Thunderstorms that once frequently rumbled in the West Pacific will shift east, influencing the location and strength of high- and low-pressure cells near the tropics and storm-carrying jet stream winds, with weather-related impacts spreading across the world.
June 2026
New map shows chances of wildfire survival, much of Central Valley at undue risk
(KSEE/KGPE) Miranda Adams, June 11
A newly released study is revealing that wildfire survival depends on a very specific number of roads for evacuation, and according to the data, our foothill communities don’t have enough.
The study, published by scientists at the University of California, Santa Barbara, and UC Cooperative Extension, found that magic number to be six.
..“There are 17 million Americans living in communities that, by this measure, are not designed to survive a fast-moving wildfire,” said co-author Max A. Moritz, UC Cooperative Extension statewide wildfire specialist. “That should be a wake-up call – not just for California, but for every state that thinks wildfire isn’t their problem yet.”
https://www.yourcentralvalley.com/news/local-news/wildfire-evacuation-road-study/
Shasta Market Match could end June 2027, affecting families and local farmers
(KRCR) Devin Herenda, June 11
…Healthy Shasta Steering Committee Chair Janessa Hartmann told the Northstate’s News that, without the program, “Families lose the ability to buy fresh fruits and vegetables, to access more fruits and vegetables. I don't know anyone today who isn't looking at their grocery bill and cringing. It's tough. Food costs are really high. And not being able to have this benefit would significantly impact our families.”
Hartmann added, “Additionally, the other side of it is that it impacts our local farmers and our local producers because now they've been used to this process of families coming to the market and doing and utilizing this. And now this money doesn't come to them.”
Why the Media Keep Quoting the Same Climate Scientist
Daniel Swain has a knack for breaking down the complexities of climate and weather into precise but accessible ideas.
(Atlantic) Jason Dove Mark, June 11
The success of the climatologist Daniel Swain rests on a simple foundation: His specialty has long been how global climate change messes with local weather. Many climatologists focus on subjects that seem arcane: mean global temperatures registered in Celsius, radiative forcing, the reflectivity of clouds. Swain, in contrast, talks in plain English—constantly, really, in interviews with CBS, NBC, the Weather Channel, and The Washington Post, as well as on his own blog and YouTube channel, Weather West—about the wind and the rain and the temperature outside, and how they are influenced by the larger forces of the atmosphere.
“He uses language that is both precise and deep but very accessible, and that’s why you see him quoted everywhere,” Mark Hertsgaard, a longtime climate journalist who is the executive director of Covering Climate Now, told me. According to Swain’s own tally, he does more than 200 media interviews a year; he is, in other words, about as omnipresent as a weather guy can be in people’s lives. A climate scientist at the University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources’ research unit, Swain is not exactly a “weather influencer,” that breed of streamer who delivers breathless updates about the next big storm. But he has become one of the country’s most influential explainers of the weather’s relationship to the climate; you’ve almost certainly heard from him if you consume just a scintilla of climate-related news.
California Sun https://www.californiasun.co/newsletter/growing-coalition-of-unions-opposes-billionaire-tax-golf-club-ousts-phil-mickelson/
This creepy insect has been found on grapevines. What it could mean for California’s wine industry
(Los Angeles Times) Seamus Bozeman, June 10
…The insect can be identified by its flat triangular head, large eyes and clear wings. The head is brown to black and has several ivory to yellowish spots, which helps separate it from its native counterpart, the smoke-tree sharpshooter. The insect is often found on the stems of plants and grows up to about half-an-inch as fully grown adults, according to the University of California.
How an Oakland organization became a national force for better prison meals
(Berkeleyside) Tony Hicks, June 10
Impact Justice’s Growing Justice initiative in California and South Carolina builds vertical farms inside women’s prisons to produce nutritious leafy greens and train women in indoor farming.
The organization has also created programs like Harvest of the Month, a partnership with regional food hubs, UC Berkeley’s Nutrition Policy Institute, and the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.
The program has delivered more than 600,000 pounds of fresh produce to about 90,000 incarcerated people since 2023.
https://www.berkeleyside.org/2026/06/10/eating-behind-bars-prison-food-impact-justice
Food Tank Explains: CRISPR
(Food Tank)
...For thousands of years, humans have used genetic modification methods like selective- and cross-breeding to grow crops and raise animals with desirable traits, like corn that grows taller or watermelon that has fewer seeds. “Nature is basically gene editing all the time,” Alison Van Eenennaam, an Animal Geneticist and Biotechnology Specialist at the University of California, Davis, tells Food Tank.
https://foodtank.com/news/2026/06/food-tank-explains-crispr/
'This is the 'uh-oh' moment': Record-low snowpack leaves western US bracing for water restrictions and wildfire danger
(The Cool Down) Brooklyn Smith, June 9
Climate scientist Daniel Swain summed up the situation bluntly: "This is one of those unsubtle years. … This is the 'uh-oh' moment."
https://www.thecooldown.com/green-tech/reservoir-levels-west-water-management/
Few roads out, higher wildfire risk: New study maps Bay Area evacuation danger
(Mercury News) Ethan Baron, June 8
Researchers from UC Santa Barbara [including Max Moritz, UC Cooperative Extension specialist] analyzed wildfire deaths across the U.S. from 2008 to 2024 in relation to road networks and concluded that communities with few ways out saw the vast majority of fatalities.
“If you know you’re in an egress-limited community, you should have conversations with your family, your neighbors, your community about what your plan is,” said study co-author Caitlin Fong. “Your road networks are probably very important for your survivability.”
