 

Hawk in our backyard

Another fascinating "wildlife" phenomena is San Francisco's Organic Weed Abatement Program. We discovered the goats one morning 2 years ago when we woke up to an overwhelming amount of "Maaaaas"...  Right under Sutro Tower, the traveling goats had arrived!

Every year in early July, the goats are dispersed through out the city to trim back weeds and over growth. These goats attack the brush and devour the brush at warp speed.  This year instead of the "Maaaas", we woke up to overjoyed children, "The goats are back! The goats are back!"

© 2012 by Hayley Thisltehwaite. All Rights Reserved.