Following a brief delay, we will begin the Black Ash Bioblitz on July 23rd. I was summoned to Jury Duty this month, causing some unexpected delays in organization of the field season. My bird field season ran a little long, too, and I returned from the Flambeau River State Forest on July 2.
I will be assembling small field crews to investigate the health of black ash trees in Polk County and the vitality of ecosystems associated with these amazing trees!
Crews will assemble at Unity High School on the following dates and times.
July 23rd from 8:30 AM to 11:30 AM (or slightly later)
July 30th from 5 PM to 8 PM
July 31st from 5 PM to 8 PM (Pending cancellation of Jury Duty, I may run a morning crew)
August 1 from 5 PM to 8 PM (Pending cancellation of Jury Duty, I may run a morning crew)
August 2 from 5 PM to 8 PM (Pending cancellation of Jury Duty, I may run a morning crew)
August 20 from 2 PM to 5 PM (Hours are flexible and may be adjusted later or slightly earlier)
August 21 from 2 PM to 5 PM (Hours are flexible and may be adjusted later or slightly earlier)
August 22 from 2 PM to 5 PM (Hours are flexible and may be adjusted later or slightly earlier)
August 23 from 2 PM to 5 PM (Hours are flexible and may be adjusted later or slightly earlier)
August 28 from 4:30 to 6:30 PM
August 29 from 4:30 to 6:30 PM
Black Ash trees dominating the canopy of a Polk County lowland forest
Veery: A common and secretive bird of Polk County's lowland forests. While it may not carry a stunning plumage, it delivers a rich, mysterious and etherial song.
White spruce and Blackburnian Warbler: Biological communities are often dependent upon a dominant land form or dominant species. What is the role of the black ash tree?
With Emerald Ash Borer (now nicknamed EAB) detected in the Minneapolis/St. Paul area, the exotic pest is knocking on our door. We aim to describe the ecosystems centered around black ash trees as completely as possible and monitor the health of these swampy forests. If EAB arrives in Polk County, we hope to have an early alert and, in the worse case scenario, a high-quality database of information that will help us all to understand how the loss of ash trees changes Polk County's lowland forest ecosystems.
I hope you will join me for at least one of these days afield. In addition to field experience, you will have the opportunity to learn some basic biological statistics and some very cool lab preparations of specimens collected!
My email to be used in conjunction with this site is bcbiocollins@gmail.com
My cell phone is 715-557-0706
Students must obtain permission from parents/guardians to attend! Adult chapperones must fill out a chapperone form in the Unity School District Office.
Field Crew sizes are limited to 6 students. I'll do my best to make this available to you, and I may be able to add other survey times as requested!
See you soon!
Brian
No comments:
Post a Comment