Bay Area farmers, researchers differ on total costs of climate-related drought
(Press Democrat) Natalie Hanson, June 8
Several local researchers and farmers said the costs on the ground during and after drought, including from these “secondary” climate-driven impacts, is more complex to quantify than an annual average can reflect. Disaster reports paint only a small part of a bigger picture when looking at the broad economic costs of drought, according to Helaine Berris, water and soil adviser at University of California Cooperative Extension for the North Bay (UCCE).
Berris said farmers may experience new or ongoing costs as they recover from drought and change practices to prepare for future impacts. Because of the complexity of these factors, “It’s difficult to quantify losses due to climate change over long periods of time,” she said.
“The impacts of climate change are so interrelated with other variables that it’s complicated to parse out exact causes especially over many years or decades,” Berris said. “For example, wear and tear on irrigation infrastructure from being in hotter temps for longer periods of time due to climate change, thus reducing a farm’s overall water resiliency by decreasing certainty in irrigation efficiency.”
Shining a Brighter Light on Grapevine Red Blotch Virus
(Growing Produce) Mike Zawacki, June 6
While there is no cure, effective management of grapevine red blotch virus involves correctly identifying and removing infected vines. Recent research indicates that the loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) assay is a promising, practical, and effective diagnostic tool for vineyard managers to conduct more frequent on-site testing for red blotch.
During a November 2025 webinar, Monica Cooper, DPM, Viticulture Advisor with the University of California Cooperative Extension in Napa County and UC Agriculture and Natural Resources, shared her insights on red blotch detection using the LAMP assay and how growers can use the test effectively in a vineyard setting.
Wolves have rebounded in California. Some say Newsom budget will undo progress
(SF Chronicle) Kurtis Alexander, June 5
Arthur Middleton, a professor of wildlife management at UC Berkeley who has been helping the state navigate the controversial return of wolves, worries that California’s dearth of wildlife funding signals a broader shift away from responsibly stewarding wolves as well as bears, mountain lions, coyotes and other animals.
Middleton warns that a lack of proactive management could allow more situations to escalate like the conflict last year in Sierra Valley (Plumas and Sierra counties). There, a pack of wolves was infuriating ranchers after it became acclimated to eating cattle. State officials resorted to a $1.4 million hazing program, but that didn’t work, so they shot four wolves.
“Given the urgency of the crisis and the breadth of the coalition working on solutions including the current funding request, it’s a gut punch,” he said. “California is rallying to have big predators in abundance — without wanting to pay for it.”
https://www.sfchronicle.com/california/article/wolves-california-budget-22292042.php
The winter without snow
(Deseret Magazine) Kevin Lind, June 5
“The Colorado River watershed has been in trouble for some time. That’s not new. The Great Salt Lake has been in dire straits for some time. That’s not new,” says Daniel Swain, a climate and weather scientist for the University of California and prolific social media meteorologist. “This is one of those unsubtle years. … This is the ‘uh-oh’ moment.”
https://www.deseret.com/magazine/2026/06/05/water-drought-in-the-west/
Marin County offers $2.5 million for farmers market project
(Press Democrat) Richard Halstead, June 5
“This project represents far more than a physical space,” Lauren Cartwright, the area director for the University of California Cooperative Extension. “It’s an investment in the long-term viability, visibility and resilience of Marin County agriculture."
https://www.pressdemocrat.com/2026/06/04/marin-supervisors-offer-2-5m-for-farmers-market-project/
California is about to see a weather whiplash from rain to extreme heat
(SF Chronicle) Anthony Edwards, June 5
The exact evolution of the heat wave is still uncertain, but global climate patterns - including tropical storm remnants and an emerging El Niño - provide some confidence to weather model predictions.
A ribbon of winds in the upper atmosphere that extends roughly from south of Hawaii to Florida - known as the subtropical jet stream - is stronger during El Niño. Its influence usually takes an edge off Desert Southwest heat while raising the odds of above-normal temperatures in the Pacific Northwest, said Daniel Swain, a climate scientist at the UC Agricultural and Natural Resources extension.
https://www.sfchronicle.com/weather-forecast/article/california-rain-heat-wave-22291704.php
Wildfire experts warn America is a tinderbox as drought worsens and federal fire teams lose staff
(The Cool Down) Hope Nguyen, June 4
"I think this is going to be the year," Timothy Ingalsbee, co-founder and executive director of Firefighters United for Safety, Ethics and Ecology, said, per Inside Climate News. "The conditions are just ripe for some really bad outcomes."
Weather and climate scientist Daniel Swain added, "It's a bit of a double-edged sword. Those early storms could be a big problem. They could ignite many lightning fires."
https://www.thecooldown.com/outdoors/wildfire-season-us-experts-warn-dangerous/
Moth damage rises as growers await new insecticide
(Ag Alert) Tim Hearden, June 3
During harvest, what looks to be a perfectly clean head could have a larva inside, said Dylan Beal, a UC Cooperative Extension entomology adviser for Monterey, Santa Cruz and San Benito counties.
Nutrition program benefits growers and inmates alike
(Ag Alert) Caleb Hampton, June 3
The locally grown produce comes from Harvest of the Month, a joint initiative between Oakland-based nonprofit Impact Justice, University of California’s Nutrition Policy Institute and the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.
Sonoma County approves new plan to stabilize agriculture amid industry decline
(Northern California Public Media) Shandra Back, June 3
The Sonoma County Board of Supervisors approved an action plan on Tuesday meant to strengthen the agriculture industry amid a growing crisis across all sectors.
County staff will work with departments ranging from the Agricultural Preservation and Open Space District to the University of California Cooperative Extension to carry it out.
The goals include stabilizing a struggling industry, preventing further loss of acreage and facilities, and protecting a clear path forward.
