Science and Climate Content

2025 Lake Tahoe Clarity Report Released

Katherine E Kerlin — June 09, 2026 - 8:30am

Staring into the depths of Lake Tahoe, you might think the view goes on forever. But researchers at the UC Davis Tahoe Environmental Research Center have been tracking precisely how far a person can see through the famed lake’s waters for nearly 60 years and sharing the results in the annual Lake Tahoe Clarity Report.

Deer Are First Animals to Cross California’s First Wildlife Overcrossing

Katherine E Kerlin — June 03, 2026 - 11:31am

Three mule deer have become the first wildlife to cross over California’s first wildlife overcrossing over a state highway. The project is nearing completion on S.R. 97 in Siskiyou County, reported the UC Davis Road Ecology Center and Caltrans this week.

Researchers Find Carcinogenic Chromium-6 in Palisades, Altadena Fire Cleanup Zones

Katherine E Kerlin — June 01, 2026 - 9:52am

A carcinogen with potentially serious impacts on human health was found in neighborhoods in the months after the 2025 Los Angeles County wildfires and may have spread to communities as far as six to nine miles downwind from the fire zones, according to newly published work by University of California researchers.

After the Fires: Protecting LA’s Trees While Learning Lessons for the Future

Jocelyn C Anderson — May 26, 2026 - 8:55am

Southern California is emerging from yet another round of wildfires just as the wildfire season gets underway.

These California Wildflowers Could Save Other Plants

Jocelyn C Anderson — May 26, 2026 - 8:50am

The jewelflower, a small California wildflower, may help scientists understand how more plants could survive changing weather patterns.

Scientists Dispute Hypothesis That Climate Change Will Unleash Massive Ag Pest Populations

Andy Fell — May 12, 2026 - 10:27am

The widespread hypothesis that climate warming will result in unprecedented agricultural pest populations and cause food insecurity worldwide is oversimplified, according to a new study by a team led by Mia Lippey, an entomologist at the University of California, Davis. But the study does indicate that pests fare better in warmer temperatures than their natural enemies, which researchers identified as a cause for concern.

A Baby Bird’s Wishlist: Mild Weather, Attentive è��, Not Being the Smallest Sibling

Andy Fell — May 11, 2026 - 10:28am

Experiences in the first days and weeks of life can have a profound impact on humans — and birds. A new study led by Sage Madden, a graduate student in evolution and ecology at the University of California, Davis, shows how weather conditions and family dynamics affect the growth of barn swallow (Hirundo rustica erythrogaster) chicks.

Study Projects Plant Extinction Rates Through 2100

Katherine E Kerlin — May 07, 2026 - 11:00am

A UC Davis study in Science found that 7% to 16% of global plant species studied face high risk of extinction by 2100 under current climate change projections.

Forest Fuel Treatments Reduce Wildfire Spread, Prevent $2.8 Billion in Damage

Amy M Quinton — May 07, 2026 - 11:00am

A UC Davis study finds every dollar spent on forest fuel treatments saves $3.75 in wildfire damages.

Climate Change Increases Spillover Risk of Rodent-Borne Arenaviruses

Katherine E Kerlin — May 04, 2026 - 9:00am

Climate change is likely to drive rodent-borne arenaviruses into parts of South America that have never faced these diseases, putting new communities of people at risk, finds a study from the University of California, Davis.

For the study, published in the journal npj Viruses, scientists incorporated climate projections, shifting rodent populations and the risks of human infection into a model to offer an early risk projection for arenaviruses and other diseases in the next 20 to 40 years.