Wrapping up 2022 hybrid search summer season!

Hi iNaturalist folks!

Thanks so much to everyone who has posted any beachgrass observations this summer. And there have been a LOT - nearly 200 posts since June 1! And we’ve covered a lot of ground, from southern California into British Columbia!

I wanted to highlight a few updates about the search for the hybrid as we transition into fall & the dunes get colder and rainier:

First, we’ve now found nearly 300 hybrid patches on the PNW coast, from Pacific City, Oregon to Ocean Grove, Washington (shown on a map here). This is more than a tenfold increase in the amount we knew of just a few years ago, and thanks to everyone for playing a role in this search!

Second, Rebecca Mostow, who spearheaded this community science project on iNaturalist beginning in 2020 in partnership with CoastWatch, is now Dr. Mostow after successfully defending her PhD in late August! Check out her recorded defense with lots of cool hybrid finds here. Rebecca has answered essential questions about the hybrid beachgrass related to this community science mapping project, and deserves a huge round of virtual applause!

Rebecca will be handing off the community science project over the next year to me, Risa, a fellow graduate student and beachgrass enthusiast in the Hacker research group at Oregon State University. I’m excited to e-meet you all and see your beachgrass ID’s in the future!

Happy fall,
Risa

Posted on 06 de outubro de 2022, 07:57 PM by risaaskerooth