Cabrillo National Monument’s Names New Chief of Resources Management and Science
Cabrillo National Monument Superintendent Andrea Compton announced Linh Anh Cat, Ph.D. as the new Chief of Resources Management and Science of Cabrillo National Monument located in San Diego, California. Dr. Cat has been serving as the park’s Chief of Resources Management and Science since the middle of February. Dr. Cat holds a doctorate in ecology and evolutionary biology from the University of California, Irvine.
At Cabrillo National Monument, Dr. Cat manages both natural and cultural resources, including such resources as rare coastal sage scrub, tidepools, historic lighthouse artifacts, and the Cabrillo statue. She oversees the park’s long-running monitoring programs, notably the rocky intertidal and herpetofauna monitoring programs. She also manages volunteer programs such as the Tidepool Protection, Education, and Restoration Program, invasive plant removal, and the greenhouse operations.
“I am pleased to welcome Dr. Linh Anh Cat as Chief of Resources Management and Science of Cabrillo National Monument,” said Compton. “Dr. Cat’s knowledge of the southern California natural environment has already proven integral in managing the natural resources of the park, and in relaying information about that system for better experiences for the public. We are very glad to have her join the staff at the park, as well as the National Park Service system as a whole.”
“The park is in a unique transition area where we see an ecosystem composed of species from both Baja California and Southern California,” said Dr. Cat. “In order to protect this distinctive ecosystem, I’m looking forward to incorporating new science and management approaches to prepare the park for climate change challenges happening now, and in the future.”
Dr. Cat was previously a postdoctoral scholar at Scripps Institution of Oceanography in La Jolla, California. She also brings experience in science communication from her time as a writer for “Forbes Science.” She has performed fieldwork in diverse environments from Baja California to Alaska for her research on the dispersal of microbes, particularly those that cause disease or perform a fundamental role in ecosystem function.
Cabrillo National Monument is one of over four hundred units in the National Park Service system. The park is located in San Diego, California, perched on the southern end of the Point Loma peninsula more than 400 feet above the shoreline. The park offers unparalleled panoramic views of the Pacific Ocean and the urban skyline and mountain ranges from San Diego to Mexico.
The park commemorates the voyage of Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo, the first European to chart the West Coast of what is now the United States. The park includes the Old Point Loma Lighthouse, illuminated in 1855, and 21 military fortifications, which protected San Diego harbor in World War I and World War II. The extensive rocky intertidal area along the monument’s western boundary contains one of the best-preserved and well-studied tidepool ecosystems in Southern California. For more information, visit the park’s website. (www.nps.gov/cabr).
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