Native Plant and Wildlife Combinations in Winter

Replay Available here.

Frances Clark, local botanist, will delve into the responses of both plants and animals to our Jackson Hole winters. While many plants and creatures disappear from the scene one way or the other, remaining animals survive by eating and using plants. For instance: pocket gophers consume storage roots buried under feet of snow; mammals from moose to hares eat only woody stems, digesting cellulose in special guts; chickadees weighing just a few ounces stay warm though long, cold nights fueled by tiny seeds.  The plants themselves survive in subzero weather with little sun and frozen water. How?  These stories and more will be illustrated in this one-hour presentation.

Frances Clark is the program manager for Teton Plants, the local chapter of the Wyoming Native Plant Society.  She is a long-time botanist and educator who has been roaming Teton County for a dozen years finding plants and observing how wildlife makes use of our local plants and habitats.  These interactions are especially critical to understand in the harsh winters of the western Wyoming mountains.  Frances has a Master's degree in Management of Horticultural and Botanical Gardens and a second Master's in Urban & Environmental Policy and was formerly the Education Director for the Native Plant Trust before launching a solo consulting career.