University of California Press Blog

California Natural History Survey

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The Helpful World of Insects

Many people dismiss insects as pests, but without them, as entomologist Gilbert Waldbauer puts it, "life as we know it would be impossible, and human beings would probably become extinct." Waldbauer was interviewed on Saturday on Sierra Club Radio about his book Fireflies, Honey, and Silk, in which he reveals the vital and surprising ways that insects enrich our lives. Listen to the Sierra Club interview (Waldbauer is the last guest).

Waldbauer recalls how his fate as an entomologist was sealed when he discovered a cocoon in an apple tree, took it home, and watched "the most beautiful and amazing insect I had ever seen" emerge. This spectacular creature turned out to be a cecropia moth (left), and Waldbauer still has this same wonder and reverence for insects. Silk, of course, comes from silkworms, but you may be surprised to know that the cocoon of a single silkworm unwinds into 1200-1600 yards of silk fiber, and that silkworms helped Louis Pasteur show that bacteria caused disease. And honeybees make honey, but they are not the only ones—stingless bees and some kinds of ants and wasps do, too. You can thank the fruit fly Drosophilia for its role in the study of genetics, the cochineal insect for the rich red dye developed by the Aztecs, bees for wax candles, and and gall wasps for creating the galls used to make ink. Waldbauer reveals how bugs of all kinds have been friendly and useful companions to us, contributing to fashion, medicine, communication, and our very survival.

Moth photo: Cecropia Moth (Hyalophora cecropia) by Marvin Smith, Wikimedia Commons, available under a Creative Commons Attribution ShareAlike 2.0 license

How the Dinosaurs Lived

As a dinosaur paleontologist, evolutionary biologist, author, and educator, Scott Sampson's work reaches into the past, present, and future. While holding a dual position at the University of Utah and the university's Utah Museum of Natural History, he began a major project in Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, one of the country's last frontiers for dinosaur paleontology. The site proved to be a window back in time, to a region populated by many never-before-seen dinosaur varieties, including a giant duck-billed dinosaur, a new type of feathered dinosaur, and others. In this video, Sampson and others from the Utah Museum of Natural History trace a dinosaur fossil from the earth to the museum.

In his book Dinosaur Odyssey: Fossil Threads in a Web of Life, Sampson places dinosaurs in the context of the entire natural world, from the origins of life to the present. Illustrating how dinosaurs lived and what we can learn from them, Sampson imparts a sense of wonder about paleontology and the scientific revelations that still wait to be unearthed. 

Sampson now lives in California, and continues his research while taking on new projects related to education. He is the paleontologist and host of the Discovery Channel series Dinosaur Planet, and of the PBS Kids series Dinosaur Train, produced by the Jim Henson Company. In the video below, from PBS's coverage of the of the TV Critics Press Tour, Sampson talks to Zadi Diaz about Dinosaur Train, and how learning about dinosaurs is a great way to start learning about science and the natural world.

Tracking the Elusive Monitor Lizard

Dragonlike and prehistoric-looking, monitor lizards, or varanids, are uncommonly intelligent: "I dare anybody to...look a monitor lizard in the eye. It's looking back at you", says Eric Pianka, lizard expert and co-author of Lizards: Windows to the Evolution of Diversity, in Lizard Kings, an upcoming NOVA documentary. Varanids vary in size from mere centimeters to 10 feet or more, and research suggests that some types can count up to six. Over the past 80 million years, monitor lizards have adapted supremely well to their surroundings, and are notoriously elusive and hard to observe. In Lizards, Pianka recalls his adventures staking out a lizard's hiding place for days, just to catch a glimpse of a varanid in the wild.

Lizard Kings, a NOVA documentary that will air Tuesday, October 20 on PBS, joins Pianka and his colleagues in Australia, as they follow varanid tracks and find creative ways to learn more about these magnificent creatures, including "lizardcam" footage shot by the lizards themselves.

Watch a preview of Lizard Kings on the NOVA site. The program airs on PBS tomorrow, Tuesday, October 20.

Eric R. Pianka is co-author, with Laurie J. Vitt, of Lizards: Windows to the Evolution of Diversity.

Around the World on the 38th Parallel

David and Janet Carle have embarked on a global journey along the 38th parallel, exploring how water issues, environment, and culture intersect at this important latitude. Over the next year and a half, the Carles will chronicle their travels on their blog, Parallel Universe: 38º North, as they trace the 38th parallel across the United States, then around the world, exploring each region's unique water and environmental challenges. Their experiences will be the basis for a future UC Press book.

Last week, the Carles set off on the United States portion of their journey, beginning at Chesapeake Bay, then over the mountains to West Virginia, where they rafted 14 miles down the Gauley River, and witnessed the devastating effects of mountaintop removal on Kayford Mountain.

Janet and David Carle both worked as California State Park Rangers for over 27 years. David is the author of many books, including Introduction to Air in California, Introduction to Fire in California, and Introduction to Water in California, from UC Press.

From David and Janet Carle's blog, Parallel Universe: 38º North:

Why the 38th Parallel?

