Another good VH activity. You do not have to collect the nuts at Yankauer,
but it's a fun event.
"GROWING NATIVE" SEED-COLLECTION EVENT SET FOR OCT. 8
The Potomac Valley Audubon Society is once again partnering with the Potomac Conservancy to hold a "Growing Native" seed-collection event at the Society's Yankauker Nature Preserve in Berkeley County on Saturday, October 8.
The event will be held from 10:00 a.m. to 12 noon, rain or shine.
Everyone is welcome to participate. A state forester will be on hand to aid with seed identification, and seed-collection bags will be provided.
These events are very popular with children and make good family outings.
The Conservancy's Growing Native program is aimed at improving water quality in the Potomac River.
It recruits volunteers to collect seeds of native hardwoods and shrubs and delivers the seeds to state nurseries where they are nurtured into small seedlings.
The seedlings are then planted along streams and rivers in the Potomac watershed to help restore forests that filter pollution and run-off.
Since the program's inception in 2001, more than 50,000 volunteers have collected over 150,000 pounds of seeds.
The Yankauer preserve is located on Whiting's Neck, in the northeastern corner of Berkeley County. Directions can be found on the Potomac Valley Audubon Society website at http://www.potomacaudubon.org/yankauer.html#dir.
Pre-registration for the October 8 event is suggested but not required; people can register on site that morning if they wish. To pre-register or get more information, contact Deanna Tricarico, the Conservancy's Outreach Coordinator, at tricarico@potomac.org or 301-608-1188, extension 204.
For those who cannot attend the October 8 event but would like to help, the Conservancy will be installing seed-collection kiosks at the Yankauer Preserve, the Farmers Market in Inwood, and the Nature Niche store in Berkeley Springs. Families and individuals can gather seeds on their own at their own pace and drop them off at any of these locations anytime through October 23. Full instructions on procedures for gathering and dropping off seeds can be found on the Growing Native website at http://www.growingnative.org.
The Big Year
Fox will release The Big Year on Oct. 14. The film stars are Owen Wilson, Jack Black, and Steve Martin. The movie was inspired by Mark Obamscik’s best-selling chronicle of three colorful and obsessive birders as they compete for the biggest “Big Year.” Audubon served as a resource for the filmmakers, contributing both expertise and Audubon branded materials for set-dressing. Audubon’s take is that it's a positive, engaging look at birding and birders. It even presents a fairly accurate version of Audubon’s founding and its history.
Clearly, it’s not every day that a major film with high profile talent injects birds and birding into the pop culture mainstream. This is a rare opportunity to engage both current members and new audiences. You can watch the trailer online on YouTube (The Big Year (2011) Movie Trailer HD). The movie is featured in the latest issue of Audubon Magazine
Clearly, it’s not every day that a major film with high profile talent injects birds and birding into the pop culture mainstream. This is a rare opportunity to engage both current members and new audiences. You can watch the trailer online on YouTube (The Big Year (2011) Movie Trailer HD). The movie is featured in the latest issue of Audubon Magazine
Tree Planting Volunteer Opportunity
TREE PLANTING VOLUNTEERS NEEDED SEPTEMBER 24TH
SCWA members and friends are needed to help with a tree planting event in the Morgan County Industrial Park on September 24, 2011 at 9 A.M. We will be planting 200 trees in the area surrounding the Washington Homeopathy Building to help slow storm water runoff into tributaries of Sleepy Creek and to stabilize the soil. The trees have been ordered and will consist of white pines and deciduous trees such as oaks and maples. Once the trees are established, they can absorb up to 68 percent of rain fall and are a good filter of phosphorus and nitrogen as they uptake moisture through their roots. This will help keep these chemicals, as well as sediment from erosion, out of our creeks and waterways.
Holes will be pre-augured, and top soil and wire cages (to prevent deer damage) will be on the site. Volunteers should bring buckets, shovels and hammers or small sledges to pound metal stakes to support wire cages. SCWA will provide gloves and drinking water. A bag lunch will also be provided for those who sign up in advance.
To reach the planting site, from Route 9 East and US 522 (at Sheetz) go south 10.7 miles to the entrance of the Morgan County Industrial Park. Turn left onto J.R. Hawvermale Way and follow the paved road two-tenths of a mile to the end. Turn right onto paved road to the Washington Homeopathy Building.
