Environmental science writer, press officer, pro #scicomm -er for UC Davis. Covering climate change, ecology, conservation, water and wildlife. My other brain is full of paint. Views my own.
Some avocados are female in the morning and male in the afternoon, while others are on the opposite schedule. This helps them avoid self-pollination. How do they do it? A @ucdavis.bsky.social study explains. www.ucdavis.edu/food/news/st...
Study Reveals How Avocados Reverse Sexes Throughout the DaySome avocados are female in the morning and male in the afternoon, while others are on the opposite schedule. How avocados do this has been unclear — until now, thanks to a UC Davis study.www.ucdavis.eduRemember those extreme wildfires in 2020 and 2021 that set many of CA's giant sequoias ablaze? It would have been about 4x worse without the prescribed burns some groves got within the previous decade. Another study from @ucdavis.bsky.social showing Rx burns work. www.ucdavis.edu/climate/news...
Prescribed Burns Saved Thousands of Giant SequoiasWhen two major wildfires burned through the Sierra Nevada in 2020 and 2021, they took thousands of giant sequoia trees with them. Without prescribed burns, thousands more would have died, according to...www.ucdavis.eduThe Endangered Species Act is critically endangered. eastoregonian.com/2026/07/21/t...
The feds no longer protect endangered species habitat. States say they can't pick up the slack. - East OregonianThe Trump administration is removing protections from the key places where endangered species live, saying states can keep the areas safe. But experts say states aren’t equipped for the task. […]eastoregonian.comA native wildflower is struggling to keep up with climate change as both summers and winters have become a strain in its California mountain habitat, finds @ucdavis.bsky.social study. www.ucdavis.edu/news/native-...
A Native California Wildflower Isn’t Keeping Up with Climate ChangeThe mountain jewelflower inhabits a wide swath of California and Oregon, from summer-scorched foothills to high mountains where snow falls during winter. But it is already suffering from climate chang...www.ucdavis.edu"Fog is a cloud that literally touches people’s lives." How webcams for surfers are helping scientists get a clearer picture of Oregon's coastal fog. 🏄♂️💭 @ucdavis.bsky.social study www.ucdavis.edu/climate/news...
Surfing Webcams Help Demystify Oregon’s Coastal FogWebcams commonly used by surfers are helping scientists measure Oregon's coastal fog, shows a study from UC Davis and the USDA Forest Service.www.ucdavis.edu"You might be wondering whether getting a college degree is still worth it. UC has just released new data, and the numbers are clear." www.universityofcalifornia.edu/news/data-on...
People who say college isn’t worth it haven’t seen this dataA UC degree pays off with higher earnings that grow over time, and UC graduates enter the workforce with greater financial flexibility due to no or low debt.www.universityofcalifornia.eduHow is the Lake Tahoe environment doing? @ucdavistahoe.bsky.social @ucdavis.bsky.social released its annual report today. 💙 www.ucdavis.edu/news/tahoe-s...
Tahoe State of the Lake Report ReleasedThe University of California, Davis, Tahoe Environmental Research Center (TERC) today released its “Tahoe: State of the Lake Report 2026” which presents data from 2025 in the context of the long-term ...www.ucdavis.eduYou should see her in a crown. A new @ucdavis.bsky.social study reveals just how far a queen bee will go to save herself from pesticides — even if it means hurting her eggs. www.ucdavis.edu/food/news/ho...
Honeybee Queens Push Pesticides to Eggs to Protect Themselves Over Their OffspringA UC Davis study reveals the extent a queen bee will go to survive.www.ucdavis.eduFrom squirrels and concrete to whales, plastic and wetlands, news tips on new environmental studies from @ucdavis.bsky.social. www.ucdavis.edu/climate/blog...
The Research RoundupFrom dogs and squirrels to concrete, whales and wetlands, here is a roundup of recent environmentally focused studies from UC Davis scientistswww.ucdavis.edu"Efforts to rewild a Northern California stream lead to salmon rewilding themselves." Loved this piece highlighting our inspirational comeback kid, Putah Creek. Thanks @highcountrynews.org and @bengoldfarb.bsky.social! www.hcn.org/articles/the...