Following a straight line in almost any direction around the globe begins to focus the opportunities for comparisons and connections. Holding to a specific latitude controls for even more variables, which should give deeper meaning to contrasts and similarities...Read More

We Begin: Chance Meetings on Chesapeake Bay

On Monday, September 29, we began our east-to-west crossing of the United States at the Atlantic Ocean and Assateague Island. Tonight is our first chance to get online. The connections we had arranged at Chincoteague Island, Smith Island, the Rappahannock River and Mattawoman Creek all worked wonderfully, but the theme has been unexpected coincidences and encounters....Read More

Going on the Gauley

From Staunton, Virgnia, after we visited Woodrow Wilson's house, our first stop was the Cryrus McCormick Farm, where the inventor of the reaper that revolutionized agriculture was born and lived....Read More

 Meeting the Mountain Keeper

As we headed south from Charleston, the capital of West Virginia, to meet with Larry Gibson, the Mountain Keeper, we passed a billboard saying" West Virginia Coal, the Real Power behind America." We were about to find out how powerful King Coal really is in West Virginia.... Read More

Beetles and Books with Dr. Art Evans, Sept. 17

Throughout history, humans have used beetles as medicinal remedies, eaten them roasted or skewered, made them into brilliantly patterned jewelry, kept them as pets, and much more. As the largest, and one of the most successful and enduring groups of animals in the world, beetles have many lessons to offer. To learn more about these fascinating creatures, join Dr. Art Evans for a talk and signing for his book An Inordinate Fondness for Beetles, this Thursday, September 17 at 7PM, at The Bone Room in Berkeley.

Evans is also co-author, with James N. Hogue, of Introduction to California Beetles and Field Guide to Beetles of California. 

The Bone Room is located at 1573 Solano Ave., Berkeley, CA, 94707.

Elin Kelsey on Cultures of the Deep

Beneath the ocean surface is a diverse cetacean world. Elin Kelsey, author of Watching Giants, is fascinated by the hidden world of whales and dolphins, and her June 27 interview on CBC Radio's Quirks and Quarks offers a glimpse into the lives of these social yet enigmatic creatures.

What is it like to be a sperm whale or a bottlenose dolphin? Kelsey describes remarkably diverse matriarchal societies in which females live into their 70s and 80s and males into their 50s, and in which wisdom, memory, and creativity seem to play an important role. Whales and dolphins talk to each other, form long-term relationships, and cooperate. They are also innovators: humpback whales catch food in "bubble nets", and bottlenose dolphins use sea sponges as fishing tools and pass skills down through the generations, suggesting a deeper cultural system that we are just beginning to understand. Listen to Elin Kelsey's interview on CBC Radio's Quirks and Quarks website.

Should We Really Be Eating More Fish?

I wanted to expand a bit on my tweet yesterday about The Daily Beast piece on the Documentary Film, "The End of The Line." The film opens in the Art House circuit today and I do hope it goes wider as the subject is very important. It caught my eye not only because we publish the book the film is based on, but because I missed the opportunity to see it's US debut at the Sundance Film Festival this year.

I am fortunate to have friends that live and work in Park City, Utah. For the past ten years, they've let me stay at their house so I could attend the Film Festival.  The films start showing at 8:00 in the morning and go non-stop until 2am . . . every day for 10 days. As a volunteer this year I was assigned to work elsewhere during the documentary's opening night, but there was a bit of a buzz around the film the next day.

This is from a longer piece that Holly Willis posted on the Festival website back in January--

"Similarly, The End of the Line, a gripping survey of over-fishing based on Charles Clover’s book The End of the Line: How Overfishing Is Changing the World and What We Eat, also gains momentum from the passion of its subjects . . . For director Rupert Murray, the key was to bring together these scientists and his own self-described “strange passion” for the sea.

“I didn’t want to make a natural history film,” Murray says. “They lie essentially. They tell a story about a perfect primeval system, excluding the one key element that is affecting the whole thing, which is man. A story about the oceans without man is a fabrication. I wanted to tell the real story . . . " 

Read the whole Holly Willis post.

If you are following the guidelines that tell us all to eat more fish, this documentary is one that shouldn't be missed.

by Don McIlraith

Ocean Energy

Peter Asmus, President of Pathfinder Communications, is a journalist, consultant, and author of Reaping the Wind: how Mechanical Wizards and Profiteers Helped Shape Our Energy Future, among other books. He is also the author of Introduction to Energy in California, which was published by UC Press in June 2009. To learn more about the author and renewable energy, please visit his blog, Finding the Responsible Path.

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Short-sighted Cuts to U.S. Ocean Energy Budgets

By Peter Asmus

The earth is the water planet, so it should come as no great surprise that forms of water power have been one of the world’s most popular “renewable” energy sources. Yet the largest water power source of all – the ocean that covers three-quarters of earth – has yet to be tapped in any major way for power generation. There are three primary reasons for this:

•    The first is the nature of the ocean itself, a powerful resource that cannot be privately owned like land that typically serves as the foundation for site control for terrestrial power plants of all kinds;

•    The second is funding. Hydropower was heavily subsidized during the Great Depression, but little public investment has since been steered toward marine renewables with the exception of ocean thermal technologies, which were perceived to be a failure.