Everyone is invited to participate, and trees will be planted RAIN OR SHINE. Please sign up in advance in order to provide enough bag lunches. Contact Gale Foulds at 304 258-6155 or dgfoulds@aol.com.
SCWA members and friends are needed to help with a tree planting event in the Morgan County Industrial Park on September 24, 2011 at 9 A.M. We will be planting 200 trees in the area surrounding the Washington Homeopathy Building to help slow storm water runoff into tributaries of Sleepy Creek and to stabilize the soil. The trees have been ordered and will consist of white pines and deciduous trees such as oaks and maples. Once the trees are established, they can absorb up to 68 percent of rain fall and are a good filter of phosphorus and nitrogen as they uptake moisture through their roots. This will help keep these chemicals, as well as sediment from erosion, out of our creeks and waterways.
Holes will be pre-augured, and top soil and wire cages (to prevent deer damage) will be on the site. Volunteers should bring buckets, shovels and hammers or small sledges to pound metal stakes to support wire cages. SCWA will provide gloves and drinking water. A bag lunch will also be provided for those who sign up in advance.
To reach the planting site, from Route 9 East and US 522 (at Sheetz) go south 10.7 miles to the entrance of the Morgan County Industrial Park. Turn left onto J.R. Hawvermale Way and follow the paved road two-tenths of a mile to the end. Turn right onto paved road to the Washington Homeopathy Building.
Everyone is invited to participate, and trees will be planted RAIN OR SHINE. Please sign up in advance in order to provide enough bag lunches. Contact Gale Foulds at 304 258-6155 or dgfoulds@aol.com.
PVAS Volunteer Opportunities
PVAS really, really needs help for these events! Working a booth is not hard—you just have to answer questions from folks. It’s usually rather fun and if there are 2 people, the time goes really fast!
PVAS is going to be represented in three locations on September 17th. We'll be spread pretty thin, so we'd LOVE some help staffing booths for all or partial days. We're seeking friendly faces, folks familiar with PVAS and the Master Naturalist Program, and good people skills. We'll provide the tents, information, and activities. Interested? Here's where we'll be:
Berkeley Springs Birding Festival:
Judy Webb is coordinating the festival and is looking for volunteers throughout the weekend to help staff the festival information desk, hand out brochures, sell tickets, etc...
Friday, Sept. 16 3:30-10pm: At the Country Inn
Saturday, Sept. 17, 9am-10pm: At the Country Inn
Sunday, Sept. 18, 9-11am: Country Inn. Help clean up room, silent auction pickup, etc..
Please contact Judy Webb directly if you'd like to help with this any portion of this event at natureniche@earthlink.net or 304-258-0992.
Sharpsburg Heritage Festival, Sept. 17th:
Vendors set up on Saturday morning between 7:30 AM and 9:30 AM. The event begins at 10:00 AM. Vendors are asked to remain set up from 10:00 AM to 5:30 PM during the festival. Breakdown may begin at 5:30 PM.
Charles Town Heritage Festival, Sept. 17th:
http://historiccharlestownwv.com/heritagefestival.htm
Vendors set up on Saturday morning between 7:30 AM and 9:30 AM. The event begins at 10:00 AM. Vendors are asked to remain set up from 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM during the festival. Breakdown may begin at 5:00 PM. (You could meet Richard Dreyfuss!)If you are interested in helping with either of these for at least part of the day, please contact Kristin Alexander at 304-676-3397 or PVASmail@aol.com. Thank you!
Future booth event:
Looking ahead, we could also use help at the Berkeley Springs Apple Butter Festival in October.
Saturday, Oct. 8th, 10am-5pm (parade is at 9 if you like parades)
Sunday, Oct. 9th, 12-5pm
Contact Peter Smith if you'd like to volunteer for this event at pvsmith@frontiernet.net or 304-876-1139.
Thanks, all!
PVAS is going to be represented in three locations on September 17th. We'll be spread pretty thin, so we'd LOVE some help staffing booths for all or partial days. We're seeking friendly faces, folks familiar with PVAS and the Master Naturalist Program, and good people skills. We'll provide the tents, information, and activities. Interested? Here's where we'll be:
Berkeley Springs Birding Festival:
Judy Webb is coordinating the festival and is looking for volunteers throughout the weekend to help staff the festival information desk, hand out brochures, sell tickets, etc...
