Eric Sanford chosen as Naturalist of the Year by the Western Society of Naturalists

Congratulations to Professor Eric Sanford, a professor in the Department of Evolution and Ecology in the College of Biological Sciences at UC Davis, who was recently chosen by the Western Society of Naturalists as their Naturalist of the Year.

The Naturalist of the Year award was established in 1999 by then WSN president Paul Dayton to recognize those unsung heroes who define our future by inspiring young people with the wonders and sheer joy of natural history. The awardees are usually educators, actively working in academia who contribute substantially to teaching their students to love, appreciate and protect the wonders of nature. The Naturalist of the Year gives a featured presentation at the annual meeting about the importance of mentoring natural history at all levels and the internal rewards that one receives when inspiring others to do so.

Eric's presentation focused on the hands-on, immersive field classes at the Bodega Marine Laboratory and Bodega Marine Reserve, and included some of the beautiful videos of marine invertebrates that he and his students have filmed over the decades he’s spent teaching along the West Coast.