Global change is expected to fragment and contract many species ranges but what happens to those with already narrow ranges like plants restricted to mountain tops with presumably nowhere to move to? Is regeneration probable when your ideal climate niche no longer exists or is exceedingly rare? Can existing levels of phenotypic variation enable new individuals to establish and persist? Here, I will introduce you to Heterotheca brandegeei, a perennial cushion plant endemic to alpine outcroppings in Sierra de San Pedro Mártir National Park, Baja California, México. Together we will explore some features of this wonderful Park, what we understand about the species after field surveys and a climate change experiment, and what we still need to uncover if this and similar species are to be conserved. We will then hop around the globe a bit as I demonstrate that being a plant in a protected natural area is a sweet gig until one considers invasive species impacts, prolonged periods of drought, human-caused air pollution, and that land ownership boundaries are not always ecologically meaningful. Exciting current and future research on rare plants and enhancing native plant restoration in the southwest will also be discussed.

Daniel is a plant evolutionary ecologist studying how populations respond to global climate change. He is a Research Ecologist at the U.S. Geological Survey’s Southwest Biological Science Center where he works to identify solutions and strategies that enhance conservation efforts and equip managers with the tools necessary to respond to global climate change. His research bridges ecological experimentation with modern restoration, molecular, and ecophysiological methods to understand plant adaptation primarily in arid and semi-arid dryland ecosystems. Daniel works throughout the desert southwest and in alpine areas of Colorado, Mexico, and Japan. Daniel holds a PhD from the University of California, Irvine where he worked with Travis Huxman, a MS from the University of California, Merced where he worked with Lara Kueppers, and a BA from New York University.