Construction of a seasonal pond within an existing wetland area in the Younger Lagoon Natural Reserve will create potential aquatic breeding habitat for the California red-legged frog
Yes, we can have clean energy and tortoises too.
A UCSC team has assembled a toolkit of resources for academic departments to use in addressing issues of diversity, equity, and inclusion.
A long-term study in Elkhorn Slough revealed the impact of superabundant crabs on salt marsh vegetation and the vulnerability of tidal creek banks to erosion
As cargo shipments boom, ship strikes imperil whales in California and worldwide
While most fish need water to feed, the unique anatomy of moray eels gives snowflake morays the ability to grab and swallow prey on land. UC Santa Cruz Scientist Rita Mehta has caught the first proof of this feat on tape.
As an undergraduate, Ishana Shukla has not been shy about participating in research. She has worked in seven different labs, completed six internships, and developed and taught a student-directed seminar, “Undergraduates in Research.” Her project, “Variation in resting strategies across trophic levels and habitats in mammals” recently received one of the Physical and Biological Science […]
Undergraduate ecology and evolutionary biology major Jami Clayton is one of seven recipients of the 2020 Undergraduate Research in Science and Technology Award. We asked her about her time at UC Santa Cruz, her research, and her advise for incoming students.
Governor Gavin Newsom has appointed Erika Zavaleta, professor of ecology and evolutionary biology at UC Santa Cruz, to the California Fish and Game Commission.
Original story from UCSC Newscenter.
While kelp forests have declined dramatically along the California coast, sea otters in Monterey Bay are maintaining patches of healthy kelp forest, according to a new study.
Original story from UCSC Newscenter.
In 2008, UC Santa Cruz researchers led a conservation effort to remove invasive rats from an island off Alaska’s Aleutian archipelago. A decade later, native island birds and the seashore ecosystem are returning to their natural balance.
Analysis of ancient DNA sequences recovered from mammoth teeth reveals previously unknown details about how mammoths evolved.
A global team of researchers has found overwhelming evidence that marine fauna and their ecosystems are negatively impacted by noise, which disrupts their behavior, physiology, and reproduction, and can even cause mortality.
Researchers at UC Santa Cruz have found that some flowers encourage bees to visit, and therefore pollinate, multiple flowers through a clever strategy of doling out pollen gradually from two different sets of anthers.
Original story from the UCSC Newscenter.
In a sweeping display of the power of community-based science to capture data spanning the entire West Coast of North America, a team of scientists and countless volunteers from 14 different organizations joined forces to document the northward migration of kelp forests due to warming waters.
CZU Lightning Complex update: two dolphins, five seals, and a sea lion were safely evacuated from the UC Santa Cruz Long Marine Laboratory thanks to good preparation, well-trained and cooperative animals, and generous assistance from SeaWorld San Diego and the Marine Mammal Center.
Original story from UCSC Newscenter.
The size of salmon returning to rivers in Alaska has declined dramatically over the past 60 years because they are spending fewer years at sea, according to a new study. Salmon are critically important to both people and ecosystems in Alaska. Smaller salmon provide less food for people who depend on them, less value for commercial fishers, and less fertilizer for terrestrial ecosystems.
Air Force Veteran and Ecology and Evolutionary Biology student Nicholas Bergeron navigates field research at UCSC Fort Ord Natural Reserve in the time of COVID 19.
Original story from UCSC Newscenter.
Coronavirus antibody studies and what they allegedly show have triggered fierce debates, further confusing public understanding. ProPublica’s health reporter Caroline Chen is here to offer some clarity around these crucial surveys.
Original story from ProPublica.
Barry Sinervo, professor of ecology & evolutionary biology, shares how he’s juggling research, teaching, and the pandemic during these uncertain times.
“In late December, my son left for Antarctica. He’s a marine biologist who is doing a whale study in this vast and intimidating place. I didn’t worry… Until I heard that he might be trapped there due to COVID-19.”
Original story from Voices of Monterey Bay.
$45,000 prize will support Cronin’s efforts to to reduce the mortality of manta rays and devil rays incidentally caught during tuna fishing.
Original story from UCSC Newsroom.
Today, Congressman Jimmy Panetta announced that he introduced H.R. 5920, the bipartisan Monarch Action, Recovery, and Conservation of Habitat (MONARCH) Act.
Original story from Congressman Jimmy Panetta.
New funding for the Doris Duke Conservation Scholars Program at UC Santa Cruz builds on the program’s successes in training the next generation of diverse conservation leaders.
Original story from UCSC Newscenter.
As adults, American coots have a drab color scheme, with black bodies and white bills. Their chicks, however, have an aesthetic that’s part drunk friar, part disheveled lion, and part tequila sunrise. Their faces and bald pates are bright red, while their necks are encircled in scruffy yellow-orange plumes.
Original story from The Atlantic.
Genomes from mountain lions, or pumas, have spawned insights into how to encourage genetic diversification within the striking feline species and boost their health and survival.
Puma concolor – also known as cougars or panthers – were once widespread but are now mainly found in low population densities throughout western North America and much of Central and South America, and many of those are at risk of extinction.
Original story from Cosmos Magazine.
The MacArthur fellowships are awarded annually for exceptional “originality, insight and potential.” Ecology & Evolutionary Biology Alumna Stacy Jupiter is one of them.
NPR — Ecology & Environmental Biology alumna Stacy Jupiter realized how dangerous flooding was becoming in her adopted home of Fiji in 2009 when she flew back after a vacation and landed on an island in crisis. “Water was up to the roofs of the houses, and roads were cut off,” says the marine scientist, who directs the Wildlife Conservation Society’s Melanesia Program. Her research soon revealed that this uptick in floods — paired with human land mismanagement — was spreading waterborne diseases.
UCSC Newscenter — Alumna Stacy Jupiter, a marine scientist with the Wildlife Conservation Society who earned her Ph.D. in ecology and evolutionary biology at UC Santa Cruz in 2006, is among the 26 new MacArthur Fellows for 2019. The prestigious MacArthur fellowships, awarded annually by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation for “extraordinary originality and dedication,” come with a no-strings-attached award of $625,000 over five years.
UCSC Newscenter — Melissa Cronin, a Ph.D. candidate in Ecology & Evolutionary Biology at UC Santa Cruz, has been awarded a Switzer Environmental Fellowship from the Robert and Patricia Switzer Foundation. The prestigious fellowship recognizes promising environmental leaders and provides $15,000 to support their research.
Cronin’s research focuses on threatened manta ray and devil ray populations, which are often caught as bycatch in industrial fishing operations.
During a research trip to study Rosy finches in the Sierra Nevada, undergraduate Sarah Albright reflects on her first internship experience at Younger Lagoon Natural Reserve—where it all began.
Monterey County Weekly — Between crabs burrowing into the marshes and rising oceans, a recent study led by Elkhorn Slough National Estuarine Research Reserve in collaboration with NOAA’s National Estuarine Research Reserve System found that it is not crabs alone that are potentially causing problems for the nation’s salt marshes.
LA Times — California officials have confirmed four cases of white-nose syndrome in Northern California. The disease has killed millions of bats nationwide since it was discovered in 2006. In this file photo, an infected bat has a white fungus growing on its muzzle.
