[Pollinator] The Xerces Society - Yolo Natural Heritage Program Pollinator Conservation Strategy

[Matthew Shepherd]

 <http://www.xerces.org/press-releases/yoloheritagemedia.html>
   Email not displaying correctly? View it in your
browser.<http://www.xerces.org/press-releases/yoloheritagemedia.html>
  <http://www.xerces.org/press-releases/yoloheritagemedia.html>
<http://www.xerces.org/press-releases/yoloheritagemedia.html>

YOLO NATURAL HERITAGE PROGRAM POLLINATOR

CONSERVATION STRATEGY
Publication Highlights Value of Pollinator Conservation


For Immediate Release: March 4, 2010

Contact: For information contact Scott Hoffman Black at sblack at xerces.org or
503-449-3792.

(Woodland, CA) – The Yolo Natural Heritage Program recently released
the*Yolo Natural Heritage Program (HCP/NCCP) Pollinator Conservation
Strategy
*.  This first-of-its-kind conservation strategy, developed by the Xerces
Society for Invertebrate Conservation, and funded in part with a grant from
the California Department of Fish and Game, provides land managers
information vital to secure the future of pollinators in Yolo County.

Pollinators are essential for farming and for the health of natural areas, a
fact recognized by the Yolo Natural Heritage Program when it asked the
Xerces Society to develop the pollinator conservation strategy.  The Natural
Heritage Program also recognized that pollinators add value to habitat
conservation on working lands, providing a direct benefit to the landowners
from habitat projects.

“The conservation strategy is the first in North America to address the
threats and needs of pollinators in an entire county,” said Scott Black,
lead author of the report and executive director of the Xerces Society.  “We
hope that agencies in the county will use this document to prioritize
actions to conserve this important resource.”

“I am delighted that this study of pollinators, including their critical
role in our natural world and the importance of a conservation strategy for
their preservation, has been published,” said Helen Thomson, Yolo County
Board of Supervisors Chairwoman and Chair of the Yolo Natural Heritage
Program.  “It gives additional credibility to our work on the conservation
plan.”

Each of the six major landscapes in Yolo County—agriculture, grasslands,
woodlands, shrubland and scrub, riparian and wetland, and urban and
barren—are affected by threats to native pollinators.  This *Yolo Natural
Heritage Program (HCP/NCCP) Pollinator Conservation Strategy* summarizes the
threats facing native bees, identifies conservation measures that can be
taken within Yolo County’s diverse landscapes, and forms an important
component of the Natural Communities Conservation Plan/Habitat Conservation
Plan (HCP/NCCP) being developed for Yolo County.  The HCP/NCCP will conserve
the natural open space and agricultural landscapes that provide habitat for
many special status and at-risk species found within the habitats and
natural communities in Yolo County.

“The pollinator strategy guide is a great resource for growers, gardeners
and urban dwellers alike,” said Yolo County Agricultural Commissioner John
Young.  “By understanding the needs and capabilities of our native
pollinators, we become better able to incorporate them into our societal
systems from conventional farms to city landscapes.”

The *Yolo Natural Heritage Program (HCP/NCCP) Pollinator Conservation
Strategy* can be downloaded from the Xerces Society website, www.xerces.org.
 Also found on the website is the Pollinator Conservation Resource Center
which provides access to all one needs to complete a pollinator conservation
project in any region of the United States.

“Whether you manage roadsides or run a farm there are actions that you can
take to improve the health of pollinators,” observed Matthew Shepherd,
Xerces Society senior conservation associate and co-author of the report.
 “Identifying and protecting floral resources can provide significant
benefit to the native bees and other pollinators in Yolo County.”

The Yolo Natural Heritage Program, a county-wide Natural Communities
Conservation Plan/Habitat Conservation Plan (NCCP/HCP), will address the
conservation needs of over 65 at risk species that utilize the 653,820 acre
planning area.  The NCCP/HCP will conserve the natural open space and
agricultural landscapes that provide habitat for many special status and
at-risk species by protecting important biological resources and maintaining
Yolo County's rich agricultural heritage.  For more information about the
Yolo Natural Heritage Program and the multi-species Yolo Habitat
Conservation Plan, visit http://www.yoloconservationplan.org/.

###


ABOUT THE XERCES SOCIETY
The Xerces Society is a nonprofit organization that protects wildlife
through the conservation of invertebrates and their habitat. Established in
1971, the Society is at the forefront of invertebrate protection worldwide,
harnessing the knowledge of scientists and the enthusiasm of citizens to
implement conservation programs. To learn more about our work, please visit
www.xerces.org.


PHOTO CREDIT
by Mace Vaughan

The Xerces Society • 4828 SE Hawthorne Blvd. Portland, Oregon 97215 USA •
tel 503.232.6639

join <http://www.xerces.org/join/> • give <http://www.xerces.org/give/> •
contact <http://www.xerces.org/contact-us/> <info at xerces.org> •
unsubscribe<http://www.xerces.org/newsletter-optout/>

Copyright (C) 2008 The Xerces Society. All rights reserved.
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://lists.sonic.net/pipermail/pollinator/attachments/20100304/818d62c8/attachment.html>