Six Roads to Safety: New Study Finds a Critical Threshold for Wildfire Survival
(Santa Barbara Independent) Sonia Fernandez, June 2
“Seventeen million Americans are living in communities that, by this measure, are not designed to survive a fast-moving wildfire,” said co-author Max A. Moritz, UC Cooperative Extension Wildfire Specialist for the state of California. “That should be a wake-up call — not just for California, but for every state that thinks wildfire isn’t their problem yet.”
The researchers emphasize that road-building alone is not a complete solution — steep terrain, ecological constraints and cost make new roads impractical in many places. They point instead to three complementary approaches: expanding egress infrastructure where feasible, improving early warning systems and evacuation behavior, and investing in pre-planned shelter-in-place options like Temporary Refuge Areas for when evacuation fails.
Q&A: What is Madera Community College’s new agave planting project?
(The Business Journal) Gabriel Dillard, June 1
Madera Community College hosted its first field planting for its Agave Innovation Center on June 1, marking a milestone in a research and workforce development initiative focused on drought-resilient agriculture, according to a media advisory from the college.
The project is designed to explore agave as a potential agricultural alternative in California while providing students with hands-on training opportunities through partnerships with University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources and UC Merced.
https://thebusinessjournal.com/madera-community-college-agave-planting-project/
It's June 1, what are the tropics cooking up so far?
(USA Today) Dinah Voyles Pulver and Doyle Rice, June 1
With near record sea surface temperatures pushing westward in the El Niño region, it's a telltale sign of the beginning of an El Niño.
The formation of the cyclical pattern is already "clearly well underway," according to Daniel Swain, a climate scientist with the University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources. The atmosphere and oceans are cooperating and appear to be consistent with model forecasts for "a significant El Niño to develop by mid-summer," Swain wrote in a recent update on his WeatherWest website.
May 2026
Why Wildfire Experts Are So Worried About This Year’s Fire Season
(Inside Climate News) Peter Aldhous, May 31
California, frequently wracked by drought, looks in better shape this year after some heavy rains, despite its minimal snowpack. “California is a little bit more of a wildcard. I’m not sure how it is going to go,” said Daniel Swain, a weather and climate scientist with University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources.
While things look primed for a severe Western fire season, Swain and other experts say much will depend on regional weather patterns in the coming months that are very hard to predict.
https://insideclimatenews.org/news/31052026/experts-warn-of-upcoming-wildfire-season/
Growing More Than Plants: Oak Bridge Academy’s Garden Club
(North State Parent) Jenny Jones, May 31
One example of that educational balance is the school’s growing Garden Club, a project that has become a labor of love led by teacher Nicole Ballew. What began as a small garden idea has steadily grown into an expansive hands-on learning program complete with raised garden beds, a greenhouse, pollinator gardens and a newly planted fruit orchard.
The project first took root in 2022 when Ballew applied for a School Garden Grant through the University of California Cooperative Extension. After receiving the grant, she worked alongside students, families and community volunteers to help build the school’s first outdoor garden beds and irrigation system. Additional grants through Chico Rotary Club and the Chico Horticultural Society later helped fund fencing around the garden space.
https://northstateparent.com/article/growing-more-than-plants-oak-bridge-academys-garden-club/
Boosting Agritourism with 2026 Summit
(Ag Farm News) Jamie Martin, May 29
The 2026 California Agritourism Summit will take place in San Luis Obispo County from September 23 to 25. The event is led by the University of California Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education Program, part of UC Agriculture and Natural Resources.
This summit will focus on expanding agritourism as a way to support farm income and rural development. It will include expert talks, group discussions, and breakout sessions that provide practical learning for attendees.
Rachael Callahan, statewide agritourism coordinator at UC SAREP, said the event will showcase farms with different scales and operations. Participants will have the opportunity to visit an urban farm, a cattle ranch, and a mushroom production facility to learn directly from farm owners.
https://agfarmnews.com/news/boosting-agritourism-with-2026-summit
Understanding Napa’s Unusual Growing Season with Daniel Swain
(Trellis Talks) Caleb Mosley, May 28
In this episode of Grown in Napa Valley, Executive Director Caleb Mosley sits down with climate scientist Daniel Swain to discuss the unusual 2026 growing season and what Napa Valley growers should be paying attention to. Swain explains the record-breaking heat experienced in March and April, the complex relationship between climate change and extreme weather events, and why growers are increasingly dealing with both ends of the spectrum: severe drought conditions and periods of excessive rainfall. The conversation also explores topics such as offshore winds, fog, vapor pressure deficit, wildfire risk, and how a warming climate is changing the challenges facing agriculture across California.
North County Students Grow Award-winning Farming Robot
(Noozhawk) Kenny Klein, May 28
Agriculture students from three Santa Maria Joint Union High School District campuses recently won the Amiga Innovation Award and $1,000 after competing in the 2026 Farm Robotic Challenge.
Students worked on the Amiga robot during spring break to build a sprayer to allow for foliar applications of fertilizers to our crops we grow on the Mark Richardson Center Farm.
https://www.noozhawk.com/north-county-students-grow-award-winning-farming-robot/
Early Bay Area Honeybee Swarms Bring New Questions About Warming Winters
(KQED) Ezra David Romero, May 28
…This winter was historically warm across the Bay Area, with many areas shattering daily and monthly high-temperature records. Much of the West experienced the warmest winter on record “by a ridiculous margin,” said Daniel Swain, a climate scientist with UC Agriculture and Natural Resources.
… Elina Niño, a University of California extension specialist in bees, has concerns about the report because many factors contribute to swarming, including human error, overcrowding, weather and regional ecosystem differences.
