About Us

Jodi McGraw Consulting (JMc) is a professional environmental consulting firm that assists clients with projects to conserve rare species and sensitive habitats, including as part of larger infrastructure, operations, and development projects. Jodi McGraw founded the firm in 2001 to integrate the latest conservation ecology science and approaches to enhance the effectiveness of public and private efforts to conserve habitat and rare species populations. 

Our Team

Our core team of dedicated  professionals brings expertise in a variety
of ecological systems to provide high-quality products and services to our clients

Jodi M. McGraw, Ph.D. Principal Ecologist

Education

Ph.D. Integrative Biology, UC Berkeley (2004)
B.A. Biology and Environmental Studies,     University of California, Santa Cruz (1995)

Expertise

Conservation Planning
Habitat Restoration and Management 
Ecological Research and Monitoring
GIS Spatial Analysis and Cartography
Endangered Species Act Consultation & Compliance

As a conservation ecologist, Jodi brings scientific expertise and approaches to a broad array of conservation and management projects. Her specialty is developing and implementing plans to protect and manage natural lands and conserve sensitive species, habitats, and landscapes. She has more than 25 years of experience conducting conservation research, planning, and management projects in the Santa Cruz Mountains and beyond.  

As a conservation planner, Jodi has developed regional strategies to conserve a biodiversity, safeguard water resources, protect cultural resources, provide outdoor recreation opportunities, and conserve working lands. She led multidisciplinary teams to design the Vision Plan for the 371,000-acre Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District, and the 224,000-acre Santa Cruz Mountains Redwoods Conceptual Area Protection Plan to guide land acquisition by the Sempervirens Fund and California Department of Fish and Wildlife. She served as lead scientist on the Land Trust of Santa Cruz County’s Conservation Blueprint, as well as prepared their Farmland Protection Plan to guide protection of working lands, and the Sandhills Conservation and Management Plan to conserve an imperiled, endemic ecosystem. 

More About Jodi

 

Jodi has also prepared numerous plans to restore, manage, and monitor conservation lands, including working lands such as cattle ranches. Trained as a population and community ecologist, Jodi has developed scientifically-robust approaches to designing management prescriptions, evaluating management effectiveness, filling knowledge gaps, and monitoring populations and communities as part of an adaptive management process designed to enhance long-term effectiveness. She is well-versed in the science and implementation of managing fire, grazing, and exotic plants, and has extensive experience managing public use to protect sensitive systems and species. 

Jodi has designed and implemented a range of scientifically rigorous field studies, including vegetation classification and mapping projects, rare plant and animal surveys and demographic studies, and long-term biological monitoring programs. She conducts ecological research to inform the conservation and management of rare species, including the endangered plants and insects of the Santa Cruz Sandhills, Yadon’s Piperia, and the San Fernando Valley spineflower. 

Jodi brings a variety of tools to her multi-disciplinary projects. Using geographic information systems (GIS), she conducts spatial analyses, designs and manages project databases, synthesizes data collected using global positioning system technology, and prepares high-quality maps. She has authored dozens of plans, reports, and studies based on her work, and has also served as a scientific advisor to planning processes. She relishes the opportunity to work with her staff to implement many of the conservation strategies and plans JMc prepares.  

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Bethany Frantz

Bethany Frantz, M.S., Sr. Assistant Ecologist

Education

M.S. Geographic Information Science, San Francisco State University
B.A. Biology, Portland State University

Expertise

  • GIS Spatial Analysis and Cartography
  • Conservation Planning
  • Rare and Endangered Herpetofauna
  • Habitat Connectivity

Bethany Frantz is biologist and geographic information systems (GIS) specialist, who implements conservation planning, and biological resources assessments, surveys, and monitoring. She specializes in spatial analyses, database management, cartography and related GIS applications including on-line web applications.

Bethany’s applies her extensive geospatial skills and conservation biology background to habitat connectivity planning and agricultural land protection planning, while also assisting with field surveys and restoration projects.

Kaytie Hensley, Assistant Ecologist

Education

B.S. Plant Science

University of California at Santa Cruz

 

Expertise

  • Applied Conservation Research
  • Habitat Restoration 
  • Habitat Management
  • Rare Plant and Insect Surveys
  • Invasive Plant Surveys and Management
  • Vegetation Classification and Mapping
  • Biological Monitoring 

Kaytie is an ecologist who designs and implements applied conservation research and long-term monitoring studies for rare species, sensitive habitats, and natural communities. She has experience with the ecology, conservation, and restoration of the Santa Cruz Sandhills, which she uses to conduct research and monitoring as well as habitat enhancement and management.

Kaytie’s projects also include implementing rare plant reintroduction projects developed to promote persistence of the Ben Lomond wallflower (Santa Cruz County) and San Fernando Valley spineflower (Los Angeles County), conducting rare and exotic plant species surveys and mapping, and endangered insect surveys. She performs laboratory as well as field work and assists with database management and statistical analyses that inform decision making for conservation, restoration, and management projects.

Emily Brouwer, Assistant Ecologist

Education

B.S. Biology, Michigan State University

Expertise

Wildlife Surveys 
Camera Trapping 
Nesting Bird Surveys

Habitat Restoration and Management
Plant and Insect Surveys/Research 
Invasive Plant Surveys and Control 
Biological Monitoring

Emily Brouwer is an ecologist with experience conducting biological surveys and monitoring for wildlife, including nesting bird surveys and camera trapping, habitat management and restoration in a variety of systems in central Coastal California, including the Santa Cruz Sandhills and California’s coastal terrace prairie.

Emily assists with management of several preserves and restoration sites, conducting rare and exotic plant species surveys and control projects, and implementing endangered insect surveys. She also assists public and private entities with protection of sensitive habitat and endangered species during the course of development and infrastructure projects.

Angelica Amesquita, Sr. Assistant Ecologist (on Call)

Education

B.S. Plant Science UC Santa Cruz

Expertise

  • Applied Conservation Research
  • Invasive Plant Surveys and Control
  • Habitat Restoration
  • Habitat Management
  • Biological Monitoring 

Angelica Amesquita is an ecologist who implements applied conservation research, habitat restoration and management, and biological resources assessments, surveys, and monitoring. She has experience in a variety of systems in Central Coastal California including the Santa Cruz Sandhills. 

Angelica has implemented numerous research and monitoring projects including long-term monitoring of the communities and endangered plants and insects of the Santa Cruz Sandhills.  She also has extensive experience conducting habitat restoration and management including controlling invasive plants using manual, mechanical, and chemical methods.

Bill Reid, Restoration SPECIALIST

Education

Qualified Pesticide Applicator

Expertise

Invasive Plant Control 
Habitat Restoration 
Habitat Management

InternS

On an ongoing basis, JMc’s projects are enhanced through the participation of interns attending numerous colleges and universities including the University of California at Santa Cruz and Cabrillo College. Under the direct supervision of JMc staff, interns assist with a wide range of tasks including all aspects of habitat restoration, including seed collection, seed cleaning, seeding, plant propagation, planting and plant maintenance, and invasive plant control. Interns also participate in JMc research and monitoring, including endangered plant surveys and introductions, endangered insect surveys, camera trapping, and vegetation monitoring.  Past JMc interns have also conducted independent research and professional projects in coordination with University faculty, which hav furthered their education and advanced the effectiveness of JMc’s projects

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