Friday. March 21, 2025, 7:00 to 8:30 pm – “The Night Shift: Moths as Nocturnal Pollinators” Kaitlin Hasse, Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation, Southwest Pollinator Conservation Specialist
The Night Shift: Moths as Nocturnal Pollinators - YouTube
The work of pollination is never over—even after dark! When our day-active (diurnal) pollinators turn in for the evening, nocturnal pollinators such as moths, bats, beetles, and even some species of bees take on the night shift to feast on nectar. We are just beginning to understand the importance of these nocturnal flower visitors for pollination of wild and managed plants.
As the Southwest Pollinator Conservation Specialist, Kaitlin works to create climate-resilient, connected pollinator habitat in Santa Fe and Albuquerque. She collaborates with and educates public and private urban land managers in New Mexico and the desert Southwest on pollinator-friendly practices for landscaping, gardening, and open space restoration.
Friday, February 21, 2025, 7:00 to 8:30 pm – “Native Landscaping Is Not a Crime” Val Weston and J Courtney Brandon, Silver City Homeowners and GNPS Members
Val and J bought one of Silver City’s fixer-upper houses in 2021. Alongside a complete home renovation, they also planned to rehabilitate the yard with native plants. They will discuss the challenges they faced and how they navigated the charges against them when they were cited under Silver City’s nuisance ordinance for their initial efforts in the yard rehabilitation process.
Val Weston and J. Brandon are native plant enthusiasts who moved to Silver City for the outdoor, art, and motorcycling opportunities. They were delighted to also find an active and supportive native plant community in Silver City as they took on their yard rehabilitation project.
Friday, January 17, 2025, 7:00 to 8:30 pm – “NMDOT Vegetation Management and our Gila Highways: Working on a plan to improve what’s being done” Bill Hutchinson, NMDOT Roadside and Community Design Manager Andrew Alderete, NMDOT Integrated Vegetation Management (IVM)
The New Mexico Department of Transportation (NMDOT) maintains approximately 25,000 miles of roadsides. While safety is always a primary driver, NMDOT is also responsible for good environmental stewardship within its rights of way. To that end, it isimplementing an Integrated Vegetation Management (IVM) program.Bill and Andrew will explain what the IVM Program is and what is being done to improve vegetation management. They will then introduce the Gila Vegetation Management Plan.
Friday, November 15, 2024, 7:00 pm – “Observations from the Field” Presentation by Donna Stevens and Jim McGrath.
Donna Stevens at Aldo Leopold Wilderness boundary
Although flowering plants may be dormant for the winter, we can revisit the glory of the past summer in photos and stories. Donna Stevens and Jim McGrath, seasonal botanists with the Gila National Forest, will present a program about their 2024 fieldwork and current projects. Topics will include invasive plant status and removal strategies, invasive plant problems in the wilderness, inventory and monitoring of the Gila’s rare plant populations, and the history and current status of the Cherry Creek restoration project. The program will be live at Harlan Hall, Room 111, on the WNMU Campus. You can also attend via Zoom, a link to be announced ten days prior.