“I don’t know that early swarming is necessarily totally crazy, and we have seen it before on occasion,” Niño said. “Swarms really depend on the local climate.”
Niño said she would have more confidence once Swarmed has collected data for at least a decade. A longer record is especially important for understanding climate change, particularly in California, which has a broad range of ecosystems and natural swings from drought to deluge.
“I think this will be really super useful down the road,” Niño said. “It just needs a little bit more time before we start drawing extreme conclusions.”
Virus Afecta: Desarrollo Del Melon En El Condado Imperial
(Noticias El Centro) Victor Adrian Ramirez Pedroza
Definitivamente la mosca blanca ha mermado la produccion de melon a traves de mas de tres decadeas impactando los engresos economicos de los agricultores del Condado de Imperial
[The whitefly has definitely diminished melon production for over three decades, impacting the economic income of farmers in Imperial County. Ana Pastrana, UC Cooperative Extension plant pathology advisor for Imperial County, is interviewed]
https://noticiaselcentro.com/virus-afecta-desarrollo-del-melon-en-el-condado-imperial/
Flesh-eating screwworms head for American livestock
(Stateline) Kevin Hardy, May 28
While ranchers can hold back cattle during an outbreak, dairies may face immediate losses during infections, according to the University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources.
“Dairy cows produce milk every day that must be processed immediately — if a farm is quarantined or a plant shuts down, milk spoils quickly and has to be dumped,” said Daniela Bruno, a dairy adviser with University of California Cooperative Extension.
She said producers should review their insurance coverage and bolster biosecurity against threats such as screwworm and avian flu, which has reemerged in California dairies.
https://stateline.org/2026/05/28/flesh-eating-screwworms-head-for-american-livestock/
Bad year for ticks, rattlesnakes? Here’s why that could be
(Red Bluff Daily News) Heather Taylor, May 28
Have you heard people saying it could be a “bad year” for ticks and rattlesnakes? Tehama County University of California Cooperative Extension Director and Rangeland Advisor Josh Davy shared why people may see more of these creatures this summer, and some tips to manage risks around them.
Beyond The Coop: Science-Backed Secrets For Healthy Backyard Chickens
(Speaking of Pets Podcast) Alice Novotny Jeromin, D.V.M. and Janet Novotny King, May 27
Thinking of getting backyard chickens or already have a flock? Chances are you’re still “winging it” on some aspects of chicken care. We sat down with Dr. Maurice Pitesky, a UC Davis veterinarian and poultry expert, to discuss his new book, Dr. Cluck’s Backyard Chickens. The book is a lighthearted, comical, and essential reference designed to convey the best science regarding husbandry, nutrition, and welfare. Learn why Marek’s disease is the number one killer of backyard birds (and how to prevent it), the crucial “5% rule” for treats, and the surprising truth about the notorious backyard egg-washing debate. Get ready to ditch the guesswork and learn the science-backed secrets to successfully raising your backyard flock.
A 'fire year': Widespread US drought fueling fears of never-ending wildfires
(ABC News) Dan Peck and Bill Hutchison, May 27
Daniel Swain, a climate scientist for the University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources, pushed back on the notion of a year-round fire season.
"Are we seeing longer fire seasons, fire seasons where fires are at least possible in essentially every calendar month in some locations in some years? Yes, we are. And you could reasonably call that, by some metrics, a year-round fire season if you can get fires in any month," Swain told ABC News.
But Swain said large "consequential wildfires" still occur mostly in a seasonal timeframe, depending on the region.
"Is it true that we're going to get disastrous fires equally in any calendar month? Definitely not. In fact, in that sense, there is still a very clear seasonality to it that has really been unbroken for the most part," Swain said.
https://abcnews.com/US/fire-year-widespread-us-drought-fueling-fears-ending/story?id=133312290
California may strengthen wolf deterrence measures
(Agri-Pulse) Tim Hearden, May 27
…The state entered the second phase of its decade-old wolf recovery plan just as University of California researchers published two studies that opened the eyes of policymakers – one last spring that suggested that cattle are a major component of wolves’ diet, and another in November that found wolf-related costs in the Sierra Valley reached at least $2.6 million over a seven-month period last year(https://nrm.dfg.ca.gov/FileHandler.ashx? DocumentID=135027&inline) (https://ucanr.edu/blog/food-blog/ article/study-calculates-cost-ranchers-expanding-wolf-population) (https://s.giannini.ucop.edu/uploads/pub/2026/01/08/v29n2.pdf)
… UC Cooperative Extension and UC Berkeley are also seeking input from producers on the future ofa wolf-livestock compensation fund established in 2021 that has paid out over $3.5 million to affected ranchers. Theanonymous survey takes about20 minutes to complete and will close on June 11.(https://www.facebook.com/CaliforniaDFW/posts/cdfw-continues-to-work-with-eligible-producers-todistribute-the-compensation-fu/1232371442404797/) (https://wildlife.ca.gov/Conservation/Mammals/Gray-Wolf/Grants)
https://www.agri-pulse.com/articles/24730-california-may-strengthen-wolf-deterrence-measures
Robotics challenge showcases next generation of ag-tech
(Agri-Pulse) Brad Hooker, May 27
Student teams from California and around the world took home Farm Robotics Challenge awards for tools aimed at weeding, crop scouting, spraying, orchard monitoring and dairy herd health.
https://www.agri-pulse.com/articles/24738-robotics-challenge-showcases-next-generation-of-ag-tech
What bit me? These stinging, blood-sucking bugs are common in California
(SLO Tribune) Alexiah Syrai Olsen, May 27
“Fleas are annoying to people and pets, especially during spring and early summer when their numbers tend to increase dramatically,” University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources said. A common flea species in California is the cat flea, which attacks dogs, cats and humans. Fleas feed on animals and humans by sucking blood through the skin.
https://www.sanluisobispo.com/news/california/article315632745.html#storylink=cpy
Also at: https://www.sacbee.com/news/california/article315632745.html#storylink=cpy
Carpophilus Beetle: Updates on Ecology, Monitoring, and Management
(Almonds.org) May 27
It has been nearly three years since the carpophilus beetle, Carpophilus truncatus, first appeared in California. While much remains to be understood about its full impact, significant progress has been made, driven by industry leaders and a dedicated team of five experts working diligently to better understand this emerging pest.
