QUEST Community Science Blog

A Baobab TreeIt is not only animals that can be become endangered but plants and trees as well. One of California Academy of Science’s research areas has been Madagascar. Coined as an “Island of Evolution,” Madagascar hosts a rich biodiversity of plant and animal life that is indigenous to the area and, unfortunately, highly threatened. Among the endangered in Madagascar is the Baobab Tree - Adansonia grandidieri.

Baobab is the common name of the genus Adansonia. The genus contains eight species of tree – six are native to Madagascar, while one species occurs in Mainland Africa and one in Australia. The Baobab tree is the national tree of Madagascar and is also known as the boaboa, bottle tree, the monkey bread tree, or the upside down tree: It looks as if someone took a tree out by the roots and turned it upside down. Throughout most of the year, its branches are bare, making them resemble a network of roots. All Baobab tree species occur in naturally dry areas and shed their leaves in the dry season to survive harsh drought conditions. Baobab trees can reach a height of 80 feet and a trunk diameter of 23- 36 feet. The trees store water inside the trunk during the dry season. During the rainy season, the trunk will increase or decrease in girth depending on rainfall amounts. It is difficult to determine how long these trees live, as their wood does not create growth rings, but current evidence points to a lifespan of up to 400 years.

The Adansonia grandidieri is the largest and grandest of the Baobab family. It has a massive cylindrical trunk covered with smooth, reddish-grey bark. When in bloom, the flat crowns of the trees bear bluish-green palm-like leaves and dark brown floral buds or spectacular flowers with white petals. It produces leaves from October to May and flowers from May to August. The flowers open around dusk and they all pollinate on the same night they flower. Nocturnal animals pollinate the trees by licking the nectar from the flowers and repeating this process from tree to tree. Scientists believe only lemurs are now capable of pollinating these trees. Before the colonization of Madagascar, other nocturnal animals and the elephant bird also were seed dispersers, but these species have long gone extinct.

Humans have not only affected the number of animals that can pollinate the tree, they have changed the tree’s environment and exploited its various parts. These trees historically prospered in dry, deciduous forest, especially near seasonal river or lakes. Today, they are mainly found in open, agricultural land because of the increased demand for farming. Many trees are scarred from pegs hammered into the bark by humans, who use them to climb up the trunk to collect seeds. The bark is stripped to make rope and the wood is carted away to use for thatch. Because of the changes made to their environment and the exploitation of their resources, there are few young baobab trees, which could seriously hinder species survival. Numerous organizations and researchers, like those at the Academy, along with the Malagasy government, have realized the importance of conserving the unique biodiversity of Madagascar and are working to protect this hotspot. One measure, which will help the Grandidier’s baobab, is the 2003 pledge from the President of Madagascar to triple the number of protected areas in the region. This will not only help restore an incredible area of biodiversity but also help the Malagasy people. Their livelihoods depend on the continued preservation of their watersheds and forests.

Cat Aboudara is the Special Projects Manager at California Academy of Sciences and works in the public programs division. The Academy is a wonderful fit for her because of her curiosity about the natural world and her experience in working with native California wildlife.

newly discovered Rhynchocyon udzungwensis
the grey-faced sengiAlthough enigmatic new species of insects are fairly common discoveries, many large animals have already made an appearance on the species list. Charismatic animals such as mammals are one of the most documented on the planet and it is now very rare to find a new species in this day and age. Yet in March 2006, Galen Rathbun of the California Academy of Sciences, along with Francesco Rovero of the Trento Musuem of Natural Science and a team of collaborators, confirmed a new mammal species - Rhynchocyon udzungwensis, or the grey-faced sengi. Their discovery was recently published in the February 4 issue of The Journal of Zoology.

