Graduate Group in Ecology

Mary Jade Farruggia

Aquatic Ecologist Mary Jade Farruggia Wins Graduate Student Prize

  • by Tiffany Dobbyn

Mary Jade Farruggia, a Ph.D. candidate with the Graduate Group in Ecology, is this year’s recipient of the Neal Van Alfen and James MacDonald Graduate Student Award for her outstanding academic performance and dedication to service and leadership.

This $7,500 award was established to honor the contributions of former dean of the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, Dean Van Alfen, and former executive associate, Dean MacDonald.

Some species of seabirds, including blue petrels, are particularly vulnerable to eating plastic debris at sea. Credit: J.J. Harrison/ UC Davis

Why Do Seabirds Eat Plastic? The Answer Stinks

  • by Kat Kerlin

Marine Plastic Debris Is An Olfactory Trap for Seabirds

If it smells like food, and looks like food, it must be food, right?

Not in the case of ocean-faring birds that are sometimes found with bellies full of plastic. But very little research examines why birds make the mistake of eating plastic in the first place.

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