💧 🧬 We’re measuring the health of a waterways by looking at DNA! Wait, why is there DNA in water? Environmental DNA, or eDNA, is shed by organisms into their environment, and can be found in simple water and soil samples. Looking at these samples allows researchers to see what species and pathogens are there, and how healthy the environment is. Now UC Santa Cruz is strengthening California’s efforts to protect its waterways and wildlife for generations to come—with a new $2.2M grant from the @californiadfw to create an eDNA-based "health index" for California’s streams. From the Mojave to the Redwoods, this technology helps us spot ecological declines before they become severe. The future of conservation is here, and it’s written in the DNA of our waters. 🧬 Read more at the link in bio. 📸 Image descriptions: 1 - CALeDNA technician, Ajith Seresinghe, samples Pauley Creek, monitored by the Sierra Streams Institute, in Tahoe National Forest. Photo by Emma Walker 2 - Technician crouching creekside and testing water with equipment. 3 - CALeDNA technicians leading the eDNA stream-health index fieldwork creekside in the Mojave Desert. 4 - Technician using research equipment in a stream of water. 5 - Sample collection in the Los Angeles River for a CALeDNA project. Photo courtesy of Miroslava Munguia Ramos 6 - Technicians using equipment in a stream between lush green trees.

Meet Jamie Wojtowicz, a third-year Ecology & Evolutionary Biology major at UC Santa Cruz 🍌🐌👋 After transferring to UCSC this fall, Jamie participated in the Transfer Field Welcome. This overnight field research experience at Blue Oak Ranch Reserve is part of the Degree-Defining Experience Program. There, they designed their own rapid research project, connected with grad students and faculty, and got a real feel for field research. More importantly, Jamie found a sense of belonging. Now, they’re already making moves in their pursuit of a career in research. Jamie recently landed an internship and started a project with a mentor. 🎉 Thanks for sharing your experience with us, Jamie. We can’t wait to see where you go next! 💫 💡The Degree-Defining Experiences Program offers transformational learning opportunities for UC Santa Cruz undergraduates in the form of experiential field courses and other activities outside the classroom. Learn more or support the program! Visit science.ucsc.edu/ddep or email [email protected] 🎥 Video description: Student Jamie reflects on UCSC's Degree-Defining Experience Program. They share finding out they love field research and having the opportunity to work alongside professors and grad students in a casual setting.

One of the biggest threats whales face is being hit by the massive cargo ships constantly crisscrossing our oceans. To find out where these unfortunate collisions keep happening and what we can do to stop it, the best place to go online is BlueCorridors.org. The website has won a 2026 Webby Award in the Best Data Visualization category, which has been called the “Internet’s highest honor.” @thewebbyawards will be presented Monday in NYC, when other winners like Amy Poehler, Sabrina Carpenter, Bad Bunny, Google and “Stranger Things” will be celebrated. UC Santa Cruz Ocean Sciences Professor Ari Friedlaender and his team were central to working with the World Wildlife Fund to make whale migration routes and critical habitats visible and publicly accessible—in ways that support science, policy, and ocean conservation. 🐋 “At its heart, this work is about making the invisible visible and building stronger momentum to protect the key ocean areas that whales, and all of us, depend on,” said Chris Johnson, Global Lead for WWF Whale and Dolphin Conservation. Read more at the link in our bio! 📷 Photos of humpback whales in the Monterey Bay by Logan Pallin, postdoctoral researcher in the Bio-Telemetry & Behavioral Ecology Lab. (NMFS Research Permit No. 26602)

Mark your calendars! 🎉 Join us May 15 for the STEM Culture Festival, a celebration of @ucsc ’s vibrant, innovative, and diverse STEM community. Where: Baskin Engineering Courtyard When: 1-4 p.m. You’ll have a chance to: 💃 Experience performances by @arenas_dance_company and student group @losmejicas (+ take a lesson!) 💡 Explore games, interactive demos, & culturally themed activities 🗣️ Hear from inspiring speakers 🌮 Eat FREE tacos 👀 Enter a raffle for gift cards awarded every hour …and more! All are welcome – we hope to see you there! The event is a collaboration between Baskin Engineering, @ucscscience , @ucscgenomicsinstitute , @ucsc.women , @cantuqueercenter , @elcentro_ucsc , and @ucscaapirc . 📸 Image descriptions: 1- Students dancing in the Baskin Engineering courtyard. 2- @santacruzdragonboat students hold a poster while enjoying boba drinks. 3- Cuban dance master Susana Arenas dancing with a student (right); Students dancing in a circle (left). 4- Three Baskin Engineering Student Ambassadors smiling at the camera. 5- A group of students gathered in a circle with their hands raised. 6- Two students tabling (left); students lining up in front of a table (right).

