Details:
You don't have to travel to the tropics to see organisms that glow at night! California has organisms that are bioluminescent and produce their own light to attract mates, get rid of predators, or to help them find a new place to live. There are also plenty of organisms in California that are UV fluorescent under a black light, the biological function is a bit nebulous, but their glowing beauty is not. This talk will give a wide survey of these glowing organisms, where to find them, how to see them, and how to document them. We will conclude the talk with a brief optional field walk to get an up-close look at some specimens and explore the Gardens. Class participants can also explore our wild mushroom collection on their own time armed with a list of species commonly found at the Gardens. The Gardens is home to more than 160 species of wild mushrooms during fall and winter! Registration: Audience size is limited! Registration must be completed in advance online or at the MCBG Store. The registration fee is $36.00 per participant or $26.00 for MCBG Members and covers your admission for the day, the talk, and the field walk. All fees are non-refundable unless the talk has been canceled or rescheduled by the Gardens. Proceeds support our nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization. REGISTER NOW: www.gardenbythesea.org/uv-organisms-talk About the Instructor: Damon Tighe grew up in Calaveras County, California and made his way to the Bay Area to attend Saint Mary's College in Moraga to study Biology and Chemistry. After stints as a teacher in Portland, Oregon, a filmmaker in Bozeman, Montana, he returned to the Bay Area to work on the Human Genome Project at the Joint Genome Institute and now works for Bio-Rad Laboratories helping teachers bring biotechnology and modern biology education into classrooms. He has fallen head over heels for fungi ever since running out of food on the John Muir Trail and wondering of the mushrooms "can I eat that?" He currently volunteers with the Fungal Diversity Survey helping to build a DNA sequence and voucher-based herbarium to understand California's diversity of mushrooms.
