2024 Biodiversity Highlights: February 25, 2025

The annual Biodiversity Highlights is hosted by the Minnesota Biological Survey (MBS), Nongame Wildlife Program (NW), Scientific and Natural Areas Program (SNA), Conservation Management and Rare Resources Unit (CMRR), and Invasive Species Program (IP) at the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. The purpose of these presentations is for these programs to highlight new biodiversity information from the past year or so that is relevant to natural resource professionals working to conserve, manage and better understand biodiversity in Minnesota. Speakers will present on new plant and animal discoveries, monitoring and research outcomes, management and protection accomplishments, community science initiatives, policy updates and emerging threats facing biodiversity. This year there are 3 online events, each about 3 hours in length with about 10 speakers for each session.

See links below for each day’s agenda (agendas are subject to change, check back the day-of for the final agenda).

  • Agenda 1 of 3: Feb. 5th 12:30-3pm CST.
  • Agenda 2 of 3: Feb. 11th, 9am-12:30pm CST.
  • Agenda 3 of 3: Feb. 25th, 9am-12:30pm CST. See below.

Join February 25th Presentation

Meeting ID: 288 616 001 311
Passcode: eU64bZ2s
Dial in by phone
+1 651-395-7448,,636193511# United States, Minneapolis
Find a local number
Phone conference ID: 636 193 511#
Join on a video conferencing device
Tenant key: [email protected]
Video ID: 117 557 059 2
More info


Agenda

Start Time (~) Length
(minutes)
Speaker Position Program Title of Talk
9:00am 10 Bruce Carlson Supervisor MBS Intro/Overview of Programs
9:10 10 Holly Bernardo MBS Plant Survey Supervisor MBS MBS Plants 10-year Sustainable Survey Framework
9:20 15 Derek Anderson Botanist/Plant Ecologist MBS Rare Plants and Native Plant Communities of the Fertile Dunes
9:35 15 Michael Lee Botanist/Plant Ecologist MBS MBS Botanical Highlights
9:50 10 Otto Gockman, John Thayer Lichen Survey Contractors MBS MBS Lichen Survey Highlights
10:00 10 BREAK
10:10 20 Dustin Graham Plant Ecologist/Botanist MBS Smooth Brome Study
10:30 15 Megan Benage Regional Ecologist CMRR The New World of Rare Natural Communities
10:45 20 Bridget Henning-Randa Endangered Species Consultant CMRR Update on the Minnesota Species Conservation Status Assessment Project
Daren Carlson Ecologist/GIS Analyst NW
11:05 ADJOURN

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