Some of California’s iconic freshwater fishes such as sturgeon, salmon, and trout are anadromous. This means that they are born in freshwater, migrate to the ocean as adults, and return to freshwater to spawn. Several species face extinction or severe decline within the next century, an endangerment facilitated by the presence of man-made dams. This review will discuss how dams affect anadromous fishes through habitat fragmentation, reduction in water quality, and the spread of disease.

Maddie is a PhD candidate in her 5th year working with Dr. Rachael Bay. Maddie uses genomics, transcriptomics, and developmental biology techniques to investigate the evolutionary implications of urban stressors on marine invertebrates, using Pacific Purple Sea Urchins as her model organism.

Dr. Yann-Ru Lou is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Plant Biology. Her lab focuses on implementing synthetic biology and biochemistry approaches to investigate the evolutionary trajectories of plant chemical diversity. I joined Dr. Lou’s lab in the Spring Quarter of my first year and enjoyed every moment of learning about research practices and working with nightshade plant metabolites. Nightshade plants belong to the Solanaceae family, including tomatoes, potatoes, and eggplants. The Solanaceae family produces acyl sugars, which are specialized metabolites for plant herbivory defense against insects and other pests. I would like to thank Dr. Lou for sharing her thoughts on science communication and giving us an opportunity to learn more about her research. Hope everyone enjoys this lab spotlight!

As the Anthropocene extinction crisis unfolds, effective monitoring of what biodiversity we have left is increasingly imperative. Emerging as an unlikely ally is sound, which, with the help of new technological advances, we can listen to gain clues about the ecology of wildlife with minimal disturbance to the environment. This feature explores the world of this new art of listening–passive acoustics– and how it could revolutionize ecology and conservation.

Phytopthora ramorum, more commonly known as Sudden Oak Death, is a fungal-like pathogen that affects over 130 botanical species globally. The establishment of P. ramorum in native forest ecosystems raises concerns as it creates a global cascade of ecological impacts, affecting botanical reproduction in nurseries, globally conserved gardens, and food webs across forested ecosystems. This review will examine P. ramorum’s transmission and genetic adaptability, as well as treatment strategies against both P. ramorum and its host species.

Marine species are experiencing higher population declines than many terrestrial species due to anthropogenic causes, such as increased water exports or runoff impacting habitats and behavioral patterns. Aquatic systems require a greater focus on species preservation, but keeping track of different species can be difficult. A first step in conservation involves genetic monitoring to track ...

Companion animal species have multiple forms of communication, including tactile, visual, olfactory, and auditory signals. This paper will focus on vocal communication in canines, comparing the behaviors of wolves to that of dogs. As a result of domestication, most dog species show marked differences compared to the ancestral wolf in vocalization range, frequency, and function ...

One feature that sets humans apart from other primates is the thickness of tooth enamel. Scientists at Duke University have recently discovered evidence on how evolution has resulted in thickened enamel for human teeth. By comparing the human genome to five other primate species, geneticists and evolutionary anthropologists were able to identify two segments of DNA where ...