2021 Symposium Recap

CATALINA ISLAND CONSERVANCY

SYMPOSIUM

Conservancy members and others interested in important programs on Catalina joined us for the 2021 Catalina Island Conservancy Annual Symposium on Oct. 8 at the Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach. The one-day symposium featured presentations by Conservancy biologists, educators and partners on research focusing on conservation and education programs on the Island.

The hybrid event brought together the convenience of 2020’s completely virtual symposium with the renewed opportunity for in-person interaction. Across both platforms, more than 120 people enjoyed learning about Catalina Island and the Conservancy’s ongoing work.

“Hearing the passion and expertise of our great Conservancy team allows for added learning and leaves me feeling excited and inspired,” said Conservancy President & CEO Tony Budrovich.

Among the presentations were discussions of several Conservancy programs, including the history and future of Conservancy education program Course Catalina; how Summer Naturalist interns helped visitors make the most out of a stop at Wrigley Memorial & Botanic Garden; a look at Catalina’s sensitive wildlife species; invasive plant removal; and exploring the importance of fencing and exclosures to protect native and endemic plants from invasive species such as mule deer. Researchers R. Brandon Pratt and Anna L. Jacobsen of CSU Bakersfield, who have also presented at previous Catalina Island Conservancy symposiums, have been conducting research for about 15 years on the impact of deer on chaparral recovery after fire on the Island.

“What we found was that early on, not long after the fire when the seedlings were sprouting, there were really high levels of browsing for the Bigpod ceanothus (Ceanothus arboreous),” said Pratt. “For the most part, the fenced plants remained unbrowsed.”

Jacobsen went so far as to refer to the Ceanothus arboreous as ‘deer catnip,’ stating that the tops of plants were constantly being picked off by deer and were unable to grow except where protected by fencing. This presents a serious problem because it prevents plants from replenishing their seed banks, so if another fire were to burn through again those species would be gone from those sites. This browsing also creates large changes to Island habitat.

Closed canopy, dense chaparral “provides for the foxes, the squirrels, and the microbes that are all special to the Island, and is very different from unprotected areas” where there have been large reductions in canopy coverage, Pratt added.

Thank you to our Symposium Corporate Partners: Aquarium of the Pacific and Port of Long Beach.