Student Chapter members past and present with Doug Johnson at the 2011 Symposium

The annual Cal-IPC symposium is upon us.  It’s time to start analyzing your data and forming conclusions so that you can share your results with your peers in Sonoma. Abstracts are due by June 15th! Whether it’s a poster, a talk, or you just want to attend; let’s have a strong student presence at this year’s symposium to highlight the next generation of weed managers.

We will be coordinating more student activities as we get closer to the event, but if you have any questions, don’t hesitate to contact us. More information on the symposium is below.

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Cal-IPC Symposium

October 11-13, 2012

Wine Country Double Tree, Rohnert Park

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“Bay to Basin:  Coordinating Response to Invasive Plants across California”

Join 300 weed workers in Sonoma County for our 21st Annual Symposium! The symposium features a mix of presentations covering research and management of invasive plants. Plenary sessions will address the challenges of working across landscapes, across taxa, and across time. Registration will open in May. http://www.cal-ipc.org/symposia/index.php

“The Cal-IPC conference is both a crash course in cutting edge management and inspirational.” – 2011 attendee

Activities include:

* Paper and poster sessions
* Discussion groups
* Saturday field trips
* Sponsor displays
* Banquet
* Photo contest

We are applying for continuing education units from the California Department of  Pesticide Regulation.
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All applications must be received by April 1, 2012.

CWSS Scholarships:  Academic scholarships up to $2000 are available for undergraduate and graduate students.  Undergraduate and graduate student applications will be evaluated separately.  The exact amount and number of scholarships awarded may vary depending on the number of applicants and availability of funds.  Applicants will be evaluated based academic performance, activities and service, and demonstration of interest in weed or invasive plant management.

CWSS Internships:  The internship is an award of $3000 for an 8-week full-time internship with a University of California farm advisor or other off-campus research personnel with responsibilities in weed or invasive plant management.  The internship supervisor will disperse the $3000 and may have additional funding to further support the student.

Weed and invasive plant management specialists are present throughout California.  See page 3 of this document for a list of specialists participating in this program.  Other potential locations and specialists may be available. Contact Tom Lanini (wtlanini@ucdavis.edu) for more details on locations and expected work duties for this internship.  Students must select the potential supervisor for their internship prior to applying.

Required materials for Scholarship or Internship applications (due April 1, 2012):

1)      Student’s address, phone number, email address, current university/college, academic major, and expected graduation date.
2)      Resume stating current GPA; work experience; university/community activities and honors; and a list of relevant courses taken.  (Note: transcripts may be requested)
3)      A statement (500 words max) of academic and career goals that reflects the student’s interest in weed or invasive plant management.
4)      One letter of support from the student’s academic advisor.
5)      For internship only:  letter of verification from the Univ. of Calf. Personnel selected.

CWSS Undergraduate Research Awards:  The undergraduate research award is a grant up to $2000 for a research project related to weed or invasive plant management.  Students will need a faculty sponsor from their university for the project; however, the research project may be conducted under the primary supervision of other industry, USDA or off-campus university professionals.  Students should meet with the desired supervisor to design the research project and create the research budget.  The award may be used to defray the cost of research supplies, travel, as stipend to support the student’s time conducting the project, or any combination of these items.  The monetary award will be administered by the project supervisor.  Upon completion of the project, the student will present the research as a poster at the annual CWSS conference (held annually in January).

Required materials for Undergraduate Research Award applications:

1)      Student’s address, phone number, email address, current university/college, academic major, and expected graduation date.
2)      Resume stating current GPA; work experience; university/community activities and honors; and a list of relevant courses taken.  (Note: transcripts may be requested)
3)      A 2-3 page research proposal written by the student including title, objective, general experimental approach, discussion of significance of project to weed science, references, and budget.
4)      A letter of support from the faculty sponsor.  Also include a letter of support from the supervisor of the research project if different from the faculty sponsor.

All required materials should be mailed or emailed as a single packet to:

Oleg Daugovish
UCCE-Ventura
669 County Square Drive #100, Ventura, CA
odaugovish@ucdavis.edu

Students receiving the awards will be notified by April 15, 2012.

Any questions regarding the application procedure for these awards should be directed to Oleg Daugovish: odaugovish@ucdavis.edu

NPS Botanist Mitzi Harding explains the intricacies of the park flora

Since the 2011 Cal IPC symposium, the Cal IPC Student Chapter has been working to garner more participation from students studying invasive plants throughout California. In order to do so, we have been working hard to maintain relations with local Weed Management Areas and other professionals working on the control of invasive species. Additionally, members have been traveling to other universities, conferences, and local outreach events to promote the Student Chapter. Last April, the student chapter traveled to Catalina Island to contribute to and learn about weed removal efforts from the Catalina Habitat Improvement Restoration Program (CHIRP). Because of the success of this trip, the Student Chapter worked to plan and carry out additional field trips.

In March 2012, twelve members of the Student Chapter traveled to Joshua Tree National Park (JOTR) for an educational weekend led by NPS invasive plant ecologist Katie Kain and botanist Mitzi Hardin. This marked one of the best attended events organized by the Student Chapter, complete with students from multiple universities across multiple disciplines. In addition to students, our group was joined by Student Chapter allies Tony Summers, Weed Ecologist at CHIRP, and post-doctorate scholar, and former SC chair, Sara Jo Dickens from the University of California, Berkeley. This experience integrated members of the National Park Service and professionals in the field with current and future graduate students. This large and diverse group of volunteers allowed for different perspectives on invasive species management and great discussions throughout the weekend.

