Bits of DNA linger on the forest floor, in the ocean, and even in the air—and these strands have stories to tell, back at the lab. Here's how environmental DNA (aka 'eDNA') is starting to transform how ecologists work in the Bay Area and beyond.
After three years of extreme drought, the Western U.S. is finally getting a break. Mountain ranges are covered in deep snow, and water reservoirs in many areas are filling up following a series of atmospheric rivers that brought record rain and snowfall to large parts of the region. Many people are looking at the snow and water levels and asking: Is the drought finally over? There is a lot of nuance to the answer.
Researchers are investigating the secrets of our two resident sturgeon species, which have razor-sharp armor and shlorp up clams with their vacuum-shaped mouths.
For decades, whale migration and crabbing operated as a tag team. But now, the whales are coming sooner—widening the window for exposure to fishing gear.
Storms on the California coast whip up sea foam, especially in winter and spring. Here's a frothy dollop of the science behind how this stuff forms (it's kind of a planktonic meringue).
6PPD-quinone comes from a long-used chemical that will be hard to replace in tires. But green infrastructure like "living levees" may help trap it.
There are “plant-like,” “animal-like,” and “fungus-like” protists. But it’s surprisingly hard to say exactly what a protist is—these organisms are defined more by what they’re not.
King tides over 7 feet are coming to the Bay Area Jan. 21-22, 2023—and lucky for us, they’re happening at a reasonable time to go out and see them. Here’s a short cosmic backgrounder on why king tides happen.
Renowned photographer Frans Lanting and writer Christine Eckstrom explore the Monterey Bay area in a new book. "There is a different pulse to the seasons here than in any other part of the United States," Eckstrom writes.
At Point Pinole, 21 sturgeon carcasses––some more than seven feet long––lay strewn along a mile-long stretch of beach in late August 2022, baking in the relentless heat. It was the peak of the largest harmful algal bloom on record in … Read more
Independent, nonprofit environmental journalism connecting people with nature in the San Francisco Bay Area.
