Undergrads Research the Sierra Nevada
UC Merced researchers take advantage of the university’s proximity to the beautiful Sierra Nevada mountain range through research in Yosemite and Sequoia-Kings Canyon national parks. Professors Stephen...
View ArticleThe New Naturalists
UC’s California Naturalist Program is integrating citizen science into conservation By Ann Brody Guy “Birds are mobile indicators of ecosystems,” wildlife biologist Walter Clevinger tells a group of...
View ArticleFieldwork: The Great Outdoors
Now more than ever, field stations are helping scientists to tackle big questions about pressing environmental issues by Roberta Kwok Noah Whiteman’s 2011 field season was tough. He and his team spent...
View ArticleAddressing Ecology’s Climate Questions
Climate shapes the life around us. At the poles, thick fur coats and layers of blubber enable animals to withstand bitter cold. In deserts, small and drought-resistant leaves help plants survive...
View ArticleClimate change study at Valentine Reserve/SNARL
by Katie Vane Eastern Sierra volunteers recently wrapped up the first full year of a study on the effects of climate change at the Valentine Reserve and Sierra Nevada Aquatic Research Laboratory...
View ArticleOceans and Mediterranean Climate
Mellow weather is a hallmark of Mediterranean-climate regions. The warm, dry summers and cool, wet winters enjoyed by places like Cape Town and Los Angeles have a surprising origin: the oceans. The...
View ArticleThe Friendliest Bird on the Beach
by April Price, Conservation Specialist, Coal Oil Point Reserve On August 6, an employee at McGrath State Beach rescued a plover egg from being washed away, and brought the egg to the NRS’s Coal Oil...
View ArticleThe Intelligent Plant
Scientists debate a new way of understanding flora This excerpt is from a story by Michael Pollan (Omnivore’s Dilemma, Botany of Desire) published Dec. 23, 2013 in The New Yorker Plants speak in a...
View Article2013–2014 Mathias Grants Awarded
To a scientist, the natural world is full of mysteries. How does the winter ant thrive in cold weather when most insects go underground or perish? Are urban birds stressed out by the glow of street...
View ArticleNew observatory to look deep into Eel River watershed
by Robert Sanders, UC Berkeley Media Relations A $4.9 million grant will fund a study of the nearly 10,000 square kilometer Eel River watershed in Northern California, home to the UC Natural Reserve...
View ArticleMerced Vernal Pools Join the Natural Reserve System
Rolling grasslands that harbor rare vernal pool ecosystems next door to UC Merced have joined the UC Natural Reserve System. The 6,561-acre Merced Vernal Pools and Grassland Reserve will enable...
View Article