Elkhorn Slough: 2013 Western Pond Turtle Workshop

Back by popular demand for the sixth year running, the Elkhorn Slough Coastal Training Program is sponsoring the Western Pond Turtle Workshop 2013 with presenters Drs. David Germano (Professor, California State University Bakersfield) and Galen Rathbun (Research Associate, California Academy of Sciences). The workshop, slated for Thursday, June 27, 2013 at the Elkhorn Slough National Estuarine Research Reserve in Watsonville, CA, will provide a comprehensive review of the species’ natural history and conservation efforts with both classroom lecture and a hands-on lab. Among the topics covered are species identification, sampling techniques, geographic distribution, upland/aquatic habitat requirements and management, movement/dispersal, ecology, survey methodology, and how to avoid and minimize impacts to the species.

I whole-heartedly recommend this workshop, having taken it several years ago. Space is limited, so act now! This year’s registration deadline is June 3rd.

One of the pluses the Elkhorn Slough Coastal Training Program provides is free online access to workshop materials and related peer-reviewed papers. Make sure to check it out here!

Elkhorn Slough: 2013 California Red-Legged Frog Workshop

This spring the Elkhorn Slough Coastal Training Program is once again sponsoring the California Red-Legged Frog Workshop 2013 for the 13th year running with presenters Norman Scott and Trish Tatarian. The workshop, slated for May 9, 2013 at the Elkhorn Slough National Estuarine Research Reserve in Watsonville, CA, will provide a comprehensive review of the species’ natural history and conservation efforts with both classroom lecture and a field training session. Among the topics covered are species identification, natural history, habitat requirements, management practices, habitat assessments, pond designs, equipment demonstrations, tadpole identification, and survey methodology, including a night-time training practicum in the field.

Space is limited, so act now! This year’s registration deadline is April 15th.

One of the pluses the Elkhorn Slough Coastal Training Program provides is free online access to workshop materials and related peer-reviewed papers. Make sure to check it out here!

Elkhorn Slough: 2013 California Tiger Salamander Workshop

This spring the Elkhorn Slough Coastal Training Program is once again sponsoring the California Tiger Salamander Workshop 2013 for the fourth year running with presenter Dr. Pete Trenham (Western Washington University and the Salamander Research Institute). The workshop, slated for April 25, 2013 at the Elkhorn Slough National Estuarine Research Reserve in Watsonville, CA, will provide a comprehensive review of the species’ natural history and conservation efforts with both classroom lecture and a field training session. Among the topics covered are species identification, geographic distribution (native and hybrid populations), movement patterns, population and community ecology, survey methodology, and how to assess impacts to the species and identify appropriate avoidance and minimization measures.

Space is limited, so act now! This year’s registration deadline is April 15th.

One of the pluses the Elkhorn Slough Coastal Training Program provides is free online access to workshop materials and related peer-reviewed papers. Make sure to check it out here!

Rare Pond Species Survey Techniques Workshop 2013

This spring, the Laguna de Santa Rosa Foundation and The Wildlife Project are back at it, sponsoring the Rare Pond Species Survey Techniques Workshop, March 23-24, 2013 at the Laguna Environmental Center, Santa Rosa, CA. Workshop instructors Dave Cook and Jeff Alvarez will cover aquatic survey techniques for California tiger salamander (Ambystoma californiense), California red-legged frog (Rana draytoni), and western pond turtle (Clemmys marmorata). After-hours field trips will provide hands-on experience with all three species, including dip net sampling, spotlight surveys, and visual encounter and trapping.

Dave and Jeff, whom I’ve known for years, are experienced herpetologists who have logged inestimable hours in the field between them studying these species. Their knowledge is priceless, but the workshop worth every penny.

You can learn more about the workshop by downloading the informational flyer or visiting the Laguna de Santa Rosa Foundation website.

The 2013 Jepson Herbarium Workshops

The Friends of the Jepson Herbarium recently announced the program for The Jepson Herbarium Workshop’s 2013 series on botanical and ecological subjects. These programs are open to the general public and consist of basic, introductory one- to four-day basic botany workshops and more technical one- to five-day weekend workshops.

The basic botany series includes “Introduction to California Plant Families” and the not-to-miss ”Fifty Families in the Field: Introduction to Keying,” an excellent workshop I had the pleasure of taking in 2007 with instructors Linda Beidleman (co-author of Plants of the San Francisco Bay Region: Mendocino to Monterey) and the ever-entertaining Richard Beidleman (author of California’s Frontier Naturalists, reviewed with great enthusiasm here). Among this year’s technical weekend workshop series are such select, wonkish offerings as “Mastering the Second Edition of the Jepson Manual,” “What’s Eating You? A Natural History of Insect Herbivores,” “Monkeyflowers in Flux,” and in a break from the botanical, the new “Amphibians and Reptiles of the San Francisco Bay Area.”  The workshops run throughout the year, but class sizes are limited and waiting lists back up quickly. Sign up soon.