Friday, Sept. 16 3:30-10pm: At the Country Inn
Saturday, Sept. 17, 9am-10pm: At the Country Inn
Sunday, Sept. 18, 9-11am: Country Inn. Help clean up room, silent auction pickup, etc..
Please contact Judy Webb directly if you'd like to help with this any portion of this event at natureniche@earthlink.net or 304-258-0992.
Sharpsburg Heritage Festival, Sept. 17th:
Vendors set up on Saturday morning between 7:30 AM and 9:30 AM. The event begins at 10:00 AM. Vendors are asked to remain set up from 10:00 AM to 5:30 PM during the festival. Breakdown may begin at 5:30 PM.
Charles Town Heritage Festival, Sept. 17th:
http://historiccharlestownwv.com/heritagefestival.htm
Vendors set up on Saturday morning between 7:30 AM and 9:30 AM. The event begins at 10:00 AM. Vendors are asked to remain set up from 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM during the festival. Breakdown may begin at 5:00 PM. (You could meet Richard Dreyfuss!)If you are interested in helping with either of these for at least part of the day, please contact Kristin Alexander at 304-676-3397 or PVASmail@aol.com. Thank you!
Future booth event:
Looking ahead, we could also use help at the Berkeley Springs Apple Butter Festival in October.
Saturday, Oct. 8th, 10am-5pm (parade is at 9 if you like parades)
Sunday, Oct. 9th, 12-5pm
Contact Peter Smith if you'd like to volunteer for this event at pvsmith@frontiernet.net or 304-876-1139.
Thanks, all!
Day of Caring
If you are looking for volunteer hours, the Day of Caring is a great way to go—lots of specials like food and shirts to thank you! This info is specific to Flowing Springs Park, but similar work will be going on at Yankauer. You can volunteer for Flowing Springs Park at the bottom of this letter. To volunteer at Yankauer, contact Tim Murphy at timurf@comcast.net The schedule for Yankauer is the same as listed here.
_______
The City of Ranson will be participating in the United Way's "Day of Caring" on September 13th at Flowing Springs Park. Similar to the April 2 event, we'll be doing some tree planting, some invasive removal, trash pickup, installation of a deer fence (electric this time) and give the trees from the spring planting some TLC with some water, mulch and beating back of some competitive weeds.
We'd love your help in accomplishing as much as we can on this day! Because it's widely recognized as a community volunteer day, employers often allow staff to participate in the Day of Caring, so please ask about it at work.
A couple of perks include: 3 free meals that day, a sense of accomplishment, and a t-shirt! Here's the schedule for the day:7:30am: Breakfast & Kick Off at War Memorial Park in Martinsburg
OR8:00am: Volunteer Open House & Refreshments at the Inn at Charles Town8:30am-4pm: Volunteers on Site (lunch provided around 12)4:30pm - 6pm: Dinner at the Clarion in Shepherdstown We'd love your help in accomplishing any of the tasks mentioned above. To sign up, please click on the link below. It will send you to a google doc spread sheet where you can provide me with your contact information and preferred task. I signed up myself as an example. If you are uncomfortable sharing your contact information in this way, please still sign up for your task, but you can send me a separate e-mail so I know how to reach you.
Everyone who signs up or contacts me will receive an e-mail the week before the Day of Caring with further instructions of what to bring, etc...
Thanks so much in advance for your help! Feel free to bring a friend! (But let me know ahead of time so I have enough food and shirts!)
Hope to see you soon!
Kristin Alexander
Potomac Valley Audubon Society
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/pub?hl=en_US&hl=en_US&key=0AmHKnqBGzzmjdGM3T0xLRzhtbXNLN3F2VFdoaWRpZ1E&output=html
_______
The City of Ranson will be participating in the United Way's "Day of Caring" on September 13th at Flowing Springs Park. Similar to the April 2 event, we'll be doing some tree planting, some invasive removal, trash pickup, installation of a deer fence (electric this time) and give the trees from the spring planting some TLC with some water, mulch and beating back of some competitive weeds.
We'd love your help in accomplishing as much as we can on this day! Because it's widely recognized as a community volunteer day, employers often allow staff to participate in the Day of Caring, so please ask about it at work.