After its initial discovery in the fall of 2023, Houston Wilson, associate cooperative extension specialist in the Department of Entomology at the University of California – Riverside, and his colleagues began studying the beetle’s behaviors and seasonal patterns, as well as monitoring and management strategies. This collaborative effort included Jhalendra Rijal (IPM Advisor – North San Joaquin Valley, UC Agriculture and Natural Resources), Sudan Gyawaly (IPM Advisor – Sacramento Valley, UC ANR), David Haviland (Entomology Farm Advisor – Kern County, UC ANR) and Raman Bansal (Research Entomologist, USDA Agricultural Research Service).
Scientists Worry El Niño Could Supercharge Marine Heat Wave Roiling Coastal California
(KQED) Ezra David Romero, May 26
Daniel Swain, a climate scientist with UC Agriculture and Natural Resources, said in a recent live-streamed office hours series that while El Niño is not directly related to the marine heat wave, “later this year, it’s actually quite likely that El Niño will reinforce this tropical warming.”
Why is there such intense global heat?
Vietnam.vn, May 26
…"The peak heatwave in March in the US wasn't an early arrival of summer. It was a sign that the jet stream was being pulled off its normal trajectory by climate change. As a result, hot air masses were entering areas and times they couldn't have reached before, causing unusual weather phenomena," analyzed climate scientist Daniel Swain at the University of California.
https://www.vietnam.vn/en/vi-sao-nang-nong-gay-gat-toan-cau
Rising diesel prices pinching profits for CA farmers, spiking costs for consumers
(Fresno Bee) Robert Rodriguez, May 26
Daniel Sumner, agriculture economist at the University of California, Davis, said fuel prices hit farms and food consumers hard. “An important fact is that when fuel prices go up, it affects farm costs directly and raises consumer prices. It also puts pressure on marketers. The same economics applies to the fuel costs in processing and marketing,” he said.
https://www.fresnobee.com/news/business/agriculture/article315858364.html#storylink=cpy
Grocery prices are still rising. Here's what's gone up the most
(San Francisco Chronicle) Jessica Roy, May 25
Energy costs are food costs, said Daniel Sumner, a professor of agricultural economics at UC Davis. Cleaning, drying, freezing, keeping things cool in transport - "all of that is energy intensive," he said....
...Sumner said another impact of the Iran war likely isn't yet reflected in grocery prices: Fertilizer costs. Many of the raw materials that go into making it travel through the Strait of Hormuz. The produce for sale in the grocery store right now was fertilized before the war began, but those supplies will run out.
https://finance.yahoo.com/economy/policy/articles/grocery-prices-still-rising-heres-120000169.html
Here’s What a Super El Niño Could Mean for the Climate Crisis
(Gizmodo) Ellyn LaPointe, May 24
According to the most severe model projections, this year’s El Niño could be even stronger than the 2023 event. All the experts Gizmodo spoke to for this story expressed confidence that a super El Niño could cause global temperatures to rise more than 2.7 degrees Fahrenheit (1.5 degrees Celsius) above pre-industrial levels in 2026 and 2027. That’s the benchmark established by the Paris Climate Agreement for limiting the worst impacts of climate change.
“It is possible that a really big El Niño event right now essentially pushes us to a point where we only infrequently—if ever—get back below that 1.5-degree C [2.7-degree F] level,” Daniel Swain, a climate scientist at the University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources, told Gizmodo.
But perhaps more importantly, the extreme weather we experience during a super El Niño would be a preview of the world we will be living in permanently in just five or 10 years, according to Swain. “As a climate scientist, that’s a profoundly alarming realization,” he said.
https://gizmodo.com/heres-what-a-super-el-nino-could-mean-for-the-climate-crisis-2000761563
See how this 9,000-mile freight train of warm water may fuel a super El Niño
(Washington Post) Ben Noll, May 20
Those thunderstorms also release heat that comes from the ocean, which is why concerns are mounting that global temperature records – as well as atmospheric moisture records – will be broken in 2027, possibly by a wide margin.
“The reason why that matters so much is because what happens in the tropical Pacific doesn’t stay in the tropical Pacific,” climate scientist Daniel Swain said in a recent video update about El Niño, referring to the wide-reaching effect these warming waters can have.
Why Is Drug-Resistant Salmonella Breaking Out in Backyard Chicken Flocks so Far Apart?
(Sentient Media) Seth Millstein, May 20
...the source of the infections in backyard flocks is still a mystery, as is its presence in non-contiguous states. How and why has the outbreak spread to the specific states it has?
Maurice Pitesky, an associate professor and expert in poultry disease modeling at the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine, has thoughts on this. In an email to Sentient, Pitesky writes that there are “a few different possibilities” as to why the disease is popping up in such disparate places.
