This story is part of NRS reserves transformed by Proposition 84 funds, a series describing the facilities improvements and expansions at NRS reserves supported by Proposition 84 bond funds. Nestled in a canyon on the western slope of San Jacinto Peak, the James San Jacinto Mountains Reserve is a place dear to the hearts of […]
James San Jacinto Mountains Reserve
Record rain and snow temporarily close James Reserve
It’s raining, it’s sliding Should we stay or should we go? A supportive UC family Flood relief fund Related links
Groundwater shepherds California forests through long droughts
By Lorena Anderson, UC Merced The health of California forests depends on water stored several feet below ground, making them especially vulnerable to multiyear droughts. The evidence comes from a new study of wildlands across the West, including at the NRS’s James San Jacinto Mountains Reserve in Southern California. “Each year our forests, grasslands and […]
Sun protection for mosses and records of paleo climate: the 2018-19 Mathias Graduate Student Research Grant awards
The tiny mosses that glue desert soils together spend the majority of their days dormant—the better to withstand a harsh environment. Yet within seconds of absorbing water, the crumbly wisps of brown green up in a frenzy of photosynthetic activity. How these hardy desert residents withstand the harsh UV rays of the sun while essentially […]
Reviving Harry James’s Trailfinders
By Richard Barker Earlier this year, I had the good fortune to be given a tour of the UC Natural Reserve System’s James Reserve by reserve director Jennifer Gee. After the tour, she explained that the reserve is named in honor of an extraordinary man named Harry C. James. My curiosity was piqued, so I […]
James Reserve frogs survive winter but suffer in drought
According to a report in the Idyllwild Town Crier, mountain yellow-legged frogs released last summer at the NRS’s James San Jacinto Mountains Reserve made it through winter but are now succumbing to drought. In early August, biologists from the San Diego Zoo’s Institute for Conservation Research surveyed two San Jacinto Mountain creeks that had received […]
NRS Summer Artist-in-Residency Program
Long known for supporting science research and teaching, the Natural Reserve System has teamed up with UC’s leading arts research organization to encourage reserve use by artists. Together with the University of California Institute for Research in the Arts (UCIRA), the NRS is offering summer artist-in-residency opportunities at one of eleven reserves. The Arts2NRS program […]
Team frees frogs in bid to save most-endangered amphibian
by Ian James, The Desert Sun IDYLLWILD — Dozens of frogs hopped from plastic containers into a mountain creek on Wednesday as researchers began a reintroduction effort that they hope can save the most endangered amphibian in California. Mountain yellow-legged frogs were once plentiful in streams across the mountains of Southern California, but they vanished […]