Sengis are commonly known as elephant-shrews. They were first associated with elephants because of their long flexible snouts that resemble that of an elephant’s trunk. Moreover, recent molecular research has shown that sengis have more in common with elephants that the shrews they were originally associated with. Their closest relatives include elephants, sea cows, and the aardvark. Until now only 15 species of sengis were known to science. In 2005, the new sengi was first caught on film. Francesco Rovero of the Trento Museum of Natural Science had been setting up camera traps inside the remote Ndundulu Forest in Tanzania’s Udzungwa Mountains in order to survey the region’s forest mammals. When the camera recorded the unfamiliar sengi, he sent the photos to Rathbun for identification. Rathbun was sought after for his expertise - he has studied the ecology, social structure, and evolution of sengis for more than 30 years. Rathbun believed the sengi to be a new species and embarked on a two week expedition with a team of colleagues in March 2006 to confirm his belief.

There were a few setbacks confirming the new sengi species. Rathbun had planned their trip for the dry season but the rains came early making the shrew harder to spot. The size of the sengi also posed a problem as the traps that were brought proved too small for the giant sengi. The grey-faced sengis weigh close to 1.5 pounds which is 25 percent larger than any other documented sengi. Therefore, more traditional twine snares had to be built to contain the giant sengi. Victory prevailed and the team was able to catch 4 animals and make 40 observations thus confirming the new species. “This is one of the most exciting discoveries of my career,” Rathbun says. “It is the first new species of giant elephant-shrew to be discovered in more that 126 years. From the moment I first lifted one of the animals into our photography tent, I knew it must be a new species - not just because of its distinct coloring, but because it was so heavy!” More information about this expedition and other Academy expeditions can be found at http://www.calacademy.org/academy/expeditions/.

Cat Aboudara is the Special Projects Manager at California Academy of Sciences and works in the public programs division. The Academy is a wonderful fit for her because of her curiosity about the natural world and her experience in working with native California wildlife.

Cal Academy scientist Kelly Herbinson
collects ants with a Bay Area science teacherAs the winter drags on, I often think fondly of a chilly Saturday in December where I found myself in a small alleyway in San Francisco trying to suck elusive ants into a rubber tube called a pooter. What was the point of this seemingly silly endeavor? I was leading a QUEST educator training with the California Academy of Sciences (one of the more fun parts of my job).

I was first introduced to the pooter, an insect catching device, last July at the California Academy of Sciences Nature Journaling workshop in the Trinity Alps and little did I know where it would lead.

The Nature Journaling workshop blended sketching and watercolor techniques with information about the natural area in which we camped. In addition to discovering I could actually be artistic (not one of my strong suits in the past) and falling in love with vegan cashew chili (I’m a big fan of meat), the highlight for me was learning how to catch small insects by sucking them into a vial at the end of a long rubber tube.

This contraption, which includes a small piece of gauze between the vial and the rubber tubing, so you don’t suck the insect all the way into your lungs, is the aforementioned pooter. By the end of the workshop, we had planned a joint educator workshop using QUEST media about invasive species with the hands-on ant collecting activities from the Bay Area Ant Survey and the California Academy of Sciences.

QUEST’s Jessica Neely
collects ants with a pooterFast forward 4 months. In early December, 29 Bay Area science educators gathered at the California Academy of Sciences to learn about Bay Area invasive species. We started the day off with QUEST’s television story San Francisco Bay Invaders, moved to some discussion about how to help our students become “media savvy” in the 21st century, and then it was time for the pooters.

Educators paired up and we took a field trip to the alley behind the Cal Academy – not the most ideal location to find ants, but it was the best we could do with limited time. It was so cold that day that Kelly Herbinson, our ant expert, had to set out bait for the ants in the morning. We poked, prodded, searched high and low, and a few of us were able to capture the cagey little critters with our pooters. Kelly led us through the identification process (yes, I’m sorry but some ants were harmed) and introduced everyone to the Bay Area Ant Survey, an amazing citizen science project where just about anyone can contribute to scientists’ understanding of the distribution of ants in the Bay Area by capturing, labeling, and sending in their ants.