It’s possible that the initial infection occurred at a hatchery that shipped the infected chicks across the United States, Pitesky writes.
https://sentientmedia.org/why-is-drug-resistant-salmonella-breaking-out-in-backyard-chicken-flocks/
Commentary: Agricultural 'roadmap' to guide research priorities
(Ag Alert) David Still, May 20
For those of us in the academic community, it represents a commitment to improving research efficiency across our institutions. Through greater collaboration, we can more effectively bridge the critical gaps that stand between a lab discovery and a field solution. In addition, this roadmap ensures that resources are focused on the highest-priority challenges facing our producers.
The roadmap was developed by a handful of critical partners, including the California Department of Food and Agriculture, University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources, California State University Agricultural Research Institute, California community colleges, Western Growers and California AgTech Alliance.
Stone Fruit Growers Finding New Success Through Resiliency
(Growing Produce) Melinda Taschetta-Millane, May 20
California’s San Joaquin Valley hardly fits the image of a struggling fruit region. As Kevin Day, Pomology Advisor emeritus at University of California Cooperative Extension, reminded growers during the International Fruit Tree Association (IFTA) conference in Fresno, winter in the Valley is almost a formality.
“The most it’s ever snowed in Fresno is 2½ inches,” Day said, recalling a 1930 storm that melted by noon. Frost events severe enough to materially damage stone fruit production have been essentially a once-in-50-years occurrence. Combined with fertile soils and developed irrigation infrastructure, that climate helped build one of the most productive stone fruit regions in the world.
Yet Day’s message was clear: favorable weather alone no longer guarantees stability. Even in ideal growing conditions, the industry is undergoing profound change, forcing growers to rethink how success is defined and how decisions are made.
Forecasters raise alarm over 'very strong' El Nino that could devastate California
(The Mirror US) Peter Rubinstein, May 17
El Nino typically occurs every two to seven years and lasts around nine to 12 months, WMO said.
It looks like the predictive models are onto something, said California Institute for Water Resources climate scientist Daniel Swain. That is because the volume and the intensity of the subsurface warm water anomalies — or pulses of unusually warm water that are a key part of El Nino physics— are about as large as we’ve seen in the historical record, he added.
The very strongest events are called “super El Ninos.”
“One of the key building blocks to make it fully materialize is, in fact, occurring,” Swain said Friday. “We still don’t know exactly what’s going to happen. It’s not guaranteed it’ll be a super El Nino. But the potential is there for something genuinely remarkable.”
https://www.themirror.com/news/us-news/forecasters-raise-alarm-over-very-1841873
An Incoming ‘Super El Niño’ May Bring California a Wet, Hot Winter
(KQED) Ella Jackson, May 15
Daniel Swain, a climate scientist with UC Agriculture and Natural Resources, said the term “Super El Niño” is just a colloquial way to describe a “more extreme than merely strong” climate pattern.
“Super El Niño is not something magical, it’s not something new, that’s never happened before,” Swain said this week during his live-streamed “office-hours” series.
Swain said El Niños in 1982, 1997, and 2015 each resulted in “very different global effects” — ranging from record rainfall, which caused some Peruvian rivers to carry 1,000 times their normal flow in 1983, to severe drought in Ethiopia in 2015.
https://www.kqed.org/news/12083376/an-incoming-super-el-nino-may-bring-california-a-wet-hot-winter
Humboldt County Prescribed Burn Association comes to Laytonville
(The Willits News) Sarah Reith, May 15
Humboldt’s PBA was the first of its kind on the West Coast. It was founded in 2017, which was a devastating year for fires in Northern California. Just the previous year, Lenya Quinn Davidson and Jeffrey Stackhouse, both advisors with the University of California Cooperative Extension (UCCE) in Humboldt County, had traveled to Nebraska to see how landowners there were using beneficial fire. Since then, Holbrook said with a laugh, the HCPBA has “kind of become a little bit of a beast,” with an email list of about 450, and about 150 of them participate in trainings, burns, and events every year....
... MCPBA leadership included founding member and Chair Mike Jones, who is also the UCCE Forest Advisor for Mendocino, Lake, and Sonoma Counties, and steering committee member and UCCE Beneficial Burning and Tribal Land Stewardship Advisor Ally Sung-Jereczek. They will be able to expand the training available in Mendocino County by importing content shared by the Humboldt PBA.
Hurricane season starts in Eastern Pacific. Could El Niño cause chaos?
(USA Today) Dinah Voyles Pulver, May 15
Direct hits from named storms are rare in California and Hawaii. However, remnants of dozens of systems that fell apart have caused flooding and other issues in California and the Southwest, while passing storms affect Hawaii. More storms, stronger storms or more persistent storms this summer could mean greater chances for impacts, said Daniel Swain, a climate scientist with the University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources and founder of WeatherWest.com.
Critically endangered red ruffed lemurs join Central Coast Zoo in new habitat
(KSBY) May 15
The Central Coast Zoo in Atascadero has a new and improved lemur habitat.
The habitat features Madagascar-themed landscaping designed and installed by University of California Cooperative Extension Master Gardeners.
Two new red ruffed lemurs, which are critically endangered, are moving into the new space with the zoo's ring-tailed lemurs.
The habitat was originally built in the late 1980s. After decades of use, it was evaluated for renovation or demolition.
Hopland REC celebrates 75 years at public event Sunday
(The Mendocino Beacon) Justine Frederiksen, May 14
One of the most unique research facilities in the state of California will be celebrating its 75th anniversary this weekend by hosting a public event Sunday at its home in Mendocino County.
