3 . Mosquitoes are one of the few unpleasant parts of summer. As the temperature rises, these disease-carrying pests become a common sight, especially around standing water. Thankfully, these tiny annoying creatures don’t follow us into the winter, right? Wrong. According to researchers in Florida, climate change will likely keep mosquitoes active even in the colder months of the year. “In tropical (热带的) areas, mosquitoes are active all year, but that isn’t the case for the rest of the world. Outside of the tropics, winter temperatures cause mosquitoes to go into a kind of hibernation called diapause (滞育). We call these mosquitoes ‘cold bounded’ because their activity is limited by these lower temperatures,” says Brett Scheffers, assistant professor in the wildlife eco logy and conservation department, in a university release.

“However, with climate change, summers are to get longer and winters are to become shorter and warmer. What will that mean for those cold bounded mosquitoes? How will they respond?” To see just how adaptive mosquitoes are already becoming to changing temperatures throughout the year, researchers collected these insects during each season in Gainesville, Florida.

Study authors caught over 28,000 insects from 18 different mosquito species during their experiment. Scientists lured the pests by using a trap that produces carbon dioxide. Mosquitoes seek out this gas, which both humans and animals blow out when they breathe. For these pests, the gas signals that a tasty meal is nearby. The team randomly selected 1,000 of these mosquitoes to test in their lab temperature experiment. They placed each insect in a test tube before putting it in water. From there, researchers continued to change the temperature, from cold to hot. At the same time, the team monitored when each mosquito became inactive—marking their upper or lower temperature thresholds (阈点).

As for what is allowing mosquitoes to make these rapid adjustments to the weather, the answer is still unclear. However, researchers believe evolution could be working at a much faster rate in tinier creatures. Study authors believe their findings will help communities better prepare for insect season as climate change continues to lengthen summer.

5 . Welcome to Santa Cruz County. It is home to rough coastline and it’s the main destination for many hiking adventurers!

California King Tides Are Coming!

California King Tides are coming back to Santa Cruz County, and this season you have even more opportunities to enjoy these impressive tides! These naturally occurring and predictable events are when the highest and lowest tides hit our shores and create an even more dramatic coastline.

Winter Wildlife Getaway!

This season marks the start of the best wildlife watching on the California coast! Migrating whales and many special birds make December and January the perfect time for a wildlife adventure.

Magic Monarch Butterfly!

In Santa Cruz, we like to celebrate all creatures great and small, especially those of the migrating variety. On one hand, we are attracted by the sight of a whale surfaceing from the depths of the sea and, on the other hand, we delight in the attractive magic of a flying monarch butterfly.

County Shores!

Explore Santa Cruz County shores, and you’ll delight in rock y tide pools full of unique sea creatures. While exploring local tide pools, remember to have respect for your surroundings.

Care & Safety

Never turn your back on the ocean. Sleeper waves are a real phenomenon, and can sweep you away at any time.

We know how wonderful it might be to touch a plant or catch a fish from its waters, but disrupting tide pool life harms its inhabitants. Even if you think you’re saving a fish that appears to be pushed out of water, it’s best to leave it be. The tide will finally return it.

10 . I grew up in a house with an unusual design feature. The floor of part of the house was made of pieces of chalkboards that my father gathered from the local high school when it was repaired. He added a second large piece on the wall, too.

The result was that we always had a place to write notes, draw pictures, do quick calculations, and keep an ongoing grocery list to which anyone could contribute. The wall chalkboard was used for important notes, while the floor was most handy for messages that were meant to catch someone’s eye the moment they came in the house, things like “I’ve run out to the store, back in 30 minutes” or “Please start dinner at 5:30”.

When I was young, I thought that every house would have a large writing area, but then I moved away and realized that wasn’t the case. For years, especially since having kids, I’ve tried to keep information organized. Though my Moleskine paper planner has given some semblance (表象) of order to my life, it doesn’t make up for a good chalkboard.

But now things have changed. I’m pleased to say that a proper chalkboard has finally been fixed in my kitchen—something that should have happened years ago! My dad recently came for a visit and brought a piece of slate (石板) that fits the wall behind the door, adding a board for chalk.

All of a sudden we have an obvious place to go to store information where all family members can see it, a place where important thoughts can be written down.

I think every house should have a proper-sized chalkboard — a real slate one, if you can find it. It’s a game-changer, a family unifier, and an effective organizer. I may not have a chalkboard floor, but once again I have a chalkboard wall, and now my home feels complete.