e creatures you find in places like this are simply hiding from predators until nightfall, when they become active. Jerusalem crickets, for example, are often found under wood or rocks, but we know they come out at night because their distinctive heads and legs are often found in owl pellets (indigestible stuff, like bones and hair, coughed up by owls). Other hide-by-day, hunt-by-night insects often found under logs are the snail-eating beetles, which have long narrow thoraxes and heads that allow them to reach deep into snail shells.
Even some reptiles can be discovered under logs during the wet season. The sharp-tailed snake is one of few snakes in our area that is active during mid-winter. Its favorite food is slugs, which also come out to feed at night. In late winter and early spring, ring-necked snakes also hide under logs and rocks. Here they lie in wait for their favorite foods, like slender salamanders and sharp-tailed snakes!
If you turn over logs or rocks, remember to carefully put them back exactly where you found them. The space beneath these objects might look like lifeless dirt, but it’s a special home for an amazing variety of living things.
Finding critters under wood and stones is easy. Look under potted plants (and other things sitting on the ground outside) around your house, where you’ll find all kinds of new friends, even in the city. For a more organized critter search, check out David Herlocker’s regular family walks in Marin [free, marinopenspace.org, (415)499-6387]. You’ll find (and release) many fascinating animals and learn to treat them and their habitat with respect.
In the East Bay, head to Tilden Regional Park for a Life Under Logs program on January 17 [ages 5-12, free, 2-3:30 p.m., ebparks.org, (510)544-2233]. Farther east, Sunol Regional Park naturalist Cat Taylor has a bevy of events for log-lovers: Search for salamanders on February 4, an outing that’s part of the Outdoor Discoveries series [ages 3-5, $6 per child, 10-11:30 a.m., reservations required, ebparks.org, (510)544-3240]. Or head out on a Love in the Wilderness hike on February 13, in search of mating newts [ages 7 and up, free, 1-4:30 p.m., call to confirm, (510)544-3240].
In the Santa Cruz Mountains, join a newt roundup at Sanborn County Park on March 20 [9-11 a.m.; $10/adult, $5/child, $25/family; ysi-ca.org, (408)356-4945]. [Dan Rademacher]