The Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at UCSC takes a concept-driven and integrative approach to understanding the biology of organisms across scales, taxa and environments.  Our core strength comes from purposeful integration across diverse biological and conceptual axes: i) ecology, evolution, and organismal biology, ii) basic and applied science, iii) terrestrial, freshwater and marine systems, iv) plants and animals, and v) field, lab and theory. Our research and teaching are firmly grounded in the natural history of organisms and benefit from the extraordinary diversity of species and habitats that surround the campus of the University of California Santa Cruz.