Science Spotlight: A Morning Café Style Program

Join us for a casual discussion at the Natural History Museum led by Clay Meredith, Species Survival Officer for Plants at the New Mexico BioPark Society, followed by a hands-on experience.  Limited to 20 people and includes coffee, light refreshments, and Museum admission. 

The discussion will center on local Plant Conservation. New Mexico is the fourth most botanically diverse state in the country and is home to around 200 species of rare plants. Our local expert has spent the last five years expanding the collection to preserve as many of these species as possible. The plant conservation program extends from the lowest deserts to the high peaks of Vermejo Ranch. Join us for an update on our progress so far, species slated for collection, and a guide to where you can see some of the rarest plants in the state. 

The Museum's new exhibit, Conserving America’s Wildlands: The Vision of Ted Turner, will be open to attendees from 11am to noon after the lecture. This exhibit blends stunning wildland photography from Ted Turner’s ranches with never-before-seen fossils and other specimens from the museum’s Research Collections and paints a vivid picture of our wild places and the value of conservation.

Tickets are $8 for the general public, $7 for Museum members, and $5 for students. Preregistration is encouraged.

About the Speaker: Clay Meredith is the Species Survival Officer for Plants at the New Mexico BioPark Society. His research focuses on rare plant conservation in New Mexico with a particular focus on medicinal plant species. He is the author of The Conservation Status of Trillium in North America and has contributed to over 1,000 IUCN Red List assessments.