A couple of perks include: 3 free meals that day, a sense of accomplishment, and a t-shirt! Here's the schedule for the day:7:30am: Breakfast & Kick Off at War Memorial Park in Martinsburg
OR8:00am: Volunteer Open House & Refreshments at the Inn at Charles Town8:30am-4pm: Volunteers on Site (lunch provided around 12)4:30pm - 6pm: Dinner at the Clarion in Shepherdstown We'd love your help in accomplishing any of the tasks mentioned above. To sign up, please click on the link below. It will send you to a google doc spread sheet where you can provide me with your contact information and preferred task. I signed up myself as an example. If you are uncomfortable sharing your contact information in this way, please still sign up for your task, but you can send me a separate e-mail so I know how to reach you.
Everyone who signs up or contacts me will receive an e-mail the week before the Day of Caring with further instructions of what to bring, etc...
Thanks so much in advance for your help! Feel free to bring a friend! (But let me know ahead of time so I have enough food and shirts!)
Hope to see you soon!
Kristin Alexander
Potomac Valley Audubon Society
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/pub?hl=en_US&hl=en_US&key=0AmHKnqBGzzmjdGM3T0xLRzhtbXNLN3F2VFdoaWRpZ1E&output=html
Blue Ridge Center for Environmental Stewardship courses
The Blue Ridge Center for Environmental Stewardship is located just off of Harper's Ferry Road, about 5 miles from Harper's Ferry. The BRCES is a beautiful spot--600 acres of largely pristine woods, streams, ponds with hiking trails, and education center, etc. I love to walking there. If the classes would qualify, feel free to pass on the information to others. There are also other classes if you take a look at the Website (blueridgecenter.org). Thanks!
Wild Edible Plant Walk
Instructor: Tim MacWelch
Sunday, September 18, 2011, 1 p.m. - 4 p.m.
$40 Members, $50 Non-members
Wild About Mushrooms
Instructor: Michael Judd
Saturday, September 24, 2011, 1 p.m. - 4 p.m.$10 Materials Fee + Registration Fee ($30 Members, $40 Non-members)
Karen Eddlemankmeddleman@comcast.net
Wild Edible Plant Walk
Instructor: Tim MacWelch
Sunday, September 18, 2011, 1 p.m. - 4 p.m.
$40 Members, $50 Non-members
Wild About Mushrooms
Instructor: Michael Judd
Saturday, September 24, 2011, 1 p.m. - 4 p.m.$10 Materials Fee + Registration Fee ($30 Members, $40 Non-members)
Karen Eddlemankmeddleman@comcast.net
National Hunting Days Sept 24 and 25
The annual National Hunting & Fishing Days Celebration will be held Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 24 & 25 at Stonewall Jackson Lake State Park. The WVDNR has several children’s activities that need volunteers. In years past we’ve had many Master Naturalists volunteer their time at this event.
The times are: Saturday 9:00-6:00 and Sunday 9:00-4:00. Folks can volunteer for any amount of time (all day, half day or even a few hours).
If you are interested in earning volunteer hours, please let me know at your earliest convenience and I’ll send you more details. Thanks for helping us in the past, your help is REALLY appreciated.
Jim Fregonara
WVDNR
Wildlife Resources Section
Wildlife Diversity Program
phone: 304-637-0245
fax: 304-637-0250
email: Jim.M.Fregonara@wv.gov
The times are: Saturday 9:00-6:00 and Sunday 9:00-4:00. Folks can volunteer for any amount of time (all day, half day or even a few hours).
If you are interested in earning volunteer hours, please let me know at your earliest convenience and I’ll send you more details. Thanks for helping us in the past, your help is REALLY appreciated.
Jim Fregonara
WVDNR
Wildlife Resources Section
Wildlife Diversity Program
phone: 304-637-0245
fax: 304-637-0250
email: Jim.M.Fregonara@wv.gov
Jefferson County Volunteer Opportunity
If you are looking for a really, really interesting project to earn some volunteer hours, this is a doozy! As a volunteer with this class, you’ll be helping with water quality testing (pH, DO, etc) at Flowing Springs Park. These students are already raising trout in their classroom! If you can only volunteer once, go for it! If you have the time volunteer on a regular basis you’ll be amazed at the relationships you develop with the students. If you are interested, contact Carolyn Thomas at the info below.