Purchased by the University of California in 1951, the Hopland Research and Extension Center located just south of Ukiah is a 5,358-acre former ranch consisting mostly of rugged rangeland not suitable for growing crops. Instead, its diverse habitats supporting 600 plant species make the property ideal for conducting research on many aspects of managing natural resources and agricultural land, especially when it comes to “rangelands of the central and northern coast of California.”
https://www.mendocinobeacon.com/2026/05/14/hopland-rec-celebrates-75-years-at-public-event-sunday/
California almond growers facing challenges, still betting on long-term opportunity
(FOX 40) Noah Anderson, May 13
“California used to have a million acres of cotton. Not much left. Why? Not because cotton is a bad crop to grow, but because given our climate, we’re suited to making big investments,” said Daniel Sumner, a professor of agricultural economics at UC Davis.
Sumner said almonds are one of those big investments, with the potential for strong returns in the future. Growing almonds requires patience, as it takes years before almond trees produce what ends up on store shelves. And although there may be uncertainty now, the future holds promise.
“There are changes on the horizon, and we don’t know what they’re going to be, but people are going to eat. That’s a pretty good guess… And people are still going to love almonds and other tree nuts. That’s a pretty good guess,” he said. “I’m pretty optimistic in the long run.”
Climate scientists warn extreme weather events likely this year
(RTE) George Lee, May 12
Dr Daniel Swain of the California Institute for Water Resources, UNCAR, said strong El Nino events, even on their own without global warming, cause regional to continental disruption in precipitation patterns and so increase the risk of floods.
"This effect will be amplified considerably by the now nearly 1.5C of global warming experienced as of 2026," Dr Swain said.
"In modern human history, we've never experienced a strong or very strong El Nino event amid pre-existing conditions that were this warm globally, therefore, it would not be surprising to see some unprecedented global impacts by later in 2026 into 2027 in terms of flood, drought, and wildfire-related extremes", he added.
https://www.rte.ie/news/environment/2026/0512/1572887-climate-heat-environment/
Record heat to hit 22 states, with 61 million people facing 90 degrees or more
(Washington Post) Ben Noll, May 11
Climate scientist Daniel Swain in California wrote that daytime and nighttime temperatures across the West would be much warmer than mid-May averages.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/weather/2026/05/11/record-heat-western-drought-forecast-maps/
Wild Horse Summer Camps Offer Teens Hands On Learning and Careers in Conservation
(Sierra Daily News) May 11
University educators want to draw teenagers away from their phones and into the outdoors with a unique opportunity. They are offering 4-H summer camps focused on wild horse management and careers in natural resources. These camps target youths aged 9 to 18.
The camps come from a partnership between Utah State University and University of California Cooperative Extension. They aim to teach young people about healthy lands and healthy horses. Funding comes from a U.S. Bureau of Land Management grant.
Research shows teens learn better outside the classroom. Laura Snell, a UC Cooperative Extension advisor, says this hands-on approach helps youth develop interests in protecting the natural world.
What to know about the predictions for a potentially record-breaking El Nino
(Associated Press) Jennifer McDermott, May 8
…It looks like the predictive models are onto something, said California Institute for Water Resources climate scientist Daniel Swain. That is because the volume and the intensity of the subsurface warm water anomalies — or pulses of unusually warm water that are a key part of El Nino physics— are about as large as we’ve seen in the historical record, he added.
The very strongest events are called “super El Ninos.”
“One of the key building blocks to make it fully materialize is, in fact, occurring,” Swain said Friday. “We still don’t know exactly what’s going to happen. It’s not guaranteed it’ll be a super El Nino. But the potential is there for something genuinely remarkable.”
The solution to urban heat is much, much simpler than you think
(Grist) Matt Simon, May 8
…Climate change, though, is complicating these calculations. Even in rural areas, without the added temperatures of the urban heat island effect, some places are getting so hot that native plants are moving north in search of cooler climes. Within cities, they are blasted with still more heat — and temperatures will only climb from here. So urban arborists aren’t just planting species that will thrive today, but will survive the climate of tomorrow. “I think that for us to use trees as a type of living infrastructure, that can counter those increased temperatures, is paramount,” said Edith de Guzman, a cooperative extension researcher at the University of California, Los Angeles, who studies urban heat but wasn’t involved in either study. “I think it’s pretty much the most important thing we can do.”
https://grist.org/cities/the-solution-to-urban-heat-is-much-much-simpler-than-you-think/
Also on Mother Jones: https://www.motherjones.com/environment/2026/05/solution-urban-heat-islands-trees-planting-shade-studies/
Trees that survived L.A.’s wildfires are dying at alarming rate. Can they be saved?
(LA Times) Noah Haggerty, May 7
…Edith de Guzman, a climate change, water and urban forestry researcher with UCLA, has been studying the burn area trees with her team. The researchers did their first assessment in the months following the fire, and donned orange vests to do it again this past month.
Their discovery that roughly 2 out of every 10 trees the team went back to check on were missing was particularly concerning to De Guzman because her team was only looking at public street trees — which the city and county have authority over and work to protect — as opposed to trees on private property, which are maintained or felled largely at the discretion of the property owners.
“On private property it’s a different story — except for protected species,” she said. Public trees, however, “we are still seeing removals that are unnecessary, and the city is not sure who is responsible.”
The Chicken Care Playbook
(California Ag Today) Haylie Shipp, May 7
What if your dream of fresh backyard eggs came with a side of science and a few chicken jokes?
A new guide from University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources is helping chicken owners keep their flocks healthy and safe, without making it boring.
“Dr. Cluck’s Backyard Chickens” is a veterinarian-written, peer-reviewed book that tackles everything from avian influenza and predators to nutrition and food safety. It even walks readers through choosing breeds, spotting illness early and making compassionate end-of-life decisions.
