Restoring Resilient Ecosystems
Our mission is to conserve native species and habitats through
restoration, research and education. Our vision is a world where all people and wildlands are healthy and interact positively, biological diversity flourishes, and environmental challenges are met with a social commitment to solving problems with scientific principles.
And we need you to support conservation. To join us in our work,
"Thousands of tired, nerve-shaken, over-civilized people are beginning to find out that going to the mountains is going home; that wildness is a necessity." - John Muir, 1838-1914
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Surveying Rare Plants Today for Conservation and Restoration Tomorrow |
By Devan Pensinger, Erin Fitz, and Wynter Nardi, IAE 2021 Idaho Rare Plant Crew
Those of us on the Institute for Applied Ecology’s Idaho Rare Plant Crew just wrapped up a fun and exciting field season. Courtesy of funding from the Bureau of Land Management, we have been surveying populations of rare plants across southern Idaho. The data we collected will be used by local Bureau of Land Management offices and the US Fish and Wildlife Service to make future management decisions surrounding these rare plants. Read More
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Oregon's Blue Carbon: Coastal Wetland Loss and Restoration |
Guest Blog by conservationist Andy Kerr, July 2021
This is the second of three Public Lands Blog posts that focus on Oregon’s coast, and features the work of Laura Brophy, Director of the Estuary Technical Group.
Before the European invasion, tidal wetlands of all kinds covered 0.06 percent of Oregon’s total area; today they cover just 0.03 percent. Historically, tidal wetlands in Oregon covered a grand total of 38,052 acres (~59 square miles), and today they cover just 17,525 acres (~27 square miles), with 20,527 acres (~32 square miles) having been lost. Read More on Andy Kerr's website
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Announcements & Brief Updates |
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Staff Spotlight:
Morgan Franke
Morgan is the Plant Materials Coordinator for IAE’s Plant Materials Program, where she manages and coordinates seed collection and plant materials related projects to support the conservation, restoration, and recovery of rare plants and habitats throughout Oregon and beyond. She is excited and motivated by being a part of the process of bridging the gap between the restoration of critical habitats with the need for ecologically and genetically appropriate native seed.
Morgan received a B.S in Biology from Sweet Briar College and a M.Sc. from Virginia Tech. Her master’s thesis focused on invasive plant species impacts on reforestation of surface coal mine sites to inform better management and restoration practices. Prior to joining IAE, she was the native plant project director for a non-profit in Appalachia, responsible for seed collections, propagation, and coordinating partnerships with government, academic, and other non-profit organizations to further habitat restoration in the region. Throughout her career, Morgan has worked for multiple academic institutions, field stations, and non-profits leading and participating in ecological research, conservation, and habitat restoration projects in the US and the Mariana Islands.
Outside of work, you can find Morgan spending time with her two pups and husband. She is excited to be in Oregon and explore the area through her favorite activities: hiking and foraging, paddling on any body of water she can find, and starting more crafting projects than she has finished.
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Join IAE Southwest on Nat'l Bee Day!
Pollinator Workshop
Saturday August 21, 9:30 - noon
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If you are in New Mexico, don't miss this special workshop! Dr. Olivia Messinger Carril, nationally renowned bee biologist and author of Bees in Your Backyard, will be providing a hands-on Bee Identification and Pollinator Workshop on National Bee Day, August 21, 2021. The workshop setting is the beautiful Salinas Pueblo and Missions National Monument, Quarai site, near Mountainair, New Mexico. Registration is very limited, please click for More information. |
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Join our tenth annual fundraiser!
The Invasive Species Cook-off
Sunday, September 12, 4-8 pm
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Our most popular in-person event is back! Join IAE friends, staff and supporters in celebrating native species by taking a bite out of some of those invaders to our native ecosystems. This year we will gather safely and outdoors at Common Fields Food Cart Pod & Tap Room in downtown Corvallis for some live music from Corvallis's own Space Neighbors, kid entertainment, and a food cart invasive species dish competition. We hope you can join us! More information
A note about COVID-19 Safety
We request that all guests wear masks unless eating at a table. We may update as new guidance is issued by the CDC, state or county.
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IAE seeks a 3-6 month volunteer to help create engaging media, including social media and video channels, to engage our community and excite them about restoring healthy and resilient natural areas. Knowledge of video editing, YouTube and Canva is preferred. The ideal person will have an interest in ecological conservation and botany. Remote work from your computer is required; suggested hours are 3 hours/week, at least through September. Bring your media skills to help bolster our outreach and engagement! Read More
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Save the Date!
Virtual Plant Materials Conference
January 12 & 13, 2022
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The Willamette Valley Native Plant Partnership will be hosting a Virtual Native Plant Materials Conference on January 12-13, 2022, in partnership with Institute for Applied Ecology and Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board. Please mark your calendars and stay tuned for more information on content and registration. We hope you’ll join us! Read More
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2021 was for sure a good year for Fenders! Surveyors were able to cover more than 28 different sites. In partnership with the Greenbelt Land Trust and the expertise of Greg Fitzpatrick and Duncan Thomas, we translocated a small population of adult female and male Fender’s blue butterflies from Wren to Lupine Meadows with the objective of increasing the already established -but small- population on site. A few new locations with Fender’s were detected, increasing the known sites to date. |
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Native plant seed harvest techniques can vary depending on seed shape and plant characteristics. IAE staff took a brief break from harvesting seed for a combine demonstration recently. IAE Farm Manager Mara Friddle explained why some seeds are easier to harvest from sweeping them up from weed cloth between plant rows, while some are more effectively cleaned from the plant chaff using a combine. Watch Mara demonstrate using the stationary combine to thresh shaggy horkelia seed (Horkelia congesta) on our Youtube channel.
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Looking for an easy way to support our restoration, research and education work? IAE is proud to partner with EarthShare, a federation of leading non-profit environmental charities, making it easy for Oregonians to share the responsibility for our environmental legacy. Many workplaces can deduct from your paycheck via Earthshare; ask your employer to set up a Workplace Giving account. If you have questions, please send us an email at info@appliedeco.org. |
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IAE Board of Directors:
Ken Bierly, President; Brandy Humphreys, Vice President; Cary Stephens, Secretary; Jack Halsey, Treasurer; Jason Bradford, Anne Bradley, Shinji Kawai, Judy Li, Carol Savonen, Sunia Yang
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