In an attempt to show off both the native and invasive flora of JOTR, our guides arranged for us to explore a drainage on the southern edge of the park that is the home to a waif population of Phoenix dactylifera, the date palm. We were led through a very rocky wash to a stand that has grown unencumbered for many years due to its location in a low traffic area of the park. Throughout this excursion, our hosts educated us on the current weed removal efforts, the native flora (including the Jepson Manual II nomenclature), and the history of the park. Katie also showed off her new GPS device that is going to be a key tool in mapping the spread of Pennisetum setaceum, a species of increasing concern within the park, in hard to reach canyons along the boundary of the park.

Upon arrival at the site, Katie and Mitzi led a discussion about whether or not to the park should remove the invasive date palms. Some believed that the date palms were providing habitat for native animals, and since they have not expanded past this one population they should remain intact. Others firmly believed that the date palms are an invasive species and should be removed before they become a bigger problem. The only consensus the group came to was that the removal of the date palms would be incredibly difficult given their size and the remote area in which they were located.

The Date Palm oasis at the end of the drainage

Along the hike, we were educated on the day-to-day and long term management of the invasive forb, Brassica tournefortii. To help keep the populations of Brassica down, JOTR employees host many volunteer groups for weekend weedpulling days, which minimizes the use of herbicides within the park. This being one of our goals of the weekend, we spread out and attempted to extirpate the exotic from the area upon leaving the wash. Because it has been a dry year for southern California, native and invasive plant populations have had limited success, which has produced a manageable population of Brassica. Nevertheless, our group managed to pull two huge trash bags of Brassica within a half hour as the sun set behind the mountains.

Overall, the trip to Joshua Tree National Park was a success. It was great to have such a large group representing the Student Chapter in JOTR, since one of our main objectives is to get more students involved with Cal-IPC and more of them educated on the opportunities that exist within invasive plant management. We are going to continue with our weed removal weekends with a second trip to Catalina Island this April. We are looking forward to learning more about the different methods of invasive species removal implemented by CHIRP, and what they are doing to protect the native and endemic flora.

BOTANIST

POSITION:

Sapphos Environmental, Inc., an environmental consulting firm in Pasadena, California, seeks a full-time botanist with experience and familiarity with Southern California plant species, in particular, special-status species. The botanist will design and implement biological studies in compliance with federal, state, and local regulations and ordinances and must be able to conduct field surveys. Duties include managing multiple projects, including coordination and scheduling of deliverables and management of project budgets; preparation of technical reports; and environmental compliance documentation. Additional responsibilities include preparation of responses to Requests for Proposals (RFPs) and Requests for Qualifications (RFQs). Salary is commensurate with the applicant’s level of education and experience. A full range of benefits including medical, vision, and dental care; health club membership; paid vacation; sick leave; and eleven paid holidays per year are provided.

QUALIFICATIONS:

• MA/MS degree, or BA/BS with 3+years of relevant experience
• Knowledge of Southern California plants and associated plant communities
• Knowledge of rare/endangered/threatened species/issues as they relate to Southern California
• Knowledge of the federal and California Endangered Species Acts
• Knowledge of the California Environmental Quality Act is desirable
• Excellent verbal and written communication are skills required
• Skills in using personal computers with knowledge of MS Office
• California Department of Fish and Game Collecting Permit is a plus
• Environmental consulting experience is required

 OTHER SKILLS:

The candidate must be detail-oriented; have a professional demeanor and strong organizational and research skills; and possess the ability to manage priorities, meet deadlines, and multitask in a fast-paced environment. The candidate must be able to work in a team environment with a variety of project members and manage tasks as delegated by project lead. The candidate must possess strong communication skills, the ability to work closely with clients, and be able to supervise the work of others.

http://www.sapphosenvironmental.com/Employment/current_openings.aspx

The Calweedmapper website displays data on all 200 invasive plant species from Cal-IPC’s statewide Inventory.  These data combine two sources: interviews with invasive plant experts and occurrence information from Calflora and the Consortia of California Herbaria (CCH). The maps show abundance, spread and management status for each species, displayed by USGS quadrangle.

Users can generate reports in pdf format based on a selected region or species. The Regional Management Opportunity Report provides a summary table of information for all plants that present opportunities for management in the selected region. The Regional Species Report provides a map that illustrates the plant’s spatial distribution in the region. These reports are designed to help land managers prioritize and fund their work. Cal-IPC is working with several regions to develop strategic management plans using the information from CalWeedMapper. Contact us at mapping@cal-ipc.org for more information.

This dynamic tool allows users to comment on and update abundance, spread and management information.  Also, any new occurrence data submitted to either Calflora or CCH will update the data in CalWeedMapper.  As a result, the maps will show current information.

To show where a given plant is most likely to spread, CalWeedMapper also displays suitable range based on climate. Computer models were used to generate suitable range for some plant species based on where they currently grow. The maps show the areas that contain suitable range based on climate conditions in 2010 and 2050. These maps can help land managers with climate adaptation planning and preparing for the movement of new invasive plants into their region.

Take a minute and go check out the site and explore the weeds in your area.