Keeping the Momentum with an Eye on the Future

By Chris Hunter

The Biodiversity team is staying strong in their efforts to conserve the native California habitat at Sage Hill! After their successful BioBlitz last week, the team returned to Sage Hill this Monday to continue weeding invasive non-native species and taking care of their newly transplanted Encelia californica. This Thursday, they took the rest of the SAR teams on a tour of Sage Hill to teach us about some of the native species there and demonstrate their project goals, such as iNaturalist or their new plots.  Those of us who had never visited the area before were blown away by its beauty and the tranquility it offers on a bustling campus.

As the team maintains these efforts, they are keeping an eye on the future and hope to implement some exciting changes to the space. With the funding already secured, they hope to finalize a design and install the sign by the end of the quarter. They are setting up a meeting in the coming days with the UCLA sign shop to make plans for implementation.  Other changes to the space they look to make progress on include adding a second entrance on southern end of the space and creating an outdoor education area.

Finally, the team is excited to present their research at Undergraduate Research Week on May 23rd! They are currently working on a poster for the event to display their findings.