Co-author Maurice Pitesky from UC Davis Weill School of Veterinary Medicine says, “Chickens are fun and taking care of them and reading about them also should be fun.
https://www.aginfo.net/report/65354/California-Ag-Today/The-Chicken-Care-Playbook
Hot temps, new varieties boost strawberry volumes
(Ag Alert) Rob McCarthy, May 6
Strawberries ripened weeks earlier this year not because they were day-neutral but due to record-setting heat in February. In Monterey County, usually the last of the state’s four main strawberry-growing regions to start harvest, temperatures reached into the 80s, Mark Bolda, University of California Cooperative Extension strawberry adviser, noted. That means the Watsonville/Salinas district was picking berries at the same time as Oxnard in Southern California.
“It’s been all about unseasonably warm temperatures early on. It bumped the season up by two or three weeks,” Bolda said....
... Driscoll's, California Berry Cultivars and Plant Sciences Genetics also breed strawberry varieties used in the Oxnard district, said Oleg Daugovish, UCCE adviser in Ventura County. The UC Davis cultivar Fronteras is planted on a few hundred acres in the fall, and in summer Portal and Eclipse are used on a small scale, he said. Driscoll's is the dominant summer variety in the district.
Warm, dry start of spring sparks fire season concerns
(Ag Alert) Tim Hearden, May 6
“I would say within fire circles, we’re all bracing for a long, busy fire season,” said Lenya Quinn-Davidson, director of the University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources Fire Network.
Even though there has been spring rain, Quinn-Davidson said the absence of a snowpack means the fire season will start much earlier because “rain doesn’t do as much to slow fire season as a snowpack would.”
“In fact, late rains can increase the vegetation available to burn when things dry out,” she added.
Surge in HPAI infections attributed to wild-bird spillover
(AVMA News) R. Scott Nolen, May 6
…Dr. Maurice Pitesky says the relationship between migratory waterfowl movements and HPAI outbreaks in U.S. poultry is “strong, and consistent” since emerging in North America. Dr. Pitesky is a professor in cooperative extension specializing in poultry health and food safety epidemiology at the University of California-Davis School of Veterinary Medicine.
By analyzing national data on commercial poultry cases of H5N1 since late 2021, Dr. Pitesky has found temporal and spatial links to waterfowl migration whereby HPAI poultry infections align with fall and spring migrations.
https://www.avma.org/news/surge-hpai-infections-attributed-wild-bird-spillover
A pest that leaves unsightly 'sugar volcanoes' is trashing Calif. home values
(SFGate) Ariana Bindman, May 6
According to an informational video posted by University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources, ISHBs are well established in Southern California and spreading to other parts of the state. A UCANR map also shows that the presence of these beetles has been confirmed in some of Southern California’s wealthiest ZIP codes: 90210 and 90402.
Already “it has affected home values in areas where it has become established and caused tree death,” Karen Jetter, an author in the CDFA analysis and UC ANR Policy Institute associate director, told SFGATE in an email Tuesday, adding that the invasive pests pose a threat to property values virtually everywhere in California except for areas at very high elevations. According to Jetter, “significant research” shows that “nicely landscaped environments result in higher property values on average.”
https://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/beetle-california-home-values-22245092.php
Wildfire safety and preparedness tour in Auburn
(Fox 40) Dennis Shanahan, May 5
We hear a lot about clearing defensible space around homes, but making a home fire safe involves a lot more than that. This neighborhood tour was organized led by the University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources Fire Network. That's a relatively new statewide UC Extension program. “We provide workshops like this to residents, research that meet local needs and also just got any sort of technical expertise to residents,” Program Coordinator Katie Low talked about the three main ways structures are lost in fires: “embers, radiant heat and flames.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hFRazqChFP4
Syngenta launches high INSV-resistant romaine lettuce Renegade
(Eurofruit) Carl Cotton, May 5
…“Renegade was developed by working hand in hand with growers and validating performance through independent trials with organisations like UC Agriculture and Natural Resources,” said Justin Goodwyn, product specialist, LBO, West US.
”Salinas Valley growers need varieties they can count on, and Renegade delivers that.”
Brown pelicans starving, dying in Bay Area due to Marine heat wave, wildlife experts warn
(ABC7) Cornell Barnard, May 4
"Marine heat waves are rarely gone in days or weeks," said Dr. Daniel Swain, a climate scientist with the California Institute for Water Resources. "They typically take months to weaken as atmospheric conditions slowly break them down."
Coyote attacked California boy in driveway. Here’s how to keep kids, pets safe
(SLO) Tribune) Alexiah Syrai Olsen, May 4
...However, some coyotes have “seemingly lost their fear of humans” while living in residential neighborhoods, parks and open spaces, the University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources said. “Coyotes thrive in such areas because food, water and shelter are abundant,” the university said, “and coyotes living in these environments may come to associate humans with food and protection.”
...You can also report a coyote encounter to the Coyote Cacher, a data program run by UC Agriculture and Natural Resources that collects information coyote encounters.
https://www.sanluisobispo.com/news/local/environment/article315593677.html#storylink=cpy
Return of the Blob? How a record-breaking ocean heat wave could affect California's weather and wildlife this summer
(Mercury News) Paul Rogers, May 4
“California is going to be affected by this now record-breaking marine heat wave for months to come,” said Daniel Swain, a climate scientist with the University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources division. “It’s likely this is going to be with us probably the rest of the year. And it’s significantly going to influence weather in California and the Southwestern U.S. during that time.”
https://www.mercurynews.com/2026/05/03/return-of-the-blob-how-a-record-ocean-heat-wave-could-affect-californias-weather-and-wildlife-this-summer/