I am so close to being finished with my short-term CLM internship project. The project ended up consisting of an all-inclusive lichen checklist for the four southern-most National Forests of Region 5 aka California. Those National Forests are the San Bernardino, Angeles, Cleveland, and Los Padres. It is a very exhaustive list with all records referenced by the Consortium of North American Lichen Herbaria or publication by an expert lichenologist. My last few hours of my internship will be spent reviewing the checklist and making any necessary corrections with my mentor and the regional botanist who funded this project. After doing this I feel like I know all the southern CA lichens by name, but I still have yet to learn them by sight!

This position actually ended just in the nick of time because I just got hired with a timber company in northern CA doing rare plant surveys. The timber regulations when it comes to conservation are very strict here in California, so surveying usually needs to happen in critical habitat before action is taken on a timber harvest plan. I’m looking forward to experiencing work as a botanist in the private sector. It will be interesting to compare that experience with all of my prior experience working for the Forest Service.

Thanks CBG!