The curious comeback of Putah Creek’s salmon - High Country NewsAll the efforts to rewild a Northern California stream leads to salmon rewilding themselves.www.hcn.orgHawks maintain movement even while shedding feathers. This holds lessons for UAVs and raptor rehab, finds the 1st study from what's now the Center for Animal Locomotion and Innovation @ucdavis.bsky.social. @ucdavisengineering.bsky.social @ucdavisvetmed.bsky.social www.ucdavis.edu/curiosity/ne...
What Molting Hawks Can Teach Researchers About Resilient FlightUC Davis researchers found that red-tailed hawks adjust their wing and tail movements during molt to maintain flight performance despite missing feathers. The findings could improve wildlife rehabilit...www.ucdavis.eduWhat were 2025's greatest moments of clarity at Lake Tahoe? Find out in the latest Lake Tahoe Clarity Report, released today from @ucdavistahoe.bsky.social @ucdavis.bsky.social 💙https://www.ucdavis.edu/climate/news/2025-lake-tahoe-clarity-report-released
2025 Lake Tahoe Clarity Report ReleasedStaring into the depths of Lake Tahoe, you might think the view goes on forever. But researchers at the UC Davis Tahoe Environmental Research Center have been tracking precisely how far a person can s...www.ucdavis.eduThree deer became the first animals to walk across CA's first wildlife overpass. (Surprise, it's in Northern California!) @ucdavis.bsky.social Road Ecology Center and Caltrans share field camera images.📸 www.ucdavis.edu/blog/deer-be...
Deer Are First Animals to Cross California’s First Wildlife OvercrossingThree mule deer have become the first wildlife to cross over California’s first wildlife overcrossing, which is nearing completion on S.R. 97 in Siskiyou County, reported the UC Davis Road Ecology Cen...www.ucdavis.eduWho knew gray mold was so smart? Fascinating science from @ucdavis.bsky.social and @ucdavisplants.bsky.social. ✍️ @amymquinton.bsky.social www.ucdavis.edu/food/news/fu...
The Fungus That Spoils Nearly EverythingUC Davis scientists discovered gray mold adapts to different crops, revealing why decades of disease-resistant breeding failed.www.ucdavis.eduWhere did the "Alcatraz coyote" come from before he swam to the island earlier this year? @ucdavisvetmed.bsky.social scientists found out using DNA analysis. www.ucdavis.edu/climate/news...
Alcatraz Coyote Wasn’t a City Boy After AllAfter months of fieldwork and scientific analysis, National Park Service researchers have determined that the coyote that drew international attention in early 2026 after swimming to Alcatraz Island l...www.ucdavis.eduAs rodents and temperatures shift, arenaviruses pose future threat to South American communities finds @ucdavis.bsky.social study. www.ucdavis.edu/climate/news...
Climate Change Increases Spillover Risk of Rodent-Borne ArenavirusesClimate change is likely to drive rodent-borne arenaviruses into parts of South America that have never faced these diseases, putting new communities of people at risk, finds a study from the Universi...www.ucdavis.edu"Maybe we need to rethink how we still do the right things.” Scientists are open to what shows up, not always what is planned. But stable support is required for inquiry to flourish. 4 stories of people trying to turn setbacks into science. @ucdavis.bsky.social www.ucdavis.edu/climate/news...
Stop-and-Go Science: Researchers Pivot to Try to Salvage Important WorkWhen climate change is faster than the speed of science and unstable funding threatens discovery, UC Davis scientists pivot to try to save important research.www.ucdavis.eduCA has some of the highest wildfire-driven forest losses in the world, yet reforestation efforts fall far behind the rate of loss, a @ucdavis.bsky.social study finds.🔥🌲 🌎https://www.ucdavis.edu/climate/news/wildfire-driven-deforestation-rates-california-among-highest-world
Wildfire-Driven Deforestation Rates in California Among Highest in WorldCalifornia has one of the highest rates of wildfire-driven deforestation in the world, and the trend has accelerated over the past three decades, according to a UC Davis study.www.ucdavis.eduPenguins in Patagonia pinpoint PFAS pollution by wearing a chemical-sensing anklet. They might be the cutest "scientists" I've seen. @ucdavis.bsky.social @ucdavisvetmed.bsky.social @ubuffalo.bsky.social proof-of-concept study www.ucdavis.edu/health/news/...