The most basic rules of the world - the ones we all live by - are ecological rules. These can't be simply studied from books or perceived fully in a classroom or laboratory setting. Whether one is a botanist, a biologist, or an earth scientist, it's imperative to go out on the mountainside, watch the rain fall over a valley, dig into the earth beneath a fallen tree, or wade a creek for cobbles with resources upstream. The best work in the natural disciplines starts with observations in nature. - Ken Norris (1924-1998) Natural Reserve System Founder

1999-2000 STUNT RESERVE ANNUAL REPORT

CONTENTS

Stunt Ranch Santa Monica Mountains Reserve
University of California
Los Angeles

California Sister on Mariposa Lily
Adelpha bredowii californica on Calochortus venustus 

by Lisa Pompelli

This flower and butterfly are commonly found in the Santa Monica Mountains and at Stunt Ranch.

UCLA Stunt Ranch Santa Monica Mountains Reserve University of California, Los Angeles Phone: (310) 206-3887 Fax: (310) 825-9433 Email: cfelixso@ucla.edu Web Site: http://nrs.ucop.edu/Reserves/stunt/html

Narrative Summary

With the UCLA Stunt Ranch Santa Monica Mountains Reserve commemorating its fifth anniversary, a quote on it’s office wall calendar says it all, “Success is a journey….not a destination.”  

Given that most journeys follow a pattern of ten steps forward, nine back, and so on, the important thing to note is that progress towards one’s goal or mission is being made.

As with all members of the UC Natural Reserve System, the Stunt Ranch Reserve’s larger mission is to contribute to the understanding and wise management of the Earth and its natural systems by supporting university-level teaching, research, and public service at protected natural areas throughout California. On a more local level, the reserve seeks to serve both the UCLA and the Santa Monica Mountains community of visitors, neighbors, landholders, K-12 and university students, researchers and educators as a key locale and focus for environmental education and research.

In addition to the numerous classes and research projects listed in the following sections, some of the landmark footsteps of the Stunt Ranch Reserve journey in the past year include:

- Design and planning of exhibits for the education/nature center: The reserve’s design consultant and directors have been working on the concept, design, and content of both permanent and moveable displays, some interactive, for the proposed education/nature center. The listings and description along with conceptual drawings can be found at the end of this annual report.

- Collection of Stunt family photos and artifacts: Ed Hall, who as a boy was a close friend and neighbor of Ethel and Harry Stunt (brother and sister – who along with other brothers and a cousin homesteaded the property in the late 1880s), has graciously continued to send the reserve various Stunt family photos and artifacts as he unearths them at his current family home in Montana. These items are safely stored in the reserve’s office on campus and will eventually be on display in the education/nature center. Among others, treasured items received by the reserve this year include: an engraved silver napkin ring from Ethel’s years in China as well as a fan with names inscribed in Chinese letters on the fan’s ribs, a standing wooden picture frame, an etched colored glass cup from 1903, a black fur hand-muffler and collar, a small bible inscribed by her beau and given to Ethel at Christmas 1904.

- Establishment of the oral history program: A series of interviews with people who knew the Stunt family and/or were familiar with the history of the Cold Creek watershed was successfully launched during the 1999-2000 academic year. Stunt Ranch neighbors, John Gensley and his daughter Robin Mitchell, as well as Maximillian Sikinger and his wife Carla were the first people interviewed. More meetings in small groupings are planned over the next year. The information gathered will be an integral part of the reserve’s nature center exhibit on the Stunt family and the history of the Cold Creek watershed.

- Formation of the Cold Creek Round Table: At regular intervals in the past year, the reserve joined with representatives from the Mountains Restoration Trust, National and State Park Services, Resource Conservation District of the Santa Monica Mountains, Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy, and L.A. County Supervisor Yaroslavsky’s office to form the Cold Creek Round Table. This is an informal coalition of agencies who share an interest in the protection and monitoring of the Cold Creek watershed. Numerous issues have been identified, roles explored, and cooperative research and educational projects initiated. One of these is a white paper written by Dr. Phil Rundel, reserve faculty director, titled, “ The Cold Creek Watershed of the Santa Monica Mountains as a Regionally Significant but Fragile Natural Ecosystem.”

- Website posting of K-12 Teaching Guides: The Cold Creek Docents, an affiliate of the Mountains Restoration Trust, provided materials for K-12 teaching guides now posted on the reserve’s website with stylish format and illustrative material. This project was coordinated and produced by Tim Bradley and Marjorie Lynn Patrick of the Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, UC Irvine, and was funded through a grant to the Natural Reserve System from Chevron. See http://nrs.ucop.edu/Reserves/stunt.html.

- Hosting of  events: For the second year in a row the Department of Organismic Biology, Ecology, and Evolution held its annual gathering at Stunt Ranch. This year as last, El Tapitio – the best taqueria in the west San Fernando Valley, catered the party. An Afro-Cuban group of musicians and dancers from the UCLA School of Ethnomusicology performed to everyone’s delight.  The UCLA Alumni Association in co-sponsorship with the reserve held a “Bruin Day in the Country” at Stunt Ranch. In addition to a delicious box lunch, guests were treated to a series of educational and entertaining presentations by reserve faculty and researchers. This event was such a success that another was held in October 2000. The Society of Environmental Journalists also visited Stunt Ranch on one of the scheduled field trips during their annual conference held this year at UCLA. At all of these memorable events, the Cold Creek Docents graciously led hikes and activities for kids of all ages.

