Submitted by Sandy Chaille – NORTH FORK – The North Fork Community Development Council (CDC) will hold its annual meeting on Monday, Mar. 26, and the public is invited to participate. The meeting will be held at the Rancheria’s Community Center (up on the hill) with doors opening at 5 p.m. and refreshments served by the North Fork Women’s Club. ...

Contributed by Len McKenzie — Wolves hold a prominent place in both human history and the human psyche. Integral to that history were the ecological relationships they evolved over time on the earth’s continental land masses. American and Eurasian folklore and literature are replete with characterizations and imagery of wolves, usually negative (remember “Little Red Riding Hood” and “Three Little ...

MADERA COUNTY – The Madera County Transportation Commission (MCTC) is holding a workshop in Oakhurst to get your input on ways to provide more efficient streets and highways, expand transit use, make space for bicycles and pedestrians, and link land use and transportation. The MCTC is working on the 2018 Regional Transportation Plan, and they want your opinion regarding which ...

Contributed by Len McKenzie — Brazil evokes many images among Americans–Rio de Janeiro, the Amazon, tropical rainforests and abundant, exotic animals, especially its stunningly colorful birds. Occupying almost half of South America (geographically the fifth largest country in the world), Brazil is home to an immensely rich diversity of avifauna—upward of 1,800 species of birds, more than 200 of them ...

Contributed by Len McKenzie, YAAS — Australia, the land “Down Under,” is an island, a country (the world’s sixth largest geographically), and a continent (the world’s smallest). Having no land borders, the Australian mainland —“the lowest, flattest and oldest continental landmass on Earth”— and its satellite islands collectively boast more than 37,000 miles of coastline, embracing an impressive diversity of ...

Contributed by Len McKenzie — One of the pleasures of living in the western United States is our proximity to a rich abundance and diversity of wildlife, both large and small. While sharing outdoor space with some species can sometimes be challenging, and occasionally even threatening, for people, particularly in urban and suburban neighborhoods, opportunities to view wildlife in natural, ...

MADERA COUNTY — On Saturday, Sept. 30, the County of Madera will host a special joint meeting with the City of Chowchilla and City of Madera to talk about shared goals and how they can be put into action. The meeting is open to the public and will take place at the Madera Municipal Golf Course, 23200 Avenue 17 in Madera. ...

NORTH FORK — District 5 Supervisor Tom Wheeler will host a Town Hall meeting on Thursday, June 8, from 6 to 8 p.m. in North Fork. On the evening’s agenda will be updates from the North Fork Rancheria, Cal Fire and Madera County Fire, and the Sheriff’s Office. Also making presentations will be Dexter Marr of the Environmental Health Department, ...

NORTH FORK — The public is invited to attend a presentation by well-known wildlife biologist Phil Bartholomew on Wednesday, Apr. 19, at the North Fork School. The presentation will be part of the annual Sierra Vista Scenic Byway meeting. In 1928, Orland Bartholomew made a 300-mile trek in mid-winter from Yosemite to Mount Whitney, which included the first winter ascent ...

Contributed by Len McKenzie, YAAS — The rolling foothills of the western Sierra Nevada encompass a richly diverse and scenic natural and cultural heritage. The Sierra Foothill Conservancy (SFC), a local land trust founded in 1996 in Fresno County, now plays a significant role in protecting the natural resources, working lands, cultural traditions and rural character of this area’s expansive ...