Sorry to have been gone so long. We are getting back on track! The Kern Chapter of the CNPS will be having a meeting tomorrow, Tuesday April 24th, from 6:00 – 9:00 p.m. We have a different meeting location this month. We will meet at Ching Yen Chinese Restaurant, 1207 Columbus St. (661-871-5292). Dinner before the meeting will start at 6:00 p.m., and CNPS members will receive $5.00 discount toward their dinner. Visitors may sign up for membership at the meeting if they wish. The meeting as usual, is free and open to the public. However, Reservations for dinner are necessary, so please email Dorie so we can let the restaurant know, or if you need any additional information.

This month, we are really pleased to be able to have Mr. Dan Gluesenkamp coming from Sacramento, to be our speaker. Dan is currently the Executive Director of the Calflora Database, the leading source of California wild plant information. He helps them to develop innovative new mapping, data analysis, and management planning tools. This is a very special opportunity to listen and talk with someone who has diverse interests and skills for protection our native species.

Calflora is a non-profit organization dedicated to providing information on wild California plants for conservation, education, and appreciation. Their digital library started out as a database available only on floppy disk. Now, through its web presence, Calflora’s services are used by 250,000 users a year, and it is an important source of wild plant information for plant locations, species information, photos, and other resources.

In addition, Dan is also a founder and past president of the California Invasive Plant Council, and co-founder of the Bay Area Early Detection Network. In 2006, Calflora began working with the Bay Area Early Detection Network (BAEDN) in creating tools to help conservation professionals report and manage harmful invasive plants. Through this collaboration, and with additional support, including the CNPS, we have an improved ability to map, manage, and understand our changing flora.

Prior to joining Calflora, Dan worked for Audubon Canyon Ranch, where he lead habitat protection and restoration work across 30 properties and conducted research on invasive turkey impacts and nitrogen deposition impacts on vernal pools. He earned his Ph.D. in 2001 with “The ecology of native and introduced thistles.” In 2009, Dan discovered a Franciscan manzanita plant growing on a traffic island at the Golden Gate Bridge. This plant was an amazing find, as the plant was believed to be extinct!

Dan will only be in Kern County for two presentations:

On Tuesday night, Dan will speak to us on the topic of “Calflora’s Expanding Roll in California Native Plant Conservation.” This talk will provide an overview of Calflora tools for both conservation professionals and plant lovers. Android and iPhone mapping apps, geo-tagged photo submission tools, and tools for planning and tracking conservation action help to make conservationists more effective. Simple and beautiful tools for contributing, viewing, and sharing illustrated checklists make it easy for aficionados, and land managers alike, to explore and chronicle our State’s parks and preserves. In addition, Dan will discuss upcoming projects, how these tools and information can be applied to solving growing conservation challenges, and what it will mean when we know where all California’s plants can be found.

Dan’s second presentation is will take place this Wednesday, April 25th, 9:00am – 1:00 pm at the Stallion Springs Community Center, in Tehachapi, CA. This workshop is a training session, primarily for professionals, focusing in using Calflora tools to map plants. Non-professionals may attend, based on space availability. It is being organized by Julia Barraclough of Tehachapi Resource Conservation District and interested people should contact her at sunwater72@earthlink.net. It is beneficial, but not required, for you to bring a smart phone of some sort, to have some hands-on practice.