Otto Gockman has a B.S. in Biology from the University of Puget Sound and has been working at MNR since 2006. The primary foci of his efforts at MNR are on rare plant surveys, native plant community mapping, and vegetation monitoring work. He leads rare plant survey efforts at MNR for public and private sector projects.
He has numerous rare plant finds throughout Minnesota and Wisconsin, recently locating two Minnesota state record plants (Botrychium crenulatum and Rhynchospora capitellata) as well as documenting the first Minnesota occurrence of Carex lurida in over 100 years. Otto has also added lichen surveys to his repertoire, locating populations of 16 different species of Minnesota’s rare lichens since 2009. Otto is on the MN DNR list of qualified plant surveyors as well as on the specialized list to conduct surveys for Prairie bush clover (Lespedeza leptostachya), Dwarf trout lily (Erythronium propullans), Western prairie fringed orchid (Platanthera praeclara), and Botrychium species. He also holds a special permit through the MN DNR to collect specimens of state-listed species.