•    The third reason why the ocean has not yet been industrialized on behalf of energy production is that the technologies, materials and construction techniques did not exist until now to harness this renewable energy resource in any meaningful and cost effective way.

As ocean energy advocates gather this week in Maine for a conference designed to raise the profile of this potential clean energy source, they face a daunting task in the light of recent proposed cuts in federal government support. With the best ocean current resource in the world in the Gulf Stream off the coast of Florida, excellent tidal sites in California, Maine, Washington and Alaska and prime wave resources off the coasts of California and Oregon, the U.S. is well positioned to be a global leader.

With good tidal power sites in the San Francisco Bay, and the nation’s most viable wave resource all along the North Coast, there is much at stake here for the Golden State.

Consider these simple facts: waves, tides and ocean currents are 800 times more powerful than the thin air that is wind. Tides can be predicted decades in advance, while the wind resource shifts so suddenly, forecasts are good for only a few hours at a time. The sun never shines at night.

Despite these inherent advantages, the total installed capacity of these hydrokinetic resources – a category that includes wave, tidal stream, ocean current, and ocean thermal– was less than 10 megwatts (MW) at the end of 2008 (enough power for about 10,000 homes). It is expected that within the next five to eight years, these emerging technologies will become commercialized to the point that they can begin competing for a share of the burgeoning market for carbon-free and non-polluting renewable resources. By 2015, almost 3,000 MW could be on-line around the world. That figure could jump to 200,000 MW by 2025.

A recent surge in interest in these new renewable options has generated a buzz, particularly in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Portugal, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand…and the U.S.

So far, President Obama wins high marks for shifting priorities on energy policy in the U.S. But his recent proposal to trim R&D funding for the emerging sector of “marine renewables” -- also often referred to as ocean power or hydrokinetic technologies – is extremely short-sighted and misses the boat. Trimming the $40 million proposed for marine renewables in 2009 by 25 percent will likely allow the U.K. and Europe to take a commanding lead in the development of a potential “game changing” clean power that is much more powerful and predictable than either solar or wind, both big winners in Obama’s proposed R&D budgets for the federal Dept. of Energy.

Europe, particularly the U.K., Ireland and Portugal, are the currently the best places to develop wave and tidal projects. Subsidy schemes there, as well as government funded test facilities, and streamlined permitting processes, will likely allow Europe to be the focal point of commercialization efforts in the near-term.

The U.S. has taken some promising steps recently resolving permitting issues for marine renewable technologies. But without more R&D, entrepreneurs already hit by the global economic meltdown may flounder and seek to do business on friendlier shores in Europe. While wave and tidal developers are offered lavish subsidies amounting to about 30 cents per kilowatt hour in Europe, the U.S. currently offers a measly 1 cent/kWh, half of the subsidy currently being offered to wind power projects, a fully commercialized technology.

The ocean is a huge global resource that will ultimately have to be tapped to meet the energy needs of the world’s growing populations – without contributing to global climate change. If the U.S. wants to be part of the solution, and help economic development in regions decimated by the collapse of native fishing stocks, then strategic investments need to be made today. We need wind, we need solar, but we should also be smart and be in a good position to tap the immense power of our oceans.

Exploring the Treetops with Nalini Nadkarni

In her book Between Earth and Sky, forest canopy biologist Nalini Nadkarni introduces us to a man named Emil, who has traveled from the tundra of northern Canada to experience trees for the first time. At the end of the two-week excursion, he describes his impression of the forest: “You must learn to treat these big trees the way we treat the elders in our village—with great care and respect. Trees are as important to you as our grandparents are to us because they teach you things.” As Nadkarni shows, trees are indeed wise teachers, providers, healers, and friends. They are the common thread between chewing gum, turpentine, allspice, maple syrup, vitamin packets, charcoal, toothpaste, and Chanel No. 5, and they are present throughout our lives, from birth and childhood (cradles, building blocks, tree houses) to death and beyond (memorial trees, coffins, gallows), and everything in between. Nadkarni illustrates how trees support every human need, from food and shelter to health, creativity, a sense of history, spirituality and religion, and mindfulness.

The relationship between people and trees, particularly the forest canopy, is at the center of Nadkarni’s book. She shares her personal story of how trees shaped her life: her childhood in the treetops, her life's work as a canopy researcher, her marriage in a tree, and her wish to ultimately become part of the canopy itself. Nadkarni has transcended the borders of academic science to become a forest ambassador and teacher, connecting people with nature in creative ways. In her talk at the Technology, Entertainment, Design (TED) conference, above, she describes some of these projects and partnerships, including music, dance, and art collaborations, and a program where incarcerated men and women learn to cultivate endangered canopy moss. Her Forest Canopy Lab also created the Treetop Barbie, to inspire the next generation of adventurous tree climbers. But the ultimate partnership is the one between humans and trees: "There are trees in our hearts. There are trees in your hearts. When we come to understand nature, we are touching the most deep, the most important parts of our self," she says. Nadkarni's story illuminates the path toward mindfulness, and a rediscovery of our relationship with nature.