Documenting Vegetation with Jaime Ratchford: Talk

Friday, July 24 | 5pm

Join us for a talk with the CA Native Plant Society: Tahoe and Sierra Valley Chapter. 

Documenting the Vegetation of the Northern Sierra Nevada: Advancing the Survey of California Vegetation

For over 30 years, California has pursued an ambitious effort to inventory and map its diverse vegetation. The California Department of Fish and Wildlife’s Vegetation Classification and Mapping Program (VegCAMP), partnering with the California Native Plant Society, develops and maintains standards for vegetation classification and mapping. Comprehensive vegetation surveys across the state allow us to understand the diversity and distribution of vegetation in California, to develop a vegetation classification, and produce fine-scale vegetation maps. Together, these components form a comprehensive inventory of California’s diverse vegetation types, published in the Manual of California Vegetation, and provide managers and planners tools for conservation.

Thanks to sustained commitment and partnerships, the inventory of California’s vegetation types is nearly complete and over 75% of the state has been mapped, including part of the northern Sierra Nevada. We will explore some of the vegetation data available and discuss some of the regions important and sensitive natural communities.

About the Speaker

Jaime Ratchford is a Senior Vegetation Ecologist with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife's Vegetation Classification and Mapping Program. She has worked as a vegetation ecologist in California for more than twelve years.