Here’s how we help an iconic California fish survive the gauntlet of today’s highly modified waterways
New ‘facilitated migration’ framework gives water managers a playbook for getting more juvenile Chinook salmon from the Central Valley to the sea
Acclaimed evolutionary biologist Beth Shapiro elected to National Academy of Sciences
Beth Shapiro, professor of ecology and evolutionary biology at UC Santa Cruz, has been elected a member of the National Academy of Sciences (NAS). On April 29, NAS announced that Shapiro was among 120 new members elected from around the country, along with 30 new international members.
Biologist Erika Zavaleta receives Science Division’s Outstanding Faculty Award
The Science Division has announced that Erika Zavaleta, a professor in the Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Department, has won its 2023-24 Outstanding Faculty Award. The annual prize is the division’s highest honor for faculty achievement, recognizing combined excellence in research, teaching, and service.
Foraging seals enable scientists to measure fish abundance across the vast Pacific Ocean
A new study led by UC Santa Cruz marine biologist Roxanne Beltran to be published as the February 14 cover story for Science concludes that seals can essentially act as “smart sensors” for monitoring fish populations in the ocean’s eerily dim “twilight zone.”
Explorer society honors Roxanne Beltran for advancing scientific field research, education equity
Roxanne Beltran, assistant professor of ecology and evolutionary biology at UC Santa Cruz, is among 50 people from around the world being honored this year for “doing remarkable work to promote science and exploration.”
$7.5 million awarded to UC Santa Cruz to support leadership in salmon-recovery science
UC Santa Cruz has received nearly $7.5 million from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association (NOAA) to vault scientific research on imperiled Pacific salmon populations into one of the nation’s most powerful collaborations between the agency and academia to save the vital species.
Bear DNA study to measure impact of conservation actions on genetic diversity
The National Science Foundation will fund research at UC Santa Cruz that will examine the DNA of brown bears in the lower 48 states, where the iconic beast’s numbers have seen catastrophic declines over the last century. The research project will use genetic-sequencing technologies to study the effects of this rapid population decline, as well as the impacts of previous conservation-management actions.
Fort Ord reserve inspires youth to consider careers in natural science, conservation
As the only full-time staff member at UC Santa Cruz’s Ford Old Natural Reserve, Director Joe Miller doesn’t need to create more work for himself. And yet, he’s managed to do just that by successfully partnering with a nearby charter high school that brings students onto the 610-acre property to teach students about local natural history and introduce them to career pathways in natural science and conservation.
Terrie Williams honored with 2024 National Academy of Sciences Daniel Giraud Elliot Medal
The National Academy of Sciences will honor 20 individuals with awards recognizing their extraordinary scientific achievements in a wide range of fields spanning the physical, biological, social, and medical sciences. Among the esteemed awardees is Terrie M. Williams, a comparative ecophysiologist from the University of California, Santa Cruz, who will be honored with the 2024 NAS Award in the Evolution of Earth and Life – Daniel Giraud Elliot Medal.
As the California sea lion population got bigger, so did male sea lions
As the California sea lion population got bigger, so did male sea lions
One of the planet’s most important carbon sinks is revealing its secrets
Tiny organisms in the Southern Ocean play an outsized role in moderating Earth’s climate
Elephant seals drift off to sleep while diving far below the ocean surface
Brainwave patterns show elephant seals take short naps while holding their breath on deep dives, averaging just 2 hours of sleep per day while at sea