Greg de Nevers is a botanist and naturalist with years of experience observing nature and sharing it with others through writing and teaching. Currently, he is a high school science teacher. Deborah Stanger Edelman co-founded the California Naturalist Program and has over 20 years experience developing resource conservation and education programs for organizations including the Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy, the Mendocino County Resource Conservation District and the University of California Cooperative Extension. She has an M.S. in Ecology from the University of California at Davis. Adina Merenlender is a Cooperative Extension Specialist at University of California, Berkeley and is an internationally recognized conservation biologist working on environmental problem-solving at the landscape-scale. She has published over 75 scientific research articles focused on relationships between land use and biodiversity and is the Director of the UC California Naturalist program. More information at http://ucanr.org/sites/merenlender

• Acknowledgements Preface Chapter 1: Introduction to California Natural History and the World of Naturalists California's Biodiversity The Biodiversity Crisis A Brief History of Natural History and Naturalists Traditional Ecological Knowledge Why Be A Naturalist? Field Notebook: An Essential Record for Every Naturalist Field notebook Field journal General journaling practices The Language of Naturalists Linneaus's classification system Geographic range Getting Out and About Explore! Chapter 2: Geology, Climate, and Soils Earth's Formation and Plate Tectonics Shaping California Rocks in California California's Climate Diversity of California Microclimates Soil Structure and Nutrients Nutrient Cycling Decomposition Mycorrhizal Relationships Mining in California Explore! Chapter 3: Water Scaling Water: From Molecules to Our Environment The Water Cycle Stream Processes Biological Inputs Chemical Inputs Physical Inputs The Path of a River Estuaries Intertidal zone Wetlands California's Lakes California's Freshwater Fish Rivers Today California Water Management and Law Challenges for the Future: Population Growth and Climate Change Explore! Chapter 4: Plants Lifestyles of Rich and Famous Plants Parts of a Plant Pollination Seed Dispersal Plant Communities of California Plants and People Native American Plant Uses California's Plant Communities and Climate Change Explore! Chapter 5: Forest, Woodland, Range Resources and Management History of California Forests and Their Management Forest Dynamics California Forests and Wildfire Fragmentation of Forests Carbon Sequestration Rangelands and Livestock Grazing Management Conservation Biology Explore! Chapter 6: Animals Evolutionary Groups Invertebrates Vertebrates Fishes Amphibians Dinosaurs Birds Lizards and Snakes Mammals Human Activity and Domestic and Introduced Animals Explore! Chapter 7: Energy and Global Environmental Challenges Forms and Sources of Energy Forms of Energy Sources of Energy The Energetic Basis of Life Energy Use by People Global Environmental Challenges Climate Change Ozone Depletion Dead Zones, Fertilizers and Manure Management Agricultural Issues Agriculture and Carbon Sequestration Air Quality Solid Waste Population Explore! Chapter 8: Interpretation, Communication, and Citizen Science Interpretation: Why, what and how The Interpretive Talk A Naturalist Walk Communication Communication in the Community Collaborative Conservation Citizen Science Explore! Glossary