Hastings Natural History Reservation and Art

After exploring Hastings Natural History Reservation in upper Carmel Valley on Saturday morning and meeting Dr. Mark Stromberg, zoologist, resident director, and man with an endless supply of wacky science stories, an idea has begun to hatch.

Hastings is part of the University of California Nature Reserve system, consisting of about 33 properties in many areas of the Golden State.  In each of them, grad students help scientists conduct studies of everything from geological history of California (now that's a really longitudinal study) to the mating habits of black widow spiders (really big ewww factor).  Hastings alone has generated something on the order of 600 papers over its lifetime as one of the reservations.  It's generally closed to the public in order to preserve the pristine nature of the land and so that studies can be conducted without "contaminated" data.  In other words, if mountain bikers and horseback riders were tromping through regularly, resident species would be trashed, trampled and scared off, not to mention the introduction of further non-native species.  Groups of local K-12 students are welcomed now and again in an outreach effort to connect the kids to science and local native history. 

You get the image as you listen to Dr. Stromberg that the scientists who have taken up residence on the property through the past several decades are a rather quirky lot.  Probing minds have figured out the social structure of acorn woodpeckers, the symbiotic nature of spanish moss and blue oak trees and the effect of gophers on native grasses.  And about a zillion other things that you get curious about if you spend a little time in our coastal wood- and grasslands.  But, the persistence of the scientists over time as they study the minutiae of nearly invisible things has been impressive to a spectacular degree.  Some studies have been ongoing for over 20 years, something the Reservation is famous for being able to provide.  

Now, in the dreary broken days of California's bankrupt economy, the UC system is suffering from an alarming lack of funding.  Thus, Stromberg and his colleagues hope to find other sources of money in order to continue their work, arcane though it may seem to us.  There is benefit to all of humankind, and this one little item is a good example:  One Hastings study found that crickets have little cups inside their "ears" that direct sound to their nearest ear, acting as a funnel of sound in a way.  The idea has been adapted to the newest generation of hearing aids.  The ability of a person who wore hearing aids in the past to differentiate between one sound and another was pretty dismal until the cricket study revealed this tiny mechanical adaptation that the insects have made.  Pretty amazing, huh?

I've begun to think that the science that is revealing amazing things about Hastings and its 1500 species resident there is not the only thing that the beautiful coastal hills and valleys can teach us.  Artists and writers can be equally influenced and productive when allowed to nourish their minds there, too.  With respect and attention to the needs of the land and studies being conducted there, perhaps the artistic community can be welcomed and, in turn, present a different interpretation of the natural world than pure data can.  Through interpretive photography, art and/or writing, Hastings might pique some interest in the local and state-wide community, and consequently - I would hope - more financial support.  Hmmm....I'll keep you posted.