JACKSON, Wyo. — The Bridger-Teton National Forest (BTNF) has hired its first official Forest Botanist. In his new role, Trevor Bloom is focused on whitebark pines, non-native plants and species of conservation concern (SCCs), among other management plans.
Bloom is taking this opportunity with the U.S. Forest Service after working with The Nature Conservancy (TNC) for over five years.
“I’ve always wanted to work for the Forest Service, especially the BTNF because it’s my favorite place on earth,” Bloom tells Buckrail. “It’s an honor to serve the public lands, and it’s really exciting to be working on 3.4 million acres of national forest.”
Bloom will be joining Karen Clause, the recently hired Invasive Species and Botany Program manager, to co-create the department along with BTNF land managers and staff. According to Bloom, caring for vegetation previously fell under Rangeland Management.
As the dedicated Forest Botanist, Bloom says he’ll be a consultant on any project that could impact sensitive species, like the whitebark pine tree that was recently the first plant in the U.S. to be listed as “threatened” under the Endangered Species Act. Bloom says a majority of projects on the BTNF, especially at higher elevation, could impact this tree.
Bloom emphasizes whitebark pines are particularly important for grizzly bears and the Clark’s nutcracker, a bird species that coevolved with the tree.
With BTNF, Bloom will also be continuing the cheatgrass research that he pioneered with TNC, looking into herbicide effectiveness on cheatgrass and seed mixes for native plant restoration. Cheatgrass is a non-native, invasive grass that Bloom notes poses the biggest immediate risk to local habitat because of its ability to increase the frequency of wildfires and transform an entire landscape from sagebrush into grassland.
Bloom says land managers and scientists have identified invasive species as one of the greatest threats to ecosystems, especially the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem (GYE). While Bloom says that the GYE is still very intact, he notes a lot of non-native species are coming in and disturbing the landscape. These species include musk thistle, Canada thistle, spotted knapweed, houndstongue and toadflax.
“With the issues we’re seeing with invasive species across the west and the listing of the whitebark pine, identifying invasive species and maintaining native plants is critical,” Bloom says. “It’s going to require its own dedicated line of work and its own department, and I’m surprised and honored I get to be a part of this development.”
The Forest Botanist position will also focus on the preservation of at least 19 SCCs. The revised guiding management Forest plan, which comes out every 20 to 30 years and was originally written in 1990, might list several more. Bloom explains to Buckrail that SCCs are rare species or species endemic to the Forest, meaning they only exist there. A lot of the SCCs are wetland, riparian species or alpine species.
According to Bloom, some of these plant populations haven’t been surveyed since the 1950s, ’60s or ’70s, and he will investigate if the species are still there, the status of the species and the best ways to protect them.
“The Invasive Species and Botany Program is seeking to holistically fit in with the amazing Wildlife and Fisheries Biology Program that’s already in existence,” Bloom says. “One of our main goals is to maintain habitat for our wildlife. I also align really well with the mission of the Forest to provide the most good for the most amount of people for the longest amount of time.”
The programs Bloom built with TNC, including the Wildflower Watch program, will be continuing under new leadership.