-Ellen
Students at in 7th grade at Wildwood Middle School in Jefferson County will be engaged in a year-long to answer the question "Can brook trout be reintroduced into Flowing Springs?" The brook trout, West Virginia’s only native trout, have been extirpated from the Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia due to degradation of habitat and poor water quality. Through classroom activities, research, service learning, and collaboration with community partners, students will analyze the specific needs of brook trout with respect to water quality, land use and ecosystems.They will then participate in the reclamation of habitat for fish while building awareness and connection to Flowing Springs Park in Ranson, West Virginia. Students will develop technical science skills to examine the life cycle and habitat needs of brook trout in order to assess the feasibility of reintroducing brook trout to Flowing Springs Park. Through our existing “Trout in the Classroom” program, students will raise brook trout in a cold water aquarium from egg to fry stage, while studying the life cycle of trout. Community partners are needed to work with the students in and out of the classroom. Students will be in the field at Flowing Springs beginning in September and continuing throughout the year. It is anticipated that most field work will be conducted on Wednesday mornings (9-11:30). Partners are especially needed in the field to help students with water testing protocols, equipment usage, plantings, etc. and to serve as chaperons, providing extra "eyes and ears".
If you are interested please contact Carolyn Thomas at crthomas25443@gmail.com.
-Ellen
Students at in 7th grade at Wildwood Middle School in Jefferson County will be engaged in a year-long to answer the question "Can brook trout be reintroduced into Flowing Springs?" The brook trout, West Virginia’s only native trout, have been extirpated from the Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia due to degradation of habitat and poor water quality. Through classroom activities, research, service learning, and collaboration with community partners, students will analyze the specific needs of brook trout with respect to water quality, land use and ecosystems.They will then participate in the reclamation of habitat for fish while building awareness and connection to Flowing Springs Park in Ranson, West Virginia. Students will develop technical science skills to examine the life cycle and habitat needs of brook trout in order to assess the feasibility of reintroducing brook trout to Flowing Springs Park. Through our existing “Trout in the Classroom” program, students will raise brook trout in a cold water aquarium from egg to fry stage, while studying the life cycle of trout. Community partners are needed to work with the students in and out of the classroom. Students will be in the field at Flowing Springs beginning in September and continuing throughout the year. It is anticipated that most field work will be conducted on Wednesday mornings (9-11:30). Partners are especially needed in the field to help students with water testing protocols, equipment usage, plantings, etc. and to serve as chaperons, providing extra "eyes and ears".
If you are interested please contact Carolyn Thomas at crthomas25443@gmail.com.
United Way Day of Caring
PVAS is also spearheading volunteer projects for the United Way Day of Caring at Flowing Springs Park (next to Home Depot in Ranson). We'll be battling invasives, planting trees, picking up trash, etc... All physical work, but generally a fun day because there are so many volunteers helping out. And you’ll get…
Free breakfast, lunch and dinner! And a t-shirt. Contact Kristin Alexander to volunteer (pvasmail@aol.com)
The date is September 13th. The complete schedule is: 7:30-8 Breakfast at War Memorial Park (not required, but it’s a nice free breakfast, especially if you are in Martinsburg anyway)
8:30-4:00 Work at Yankauer/Flowing Springs Park (lunch provided at site)
4:30-6:00 Dinner at the Clarion in S-town. (also not required, but the food is great and welcome after a hard day of work)
Free breakfast, lunch and dinner! And a t-shirt. Contact Kristin Alexander to volunteer (pvasmail@aol.com)
The date is September 13th. The complete schedule is: 7:30-8 Breakfast at War Memorial Park (not required, but it’s a nice free breakfast, especially if you are in Martinsburg anyway)
8:30-4:00 Work at Yankauer/Flowing Springs Park (lunch provided at site)
4:30-6:00 Dinner at the Clarion in S-town. (also not required, but the food is great and welcome after a hard day of work)
Boy Scout Council Volunteer Opportunity
Merit Badge counselors are needed for Troop 420 in Charles Town as well as the local Boy Scout Council.