- Joint sponsorship with the UCLA Science Project of a biology field course for high school teachers and students: Funded through a UC Natural Reserve System grant from the UCOP School/University Partnerships program, five high school teachers and seven high school students participated in the design and execution of independent field projects. This course was taught both on campus and at the reserve under the direction of Dr. John Lambrinos, Department of Organismic Biology, Ecology, and Evolution, and Adelina Alegria, Graduate School of Education and Information Services.  A specific goal was to develop skills and strategies for conducting inquiry-based field and classroom projects focused on the ecology of southern California and the conservation issues relevant to it. The heart of the course was the development of “take away” field projects and activities using Stunt Ranch as a model system. Teachers and students came from secondary schools in the UCLA Collaborative Outreach Programs.

- Participation in annual Biology Research Symposium: The symposium, comprised of 22 poster presentations and 44 researchers provided a setting for undergraduates, graduate students, faculty, and postdoctoral fellows to present the research that was conducted over the past year and to provide a unique opportunity for them to become acquainted with each other and with the ongoing research work of the department. In addition, field sites affiliated with the department, such as the Stunt Ranch Reserve, were showcased. The reserve directors introduced Stunt Ranch to those who had not yet visited there and encouraged those who had to return. Posters depicting research and educational activities at Stunt Ranch were displayed and reserve literature made available.

-Writing of a chapter in the Southern California Environmental Report Card 1999: Dr. Phil Rundel, reserve faculty director, wrote the chapter on Wildland Fire for the UCLA Institute of the Environment’s 1999 annual report card. He discussed the nature of chaparral fires and gave a history of fires particularly at the urban/wildland interface typical of the Santa Monica Mountains. He discussed fire behavior and fire management policies as well providing an assessment and grade. Rundel felt that previous efforts in wildland fire management deserved a “D” and that in recent years the overall program of wildland fire management improved markedly, now earning a rating of “B”.

- Participation in Earthday at UCLA 2000: The reserve joined university and community environmental groups at a day-long event on Bruin Walk (on the UCLA campus) whose purpose was to focus attention on the environment. Some booths offered organically grown food and beverages, others devised games out of recycled materials, others offered literature/bumper stickers publicizing environmental causes, and still others recruited visitors to join conservation organizations and participate in upcoming events. The reserve’s booth was primarily informational in nature and encouraged faculty and student use of Stunt Ranch for research projects and class outings.

- Coordination of Eco-Heroes program at reserve: Twice, under the leadership of the Eco-Heroes project associated with the UCLA School of Public Policy, high school students came to Stunt Ranch to participate in conservation projects and educational programs. On one visit with the help and guidance of the Cold Creek docents, students learned about, identified, and cut down a variety of invasive/exotic species. On another, they learned about trail maintenance – why it is important and how it is done - and they cleared a connector trail from the educational zone of the reserve to the Stunt High Trail. After each project, the docents demonstrated and taught students to make “friendship” bracelets out of raffia (straw) and colored beads. For many students, this was a first time experience at the urban/wildland interface. While they worked hard, they also had a good time – singing and kidding with each other. The reserve thanks Linda Palmer and the Santa Monica Mountains Trail Council for the use of its equipment on both of these occasions.

- Attendance at the UC Natural Reserve System management meeting: Phil Rundel, reserve faculty director, and Lisa Pompelli, reserve design consultant attended the annual meeting held last year at the Bodega Marine Reserve. The meeting is held at a different reserve each year. It provides a much needed opportunity for the NRS family of reserve managers, faculty advisors, and NRS directors and staff to gather and share with each other scientific as well as administrative updates. Issues are addressed that impact individual reserves and the system as a whole. While topics vary from year to year depending on the needs/requests of the attendees, sessions generally include: an introduction of the facilities and research/education activities at the hosting reserve, NRS systemwide updates (the directors report, and special projects updates), select presentations and panel discussions, field trips of the host reserve, individual reserve reports, and a fair amount of fun and socializing.

- Formation of Stunt Ranch Reserve Faculty Advisory Committee: the reserve directors are pleased to now have assistance from a dedicated group of faculty who share their vision and provide leadership from a variety of perspectives. The newly formed faculty advisory committee include: Philip W. Rundel, Chair: Professor of Biology, Richard F. Ambrose: Associate Professor in the UCLA School of Public Health’s Department of Environmental Health Sciences, Jeanne Arnold: Professor of Anthropology, Art Huffman: Senior Lecturer of physics and astronomy, Martin Cody: Professor of Biology, and Hartmut Walter: Professor of Geography.

- Publication of news items on the Stunt Ranch Reserve: Articles written by or about the reserve appeared in the: Daily Bruin  (Animal Farm), UCLA Today (Ranch tales, faces emerge from the past), Alumni News – renamed UCLAlumni Magazine (See an amazing Stunt [and] Be an outdoor Bruin).