Teachers study ant samples to
help identify the ants they collectedA few post-workshop take-aways:

• Despite what you hear on the news, science teachers are doing wonderful work with students

• Students are getting their information from an increasing number of sources and teaching them how to be media-savvy is tricky (not something that is currently tested on standardized tests…)

• Most importantly, ants are AMAZING! Did you know that the trap-jaw ant can snap its mandibles shut so hard and fast on an object that it can propel itself backwards 2 feet to escape predators?

Want to participate in an upcoming QUEST Educator Training? Visit our list of upcoming workshops and register.

And please add a comment if you know of a great educational resource for teaching about Bay Area invasive species. And please share your story if you use QUEST with your students!

Jessica Neely is a Project Supervisor of Science Education.

latitude: 37.781891, longitude: -122.403327

“The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious. It is the source of all true art and all science.” - Albert Einstein

Photo credit: Dr. Richard Mooi

It is not often that the public is able to see the components and care that go into creating a museum exhibit. However the California Academy of Sciences hosted a lecture on Tuesday, From the Depths: Creating a Science and Art Exhibit at the Academy, which delved into why the creation of an art exhibit at a science museum has been such a meaningful project for both painter Tiffany Bozic and Dr. Rich Mooi, Curator of Invertebrate Zoology and Geology at the Academy.

Both Bozic and Mooi grew up surrounded by the natural world and remain passionate about exploring it today. Bozic grew up on a farm in Arkansas where she was involved with animals every day. Throughout her career, she has drawn on the natural world to create a dialogue about a universal human condition, often expressing her ideas through animal imagery. Mooi began sketching early in life in the forested areas outside of his home in Ontario and has continued to paint and illustrate all his life. He views illustration as a tool to capture complex processes, like how minute currents travel along a sea urchin’s spines — a process that cannot be adequately captured with photography or other media.

Fine art often raises questions and allows people to look inward, while science is tasked with solidifying answers and methods. But rather than focus on differences between the two fields, Bozic and Mooi are excited by the commonalities they share. During the lecture on creating the exhibit, each demonstrated how they are inspired by both science and art. Though photos don’t do the actual paintings justice, here’s a taste of what’s on display: http://www.calacademy.org/gallery/main.php?g2_itemId=13658.

In listening to the lecture and talking with Bozic and Mooi afterwards, both stressed how important and unusual the “dialogue” between art and science is. They are each fascinated by the beauty found in the natural world, though they work with it in unique ways: one opens it up to interpretation, while the other clarifies its ambiguities.

What they found working together on this art installation was a deep commonality. Bozic related how they were both just completely blown away by the vast number and diversity of specimens in the Academy’s collections. It was like being a five year old again and exploring. Mooi added that both artists and scientists share a love and appreciation of objects. So much detail goes into working with specimens — both the artist and scientist must have a passionate drive to work with such intricacies. Both Bozic and Mooi feel their work is fueled by inspiration and awe.

They expect that many questions will arise among people viewing From the Depths. As visitors go through the art installation, they will also observe the process of what inspired the exhibit in the first place, and perhaps wonder about the relationship between science and art. It will open the visitor up to appreciating the beauty of nature, and the need to convey that beauty. Art and science are just two perspectives of conveying nature: one by questioning and the other by answering, but both open up new worlds.

Mooi ended our talk with a reminder of how much there is to observe and learn among the millions of real objects within the walls of the California Academy of Sciences. These real things in and of themselves are objects to be appreciated, and this art installation puts them in the limelight as things of beauty, similar to Bozic’s paintings.

To join in on the process, come to the opening reception of From the Depths: Inspiring Science and Art on Thursday, November 15th from 5pm to 9pm. The exhibit will be open from November 15, 2007 to January 6, 2008 when the Academy’s Howard Street location closes.

Cat Aboudara is the Special Projects Manager at California Academy of Sciences and works in the public programs division. The Academy is a wonderful fit for her because of her curiosity about the natural world and her experience in working with native California wildlife.

latitude: 37.7819, longitude: -122.404