Desiree Narango, 2020-2022 David H. Smith Conservation Research Fellow; Postdoctoral Researcher, University of Massachusetts, Amherst
May 2021
For truly effective conservation strategies, we need evidence-based guidelines to inform our landscaping decisions and plant selection. Desiree Narango describes the evolutionary relationships between plants, pollinators, and songbirds, and details the ecological systems which illustrate why native plants are the essential component of gardens that sustain biodiversity. She also explains specific metrics drawn from her research that help us identify which native plants—and how many—are necessary to create rich and thriving wildlife habitat in our communities.
Dr. Desiree Narango is a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, and a 2020-22 David H. Smith Conservation Research Fellow. While earning her Ph.D. at the University of Delaware, she worked closely with Doug Tallamy on numerous projects. Her research focuses on understanding wildlife habitat relationships and plant-animal interactions in novel human-dominated landscapes.