January 2021

Timeworn ranch remade into reserve

When Sedgwick Reserve entered the NRS in 1996, it was far better suited for cowboys than students. Many of its rambling buildings dated from the site's previous incarnation as a cattle ranch. To meet the needs of modern visitors and scholars, the reserve needed sewers-to-ceilings renovations too pricey for UC to afford. Yet today the reserve boasts some of the best facilities in the NRS thanks to California voters and generous donors. Read more >>

Best of Sedgwick 2020

Kate McCurdy, director of Sedgwick Reserve, has bundled highlights from her reserve's busy year into this charming highlights reel. Enjoy Santa Ynez Valley landscapes, hardworking volunteers in action, native wildlife, and glimpses of the construction projects that wrapped up this year.

Winter berry feast

Native to much of western California and the Sierra foothills, toyon is known for producing abundant sprays of bright red berries. These ripen in the heart of winter, when food for wildlife is hard to come by. If not consumed in a timely fashion, the berries can ferment into bird-sized shots of alcohol. Cedar waxwings like this one occasionally overindulge, which affects their motor skills accordingly. Luckily, Mother Nature does not hand out citations for flying under the influence. Image: Mike's Birds

In memoriam: Antony Orme

A superb geographer and first-class administrator, UC Los Angeles professor Antony Orme served as director of White Mountain Research Center when it joined the NRS. He tidied up the stations, streamlined operations, and helped it become the thriving reserve it is today. His passing is a major loss for the University and the NRS. Read more >>

Younger Lagoon offers virtual tours

The pandemic halted popular in-person tours of the NRS's Younger Lagoon Reserve in Santa Cruz. But now you can take a virtual tour of the reserve featuring research scientists and reserve staff. Read more >>

NRS IN THE NEWS

Hungry sea anemones snack on algae under their own skin
Kenneth S. Norris Rancho Marino Reserve
Futurity

Mercury in trout diet
Landels-Hill Big Creek Reserve
Estuary News

Decadelong restoration of Año Nuevo Island deemed a success
Año Nuevo Island Reserve
Mercury News

Fractured bedrock in forests is overlooked source of natural CO2
Angelo Coast Range Reserve
University of Texas at Austin

2020 Faces of Biology photo contest
Blue Oak Ranch Reserve
American Institute of Biological Sciences

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