- Updating of the reserve development plan: The reserve directors have updated the reserve’s development plan. The principal authors of the plan are Phil Rundel, faculty director, and Carol Felixson, director of education and community outreach. It is dedicated to Mildred E. Mathias, UCLA professor botany who was one of the founders of the Natural Reserve System. The report addresses: the need for environmental research and teaching sites, a description of the site and its natural features the Stunt Ranch history, the reserve’s teaching/research/outreach significance, the educational and research opportunities, K-12 educational programs, resource management issues, media/community relations, the reserve’s website, and plans for reconstruction of the facilities that were completely destroyed in the 1993 Malibu fire. (See the attached three-page summary)

- Reserve use: In the 1999-2000 academic year, reserve use totaled 4,800 user days. This reflects the number of times a user came to the reserve. Some came only once; others made two or more visits. Broad categories of use include: students, faculty and staff from UCLA and other University of California or Cal State universities, K-12 students and instructors, and a wide variety of other users.

The reserve is proud of the progress it has made since its establishment five years ago, and which can best be demonstrated by the following comments:

It is obvious that academic teaching and research activities at almost every conceivable level are being undertaken at Stunt Ranch. It is one of the few nature sites in the Los Angeles area that is convenient to a very large population of university and pre-college students. The Institute of the Environment (IoE) research projects includes important studies of watersheds feeding Santa Monica Bay, and the sources of runoff and sediments for the coastal environment. The IoE’s educational activities include class outings to the site as part of our undergraduate curriculum, as well as use of the reserve grounds as a destination for training K-12 teachers under an NSF project led by the IoE.
– Richard P. Turco, 
Professor and Director, 
Institute of the Environment
– UCLA

The department is in the process of building strength in the study of biodiversity, and its generation and preservation. The Santa Monica Mountains and Stunt Ranch, situated on the western edge of the Los Angeles basin, are a living laboratory for examining the impact of disturbance on ecosystem processes at the interface between urban, agricultural, and wilderness areas. It is our intention to involve undergraduates in local field projects that have conservation implications
– Blaire Van Valkenburgh, 
Professor and Chair, 
Department of Organismic Biology, Ecology, and Evolution 
 – UCLA

As a faculty member in the School of Public Health and Director of the Environmental Science and Engineering Program, I am especially cognizant of the research and teaching value of Stunt Ranch. My colleagues and I have taken advantage of the relatively pristine state of Stunt Ranch to provide a critical reference for environmental conditions in the Santa Monica Mountains and elsewhere in southern California. In the area of environmental science, it is essential to have good reference areas for study, and this is particularly important near such a highly urbanized area as Los Angeles. 
 – Richard F. Ambrose,
Associate Professor, School of Public Health and Director,  
Environmental Science and Engineering Program 
– UCLA

California State Parks (CSP) and UCLA recognize the need for teamwork. Cooperation and sharing resources are essential for the success of each organization. CSP is interested in exploring university training programs for state park staff on topics about the flora, fauna, natural history, and other aspects of the mountains. CSP and the UCLA Stunt Ranch Reserve share a common goal of providing environmental education to the residents of Los Angeles, particularly inner city students.
 – Daniel Preece
California State Parks

UCLA Stunt Ranch Reserve is the ideal teaching/learning site, a living laboratory and outdoor classroom where students of all ages can observe and learn science directly. Much research as been conducted recently which confirms that experiential education, such as provided at the Reserve, is superior in producing students who learn more efficiently and productively. The UCLA Stunt Ranch Reserve could well become an extremely important base for chaparral related research and instruction in southern California.
 – Nancy Helsley, Director
Cold Creek Docents

The Cold Creek Watershed supports a great diversity of species, many of which are little understood. Increasing the research capability to better understand the Mediterranean ecosystem is a function the Mountains Restoration Trust supports. As the contiguous neighbor of the UCLA Stunt Ranch Reserve, we look forward to a continued cooperative partnership as stakeholders in the Cold Creek Watershed and in the greater ecosystem of the Santa Monica Mountains.  
– Stephen A. Harris, President
Mountains Restoration Trust

Both as director of the UCLA Ocean Discovery Center and as a lecturer for the UCLA Institute of the Environment, the students that I brought to the UCLA Stunt Ranch Reserve consistently found the experience to be educationally valuable whether they were K-12 students or undergraduates. Having worked with inner city school children and teachers at both UCLA and the California Science Center, I know how valuable and important the kinds of experiences that can be gained at a place like Stunt Ranch are. Most of these children rarely get the chance to leave their urbanized neighborhoods.
  – Charles D. Kopczak, Ph.D.,
Curator – Ecology Programs
California Science Center

As the next year unfolds, the faculty director, advisory committee members, and staff are working diligently on the reserve’s journey towards the realization of its goals.  And like their favorite saying goes, “…of all the paths you take in life, make sure a few of them are dirt.”

back to table of contents

back to table of contents

1999-2000 Research at Stunt
(lists Principal Investigator Name, Affiliation, Research Title,
Project Duration, and Funding Source)

Principal Investigators: 

Other Investigators:

back to table of contents