This is a “Best of Wendy Langhans” Report. What exactly is a hairpencil?  Is it some sort of stick-shaped hair ornament?  Nope.  Hairpencils are cross between (1) lighting a scented candle and (2) spreading pixie dust with a magic wand.  Let me explain. Entomologists use the word “hairpencil” to describe a brush-like structure on the abdomen of some male butterflies ...

This Report is a “Best of Wendy Langhans” Report. Some people are born thrill-seekers.  Every parent knows someone like that:  the toddler who takes off running as soon as you reach the park, the novice bike rider who can’t wait to take off the training wheels.  We watch and smile knowingly at each other, “Just wait until they become a ...

We’ve all seen the recent news videos: fixed-wing aircraft swooping down to drop a load of fire retardant alongside the smokey edge of a wildland fire.  But did you ever wonder what those fire retardants are made of and how they work?   First, let’s start the composition of fire retardants.  Fires are classified by the fuels they consume.  Wildland ...

This Report is a “Best of Wendy Langhans” Report.   During allergy season , I sometimes wonder if pollen grains have their own navigation system .  If that’s true, then their map for the Santa Clarita Valley must have a fluorescent orange locator pin labeled “Wendy’s nose”.  (Thank goodness for antihistamines.) But locating my nose is not pollen’s true mission; ...

We learn by observing others.  Not only is that true for humans, it’s also true for other creatures, including certain species of bees.  And in the case of short-tongued bumblebees, what they learned is something we call burglary – “breaking and entering”. For millions of years, flowering plants and insects such a bumblebees have participated in a “backscratching” pact: flowers ...

As a child, I was attracted to butterflies by their color and patterns:  sometimes subtle, sometimes vibrant, sometimes simple and sometimes intricate.  As I took a closer look, I sometimes noticed that the trailing end of their wings had a piece missing, as though something had taken a bite out of it.  I wasn’t the first person to observe this.  ...

According to this LA County Sheriff Dept. website, “Black Bears were introduced into the San Gabriel Mountains in 1933. They are all descendants of 11 bears deported from Yosemite National Park for being troublemakers.” Can’t you just picture the scene?  Dramatic music swells in the background, as Ranger Smith plants his feet on the ground, narrows his eyelids and announces, ...

Santa Clarita Outdoor Report by Wendy Langhans Children learn to communicate with gestures before they learn to communicate with words.  Around the age of 8-10 months, babies begin pointing at objects with their hands, an action known as “deictic gestures”.  Deictic gestures are gestures “that refer to something around the child — pointing, showing an object, or reaching for something.” Don’t miss a ...

In order to get a driver’s license in the state of California, you must have a visual acuity (keenness of vision) of 20/40. By those standards, rats would not be able to drive.

In March, the City of Santa Clarita asked members of the community to submit their favorite photographs of life in our valley for the Spring Photo Contest. First, second and third place winners were selected to receive cash prizes and have their photos featured on the City website and in Season’s Magazine. Don’t miss a thing. Get breaking Santa Clarita ...