Research Grants

silver-haired bat

Redwoods may offer bats a haven amid disease, rising temperatures

by Save the Redwoods League on

Bats are a top conservation priority. Not only are these fascinating mammals vulnerable to climate change, but many species around the world are also falling victim to a fungal disease called white-nose syndrome. New research funded by Save the Redwoods League suggests that coast redwood forests may offer bats refuge from both of these threats.

silver-haired bat

Redwoods may offer bats a haven amid disease, rising temperatures

by Save the Redwoods League on

Bats are a top conservation priority. Not only are these fascinating mammals vulnerable to climate change, but many species around the world are also falling victim to a fungal disease called white-nose syndrome. New research funded by Save the Redwoods League suggests that coast redwood forests may offer bats refuge from both of these threats.

Steller’s jay

Programs reduce densities of birds preying on threatened marbled murrelets

by Save the Redwoods League on

Research funded by Save the Redwoods League suggests that programs designed to help reduce jay populations in areas where marbled murrelets nest, including old-growth coast redwood forests, will give these threatened seabirds a better chance at successful reproduction.

Steller’s jay

Programs reduce densities of birds preying on threatened marbled murrelets

by Save the Redwoods League on

Research funded by Save the Redwoods League suggests that programs designed to help reduce jay populations in areas where marbled murrelets nest, including old-growth coast redwood forests, will give these threatened seabirds a better chance at successful reproduction.

California myotis bat

Study shows bats’ resilience after giant sequoia fire

by Save the Redwoods League on

Climate change is increasing the intensity and frequency of wildfires, and many animal species may be at risk in this new normal. Bats are considered ecosystem indicators because they occupy a wide variety of niches and because they are very …

triptych panel of redwood tree 3d images compared side by side

Researchers use lasers to measure local redwoods’ carbon storage

by Save the Redwoods League on

Alexander Barajas-Ritchie and Lisa Patrick Bentley, PhD, of Sonoma State University have shown that 3D models generated from light detecting and ranging (LiDAR) technology may work at providing accurate estimates for local redwood trees in Northern California.

Nisene Marks State Park

How human encroachment changes the forest’s edge

by Save the Redwoods League on

Nanako Oba, a graduate student in the Environmental Studies Department at San Jose State University, conducted a study at the Forest of Nisene Marks State Park to investigate the edge effects on soil, trees, and understory plants in recovering second- and third-growth redwood forests

Thick bark enables giant sequoia to withstand lower-severity ground fires

Grants Fund Research on Wildfire, Wildlife and a Rare Plant in Coast Redwood and Giant Sequoia

by Kristen Shive on

Nearly $150,000 in research grants from Save the Redwoods League have been awarded as part of the 2018 grant cycle. Funding these projects is a significant component of fulfilling the League’s mission, and each of these projects will contribute to scientific knowledge of coast redwood and giant sequoia forests. This research can help us answer big questions that will protect the health of people, wildlife, and the forests.

Study Suggests Fires Increase Relative Abundance of Redwoods

by Save the Redwoods League on

Researchers believe that fires burned through most redwood forests every six to twenty-five years; in other words, it was a normal occurrence. What is not normal, is the lack of wildfires in the redwood forest.

While it takes mere decades for second-growth redwoods like these to reach impressive heights, it takes can more time for the forest to truly recover.

How Long It Takes for a Forest to Recover after Clear-cutting

by Save the Redwoods League on

For the sake of redwoods conservation, it’s crucial to understand the patterns of natural recovery in second-growth forests. Researchers at San Jose State University wondered how long it takes for a forest to truly recover after clear-cutting, and decided to approach the question by comparing forests in different age classes.

Unofficial trails including this one in Redwood National and State Parks' Grove of Titans result in trampling that can harm roots of ancient trees. Photo by Claudia Voigt

Mitigating Effects of Unofficial Trails on Ancient Redwood Groves

by Save the Redwoods League on

And now, because of internet and mobile technology, the locations of more and more of the tallest redwoods are becoming public knowledge, drawing more people to these giants. This often leads to people blazing their own trails either because the officially designated trail does not provide close access, or because there is no official trail to a specific tree or grove. These unofficial trails are called social trails. So, just how great is the impact of these unofficial trails?

The study found that although trees within 5 meters of each other (like these here) were more likely to be clones than trees farther away, they weren’t always. Photo by Jason Hollinger, Flickr Creative Commons

Some Coast Redwoods May Seem to Be Clones, but They’re Not

by Save the Redwoods League on

If you’ve visited a coast redwood forest, you’ve probably seen these trees growing around the stump of a logged giant. These “fairy rings,” as they’re known informally, show how the coast redwood reproduces asexually by sending new sprouts up from the trunk base of a parent redwood. The mystery was whether these sprouts are genetically identical copies of the parent redwood. Because 95 percent of the current coast redwood range is younger forests, understanding the genetics of the coast redwood is critical for conservation and restoration.