Catastrophe on the horizon

Inspiration can arise in the most unlikely times and locations. For Kristina Schierenbeck, professor of biology at Chico State, the seed for her new book, Phylogeography of California: An Introduction, got planted nearly 12 years ago while she was in, of all places, France.

In 2003, Schierenbeck (pronounced SHEER-en-beck) spent time with a colleague at the University of Rennes, professor Lily Ainouche, who was interested in the biodiversity of California as part of her broader research on invasive species. An idea sparked: Schierenbeck would write an overview explaining how various forms of plant and animal life came to—and evolved in—the Golden State.

The teaching load at Chico State prevented her from doing much work on the book for nearly a decade. When she took a sabbatical, though, she wrote intensively from spring through summer and submitted her manuscript to UC Press, which released the 368-page hardcover last year.

Phylogeography of California has received a positive response from experts in the field, including the scientist who pioneered phylogeography. John Avise—now a professor at UC Irvine but at the University of Georgia when he invented the term (referring to the spread of species)—praises Schierenbeck’s tome as “a real tour de force in the amount of information it contains.”

Avise told the CN&R that her work provides “a deep history” of California’s natural environment.

“The comprehensive nature of this treatment is really what impresses me about it,” he said. “It covers all the major organismal groups, both plants and animals, and integrates it with the geologic and climatic regimes of the state. So it was a real pleasure for me to see this book.”

Since Avise is one of Schierenbeck’s inspirations, his review was a pleasure for her.

Schierenbeck synthesized an array of research—some hers, much from others—to create her account of California’s living history. The gaze isn’t just retrospective, though; she hopes to impart a forward-thinking message as well.

“California is one of the 25 hotspots of biological diversity on the planet, which is something I think we should be very proud to steward,” she said in a recent phone interview. “Of course, California is also this incredibly beautiful place where people want to live, so with this beautiful biodiversity and this beautiful state we have the added problem of human-population expansion—and I am seriously concerned about climate change and how it will affect the species that really are very recent in evolutionary time.”

Last year set records for hot weather. If temperatures remain on an upward trajectory at a rate faster than lifeforms—particularly plants—can migrate, “we don’t know how different species will respond; we simply don’t have enough data,” Schierenbeck said.

“To me, it’s quite frightening,” she continued. “We stand to lose, depending on which group of organisms you’re talking about, 30 percent of our diversity within the next few decades.”

Of the 6,000 plant species in California, 4,800 are native and 1,800 are only found here. Eighteen-hundred is also the approximate number threatened with extinction by climate change, which will have a ripple effect through the ecosystem already suffering impacts.

“We can make similar predictions about other organisms,” she said, citing amphibians and fish as just two examples.

Schierenbeck sees a clear delineation between the historical record and current events.

“I think what people really overlook or don’t understand about evolution so much is the kind of changes that I’m talking about [in the book] occur over millions and millions of years,” she said, “and yet the kind of changes we’re talking about today [relating to climate change] occur over decades. We are currently, in the world, in a catastrophic extinction … truly the greatest extinction in the history of our planet, caused by one species.

“People are not as concerned as they should be.”

Raising awareness became a goal for Schierenbeck in writing the book. She includes recommendations for conservation; however, she says, “mostly I want people to appreciate the diversity we have here and understand it needs protecting.”

Even though climate change is happening rapidly—perhaps too rapidly to offset all of the damage—she firmly believes any action trumps inaction.

Schierenbeck practices what she teaches at her Chico home in the Avenues. The quarter-acre property has no lawn; instead, she has wide planter strips of native plants, 15 fruit trees and 12 raised beds for fruits and vegetables.

“Whether you have a yard the size of a postage stamp or a hundred acres, if you’re not growing food, grow native plants,” she said.

Her landscaping includes purple needle grass, penstemons, milkweed, poppies, California lilacs and manzanitas. She made some of these choices to support pollinating insects, which is a prime concern in an agricultural area such as Butte County. Her household also composts.

“‘Stop putting your head in the sand—care about other species’ I guess is my message,” she said. “I think people don’t feel climate change personally enough; I don’t think it’s that they don’t care, they just don’t feel it personally enough, and I don’t know what we can do to change that.

“Maybe it won’t change until the fluctuations in the weather patterns are so extreme and so devastating that people can’t ignore it any further.”