Tribute to Les Mehrhoff

Connecticut lost one of its giants in the area of plant conservation with the death of Dr. Les Mehrhoff in December 2010. He was known for his work at DEP on the inventory for the state's Natural Diversity Database. in 1996 he the DEP to become the curator of the George Safford Torrey Herbarium at the University of Connecticut, where he worked until his retirement in 2009. He was active at the state and New England regional levels. His efforts helped bring about the passage of the state's Endangered Species Act and legislation addressing invasive species. He worked on establishing a Rapid Assessment Network for New England to coordinate the status of invasive plants in the six-state area. He was well-known for his work on the Invasive Plant Atlas of New England.

You can listen to a tribute aired on Connecticut Public Radio a few days ago by clicking here. You can read the reminiscences of his colleagues here and here.

As stated in his obituary, his family requests that you remember him by performing an act of kindness for the preservation of our environment.