California and Sierra Newts are native to California. In winter and spring, Sierra Newts in Nevada County respond to an over-powering urge – to return to the pond or stream where they were born. Reproduction Hormones cause this migratory breeding behavior, known as water drive. (The hormone, prolactin, is also responsible for human breast milk production.) The migration begins with travel and ends … Read More
Scurvy in California’s Food Capital
Well before the Gold Rush (by the 1750’s) it was known that eating citrus fruit prevented scurvy scur·vy | ˈskərvē/ | noun – a disease caused by a deficiency of vitamin C, characterized by swollen bleeding gums and the opening of previously healed wounds, which particularly affected poorly nourished sailors until the end of the 18th century. “Yet the 1849ers, in their rush … Read More
