California

Adorned in the blue and yellow of the Ukrainian flag, Victoria Franco takes part in a protest near Los Angeles City Hall on March 19, weeks after Russia invaded Ukraine.

How Ukrainian and Russian Immigrants View the War From Afar

To residents of Southern California with ties to the Eastern European nations, the conflict feels close to home

Black turban snails are small marine snails that make tasty prey for crabs. Failed crab attacks leave scars on a snail’s shell. By analyzing the rate of scarring and the size of the snail when it was attacked, researchers can learn important details about crab populations.

Scars on Snails Offer a 100,000-Year Record of Crab Populations

A surprisingly simple technique for studying marks on shells shows how California’s crab population has changed over millennia

The only available photograph of America Newton, a formerly enslaved woman who ran a laundry business out of her cabin in Julian, California, dates to around 1910.

The Trailblazing Black Entrepreneurs Who Shaped a 19th-Century California Boomtown

Though founded by Confederates, Julian became a place of opportunity for people of color—and a model for what the U.S. could look like after the Civil War

Archaeologists and members of the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe worked together on the project, which revealed the longstanding genetic roots of the region's Native peoples. 

This Native American Tribe Wants Federal Recognition. A New DNA Analysis Could Bolster Its Case

The new findings could help Mukwema Ohlone prove they never went "extinct"

NPS Ranger Betty Reid Soskin sits in front of the Rosie the Riveter Visitor Center.

Betty Reid Soskin, Oldest National Park Service Ranger, Retires at 100

As an NPS employee, she promoted the stories of African American people and women of color who contributed to the home front effort during WWII

Aedes aegypti can carry several diseases, including yellow fever, dengue and Zika virus. 

Why a U.S. Company Plans to Release 2.4 Billion Genetically Modified Mosquitoes

The insects, created by biotech firm Oxitec, will be non-biting males engineered to only produce viable male offspring, per the company

The Academy Museum of Motions Pictures received backlash on its opening for failing to portray the stories of Hollywood's Jewish founders.

The Academy Awards Museum Will Create New Exhibition on Hollywood's Jewish Roots in Response to Criticism

When the museum opened last year, industry leaders and donors expressed disappointment at what they saw as a stunning omission in the exhibition content

A Oaxacan figure is depicted making masa with a metate, a stone tool used for grinding corn.

New Museum in California Celebrates Rich History of Mexican Cuisine

Located in downtown Los Angeles, LA Plaza Cocina is the first institution of its kind in the U.S

Reservoirs like Lake Powell are falling to record-low water levels due to years of persistent drought.

The West Coast Should Brace for Spring Megadrought, NOAA Warns

More than half of the United States is likely to struggle with limited water supply and increased risk of wildfires in the coming months

Artist rendering of a solar canal system for California.

California Is About to Test Its First Solar Canals

The innovative project is a win for water, energy, air and climate

Researchers identified that these vertebrae belonged to giant snakeheads, freshwater fish native to Southeast Asia.

Fish Bones Found in Razed California Chinatown Reveal Complex 19th-Century Trade Network

DNA analysis suggests the Chinese immigrants' supply chain stretched to Southeast Asia

David and Priscilla Burke's daughter Aoibheann with a wild fig tree her parents discovered.

In California, the Search for the Ultimate Wild Fig Heats Up

A booming market has specimen hunters tracking down rare new varieties of the ancient fruit

A typical black bear in the western United States (pictured) is around half of Hank’s size.

DNA Shows At Least Three Large Black Bears Are Breaking Into Tahoe Homes, Not Just 'Hank the Tank'

Bears have damaged at least 30 properties in the area

The American West’s megadrought has been exacerbated by human-caused climate change. It is likely to continue for at least another year.

The Western U.S. Is Experiencing the Worst Drought in More Than 1,200 Years

Human-caused climate change is responsible for 42 percent of the soil moisture deficit in the last 22 years, a new study finds

Tc’ih-Léh-Dûñ is a 523-acre property donated to the InterTribal Sinkyone Wilderness Council.

More Than 500 Acres of Redwood Forest Returned to Indigenous Tribes

The land is home to 200 acres of old-growth trees and federally threatened animals such as the northern spotted owl and the marbled murrelet

Monarch butterflies cluster together to stay warm.

Monarch Butterfly Numbers Soar in California After Dramatic Losses

The orange-winged insect's population increased from 2,000 in 2020 to nearly 250,000 in 2021

A murder of crows flies around an apartment building in downtown Sunnyvale, California.

A California City Overrun With Crows Turns to Lasers and a Boombox to Scare Them Away

City employees will spend an hour every night shining green lasers and playing corvid distress calls to humanely harass the birds into leaving

Orange and lemon groves as well as the residence of the citrus pioneer William Wolfskill, c. 1882. 

The Bug That Saved California

The Golden State’s citrus industry faced a lethal threat. The solution would herald a new kind of pest control

When a surfer reported this fish on the beach, biologists rushed to see what it was. 

For the Third Time This Year, a Deep-Ocean 'Football' Fish Has Washed Ashore California's Beaches

Prior to this year, a beached specimen hadn't been seen since 2001

A starlit night at Joshua Tree National Park.

What Does the Future Hold for the Joshua Tree?

The beloved desert denizen is feeling the heat

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