Using Natural Ecological Communities Research with Glenn Tobin
Date/Time
Thursday, September 9, 2021
7:30 pm - 9:00 pm
Categories
Please join us on Thursday, September 9 at 7:30pm for a Zoom presentation by Dr. Glenn Tobin on “Using Natural Ecological Communities Research.”
Glenn Tobin translates the many studies of Virginia natural communities into practical guidance for ecological restoration and native planting.
From Dr. Tobin’s website Natural Ecological Communities of Northern Virginia:
In natural settings, plants do not live in random patterns in the landscape. Rather they tend to group into communities. Those “Natural Communities” have patterns and those patterns have been researched for decades by botanists and ecologists.
Natural Community data can and should serve as the basis for establishing the target of ecological restoration—the “end state” that restoration efforts are shooting for. Too many times, restoration efforts lack that target and results suffer. Plants that are added do not thrive; efforts are wasted. In an era where every hour spent on ecological restoration needs to be highly effective, leveraging the best science will yield better results.
Watch the video recording.
Glenn Tobin – Photo courtesy of Toni Genberg
About Glenn Tobin, from the Arlington Regional Master Naturalists website:
On April 20, 2021, Glenn Tobin received Arlington County’s Bill Thomas Park Volunteer Award for the year 2020. The award recognizes an individual or group whose efforts show ongoing dedication and tangible benefit to Arlington’s natural resources, parks, and public open spaces.
Glenn has been an ARMN member since 2016 and a Trail Maintainer with the Potomac Appalachian Trail Club (PATC) since 2015. For years, he removed invasive plants at Windy Run Park and the adjacent Potomac River waterfront in the George Washington Memorial Parkway. Because of his work alone and with other volunteers, significant natural areas are recovering and becoming more beautiful and biodiverse. In 2020, Glenn raised money and worked with the PATC and the National Park Service (NPS) to rebuild the stone stairway that connects the Windy Run park trail to the Potomac Heritage Trail along the river, improving access for many people. Then, inspired by the reemergence of diverse native flora at Windy Run and along the Potomac, Glenn began working with experts in ecology, botany, and natural resources to create the website, Natural Ecological Communities of Northern Virginia, which provides information about the local natural plant communities to help make better plant selections for ecological restoration purposes in Northern Virginia, Washington D.C., and close-in Maryland.
