Presenter: Jann Lepson
Date: October 6
Time: 7:30pm

Location: Math-Science Nucleus, 4074 Eggers Drive Fremont 94536

Jaan Lepson will talk about birding in the south and west coastal regions of South Africa.
 
Jaan will take us through this special corner of Africa where evergreen Afromontane forest gives way to the deserts of the Karoo and the wildflower fields of Namaqualand. From sandgrouse to sunbirds, bustards to batises and bush-shrikes, a wonderful array of birds is on hand.  And not just birds but also impressive mammals and even an entire floral kingdom, one of just six that encompasses the world.  And if that’s not enough, you can swim with penguins!


Californians will find much that is familiar in this winter rainfall region: magnificent landscapes, soaring vistas of golden hills and granite domes, not to mention vineyards, shopping malls, and oleander-lined freeways.  Most tourists focus their visit on the justly famous Kruger National Park in the far northeast of the country, but the south and west has much to offer - without the Kruger crowds.
 
Jaan Lepson grew up in Hawaii, where he developed a love for birds and nature. He studied ecology and evolutionary biology as an undergraduate at Princeton University, and then returned home to pursue a PhD in zoology at the University of Hawaii. He spent five years living in a tent in the high rainforests of Mauna Kea on Hawai’i island where he studied plumage and mate choice in the ‘Akepa, a small endangered Hawaiian honeycreeper. Life took a twist, as it often does, and he now works in laboratory astrophysics at U.C. Berkeley. But he hasn’t forgotten his birding roots!

Directions:
To reach the Math Science Nucleus (MSN) take I-880 to Mowry, east on Mowry, & left onto Fremont Blvd. The MSN is on the left, at the corner of Eg- gers. From Mission Blvd. turn right onto Mowry ,right onto Fremont Blvd and proceed as above.