News

When making choices, people tend to go with what they know, or try something new. We make these trade-offs every day. Does one strategy have an advantage over another? Scientists decided to research this question by looking at fishing boat captains, who face this choice again and again when deciding where to fish.

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Corals are a recent addition to this body of prophecy. Scientists now know that deep-sea corals off the coast of California live for hundreds of years—and they record a ring for every year of their growth, just like a redwood. What their growth rings tell us about past ocean conditions can also illuminate our planet's future. 

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Ocean acidification is bad news for shellfish, as it makes it harder for them to form their calcium-based shells. But climate change could also have multiple other impacts that make California bays less hospitable to shelled organisms like oysters, which are a key part of the food web.

Read more in EurekAlert!

Read more in KQED Science

Pernille Sporon Boving started 7/29/19 as the new Director of Training Activities for the Sustainable Oceans NRT. We are very excited to have her onboard. She has been employed in the Wildlife, Fisheries, and Conservation Biology Department and is the Director for Programming and Engagement for The Polar Forum at UC Davis. 

Climate change affects not only the growth and survival of marine animals, but also their senses. A new study synthesizes the results of sensory change studies -- revealing both broad patterns and intriguing outliers -- and provides a conceptual framework to help guide future research in this emerging field.

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When making choices, people tend either to go with what they know or try something new. We experience this trade-off every day, whether choosing a route to work or buying breakfast cereal. But does one strategy have an advantage over another? Researchers decided to examine this question by looking at fishing boat captains, who face this choice again and again when deciding where to fish.

UC Davis News, read more

The Coastal and Marine Science Institute is pleased to announce the ten recipients of the UC Davis Bilinski fellowship. Russell J. and Dorothy S. Bilinski’s life goal was to be “independent and challenged intellectually.” They strongly valued self-sufficiency, a sense of ambition, and above all, responsibility.

A study published July 17 in the Journal of Applied Ecology is the first description of how to use data collected before and after a protected area is implemented to measure its effectiveness. 

Read more in UC Davis News

In Bodega Bay, marine biologists say something terrible happened to the mussel beds during a recent heat wave. The bivalves baked in their shells. Scientists are now worried about all the other marine life living in the mussel beds.

For KQED California Report, segment starts at minute 3:54

“Maybe I’ve become better at suppressing my feelings…But my dominant strategy is to intellectualize it and say, ‘What a crazy species we are.’” —Ken Caldeira

For Mother Jones, read more