Tegula sea snails
At a Snail’s Place
Habitat: Pacific Coast tidepools
Population: innumerable
Status: none
Transorchestia enigmatica
This Animal Has Never Been Seen Away From Lake Merritt — But It’s Not From Oakland
Habitat: Adams Point, Lake Merritt
Population: unknown
Status: none
California sea-blite
An Emissary From a Forgotten Past, Thriving in an Unlikely Home
Habitat: San Francisco Bay, Morro Bay
Population: Three San Francisco populations
Status: Federally endangered
Livermore Tarplant
The Tarweed Lives Happily Ever After
Habitat: Alkali flats and meadows, Livermore Valley
Population: Three known populations
Status: California endangered species
Mission Blue
Driving Home the Butterfly
Habitat: San Mateo, San Francisco, Marin
Population: Approximately 10,000
Status: Federally endangered
Sage Grouse
What People Talk About When They Talk About Sage Grouse
Habitat: Western United States
Population: Approximately 300,000
Status: Unprotected
Clapper Rail
The Clapper Rail Calls At Dawn
Habitat: wetlands, San Francisco Bay
Population: 1,160
Status: Federally endangered
Galapagos Damselfish
The Fish We Never Knew
Habitat: Galapagos Islands
Population: Unknown
Status: Believed extinct
About
'Weird, Ugly, Rare' is a series from Bay Nature, a magazine dedicated to exploring the natural world of the San Francisco Bay Area.
Writer: Eric Simons
Production and development: Sean Greene and Peuan Thinsan
Illustration: Rachel Diaz-Bastin
The web design, illustration and photography for 'Weird, Ugly, Rare' was funded by a grant from the Foundation for Environmental Journalism.