This Friday, May 1, learn about how researchers are using genomics to save biodiversity. 🧬 Keynote speaker and UC Santa Cruz professor, Beth Shapiro, has been leading scientific efforts to bring back the woolly mammoth and dire wolf. At this free public symposium, she’ll share what the science of ancient DNA is revealing about how we can protect the species we still have, and how genomic tools may be our best hope for preventing extinction in the first place. Following the keynote, there will be a panel of researchers working on the front lines of conservation science as well as live demos and a chance to talk directly with researchers from some of the top conservation genomics labs in the country. 🗓️ Friday, May 1, 2026 📍 Merrill Cultural Center, UC Santa Cruz Main Campus ⏰ Doors at 12:30 p.m. | Program begins at 1:00 p.m. 🎟️ Registration is free but required! 🔗 Sign up at the link in our bio

ICYMI: Earlier this month, the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument— aka DESI— completed its five-year mission of creating the largest high-res 3D map of the universe ever! The instrument observed more than 47 million galaxies and quasars, which is more than six times all previous measurements combined. DESI’s findings will assist researchers in studying dark energy, the ingredient that makes up about 70% of our universe and one of physic’s biggest mysteries. 🌌 DESI’s quest to understand dark energy is a global endeavor and brings together more than 900 researchers, including UC Santa Cruz affiliates such as Connie Rockosi, co-instrument scientist for DESI and professor at @ucsc and @ucobservatories . With the current set of data, researchers will have significantly more information to test, and since it performed excellently and exceeded expectations, it’ll continue observations into 2028 to expand the map. Findings could shift how we think about our universe and its potential fate. 🪐 Read the full article at the link in our bio! ______ Photo 1: Star trails over the Mayall Telescope that houses DESI. (Credit: Luke Tyas/Berkeley Lab and KPNO/NOIRLab/NSF/AURA) Photo 2: Researchers use DESI’s huge 3D map to study dark energy. Earth is at the center of this map, and every point is a galaxy. (Credit: DESI collaboration and KPNO/NOIRLab/NSF/AURA/R. Proctor) Photo 3: A thin slice of the map produced by the DESI five-year survey shows galaxies and quasars above and below the plane of the Milky Way. (Credit: Claire Lamman/DESI collaboration)

What an amazing #DNAday at @ucsc 😍 Thank you to everyone who participated in making the day special.

🐋 In Antarctica, scientists tag whales with cameras—and the whales look back. 👁️ In a region with few marine protections, the team hopes their groundbreaking data can help drive new safeguards for this fragile ecosystem. This research, led by @ucsc ocean sciences professor Ari Friedlaender and his lab, and will be featured in the #ChasingWhales documentary, premiering on #EarthDay, April 22nd on @latimes -docs. Free to watch!

“Our campus is shaped by its extraordinary redwood landscape, abundant wildlife, and a deep commitment to sustainability,” Chancellor Cynthia Larive Sustainability is core to the Banana Slug identity. We strive to make our campus more and more sustainable every single day. Not only do we have statistics and awards to demonstrate our commitment to the environment, but UC Santa Cruz recently pledged to join the statewide Clean California Campaign and become a Clean California Community. Researchers and students from @ucscscience and @baskinengineering are also driving climate action forward—advancing our understanding of a changing planet and developing green technologies to support a more sustainable future. #EarthDay 📸 Image descriptions: 1 - A dirt walking path surrounded by redwood trees at UCSC. Text reads: "UC Santa Cruz is the highest-ranked public university on Princeton Review’s Top 50 Green Colleges list." 2- McHenry Library and the surrounding redwoods and flowering bushes. Text reads: "UC Santa Cruz ranked as one of two UCs on a list of Top 10 Zero Waste Campuses." 3- Deer partially covered by forest plants, staring directly into the camera. Text reads: "UC Santa Cruz ranked no. 6 greenest college in the country.*" 4- A deer grazing on plants in a forest. Text reads: "By 2045, UC Santa Cruz plans to reduce fossil fuel emissions by 90%."

From May 21–31, step into a pop-up exhibit created in collaboration with the UC Santa Cruz Department of Astronomy & Astrophysics at the Santa Cruz Museum of Art and History. Beautiful Universe features 20+ mind-blowing images of galaxies, supernovae, glowing nebulae, and the dust clouds where new stars and planets are born. This isn’t just space—it’s where art meets science! 🌌🪐 Plus, stop by on a weekend (2–6pm) to ask an astronomer your questions 🔭✨ And after the exhibit, these images will live on permanently at UCSC. 😊 🎫 Students get discounted admission to the MAH (suggested $8) Photos by Steve Mandel and Bob Fera, Deep Space Remote Observatories #astrophysics #astrophotography #ucsantacruz

Huge congrats to @ucsc.eeb professor Roxanne Beltran for her selection as a 2026 Early Career Fellow by @ecologicalsociety ! Professor Beltran is on a mission to understand how climate change is affecting wildlife by studying northern elephant seals at Año Nuevo. From bio-logging to tracking demographic data, her team is doing crucial work—especially right now, as they monitor the impacts of avian influenza in real time. 🧬🦭 We love seeing our faculty leading the way in conservation at @ucsc ! 🙌

New podcast episode just dropped! Kelp Wanted: Marine Heatwaves, Zombie Urchins, and Kelp Restoration with Kristy Kroeker 🌿🌊🥽 Kristy takes us beneath the waves to explore the dramatic chain reactions triggered when the sea gets too hot and what that means for kelp forests. See link in bio 🔗 #OceanAcidification #KelpForests #ZombieUrchins #ScienceSolutionsSantaCruz #SeymourCenter #SantaCruz