Here are some topics for which Master Naturalists would excel as counselors: Animal Science, Astronomy, Bird Study, Environmental Science, Fish and Wildlife Management, Forestry, Geology, Insect Study, Mammal Study, Nature, Oceanography, Orienteering, Photography, Reptile and Amphibian Study, Soil and Water Conservation, Weather... Following site has requirements and record keeping sheets for each badge: meritbadge. org/wiki/index.php/Merit_Badge_Worksheets.
I hope that all of you will take advantage of this opportunity to share your expertise and passion with the younger generation. Your efforts would also help the next generation to protect, cherish and appreciate things we hold dear. Boys will be super motivated and deeply appreciative. Please help.
Contact Jim Jenkins, Master Naturalist and Assistant Scoutmaster at : jenkinsjim@att.blackberry.net or 571-209-7350 to volunteer or with questions or leads to other good people.
Here are some topics for which Master Naturalists would excel as counselors: Animal Science, Astronomy, Bird Study, Environmental Science, Fish and Wildlife Management, Forestry, Geology, Insect Study, Mammal Study, Nature, Oceanography, Orienteering, Photography, Reptile and Amphibian Study, Soil and Water Conservation, Weather... Following site has requirements and record keeping sheets for each badge: meritbadge. org/wiki/index.php/Merit_Badge_Worksheets.
I hope that all of you will take advantage of this opportunity to share your expertise and passion with the younger generation. Your efforts would also help the next generation to protect, cherish and appreciate things we hold dear. Boys will be super motivated and deeply appreciative. Please help.
Contact Jim Jenkins, Master Naturalist and Assistant Scoutmaster at : jenkinsjim@att.blackberry.net or 571-209-7350 to volunteer or with questions or leads to other good people.
Volunteer Opportunites
Many of you are looking for volunteer hours (VH) and there are a few things that you may want to know about. I have listed the event, time and place as I know it, and a contact person. If you are interested, YOU SHOULD GO AHEAD AND CONTACT THE COORDINATOR SO THAT YOU ARE INCLUDED FOR FURTHER INFORMATION. You can volunteer for everything or just partial help (days or specific times.)
The Day of Caring at Yankauer will be in September—maybe the 13th, but I’m not positive. This is a physical work day, but you get a free t-shirt and food. Contact Tim Murphy to volunteer. (timurf@comcast.net)
The Jefferson County Science Olympiad is September 26, 27, 28 and October 3, 4, 5, 8:00-1:00 p.m. daily. This involves presenting 40 minute hands-on sessions for 6th graders. Groups are generally 12-15 students with a chaperone. You present the same presentation 4 times each day. It is held at For Love of Children Outdoor Ed Center off Mission Rd near Harpers Ferry. Ellen can put you on that list for more info (pvasprograms@comcast.net).
The Berkeley Springs Birding Festival needs help. That’s September 16-18. Contact Helen Herlocker to volunteer and for more information on specific jobs. (hherlocker@gmail.com). There will also be classes and field excursions that you may enjoy.
The Charles Town Heritage Festival is September 17, 10-5 p.m. (set up 7:30-9:30). This is a “meet and greet” booth for PVAS and you can also talk about Master Naturalists. Contact Kristin Alexander (pvasmail@aol.com).
The Sharpsburg Heritage Festival is also September 17, 10-5 p.m. (set up 7:30-9:30). This is also a “meet and greet” booth for PVAS and Master Naturalists. (Same time as the Charles Town festival, but we have supplies for both places). Contact Kristin Alexander (pvasmail@aol.com).
Growing Native Seed Collection at Yankauer Preserve will be October 8, 10-12 noon. This is a fun event where you walk the trails at Yankauer and pick up nuts! Acorns, hickory nuts, etc are collected then sent to plant nurseries so that native trees can be cultivated for planting as buffer zones along local rivers and streams. Families often help with this. Contact Kristin Alexander (pvasmail@aol.com).
If you aren’t interested in any of this, there’s a whole section in your Master Naturalist binder about possible volunteer projects—6 or 8 pages. Most of those are citizen science ideas and you can contact the group to get involved.
Ellen and Wanda(Your friendly, neighborhood MN Member Services people)
The Day of Caring at Yankauer will be in September—maybe the 13th, but I’m not positive. This is a physical work day, but you get a free t-shirt and food. Contact Tim Murphy to volunteer. (timurf@comcast.net)
The Jefferson County Science Olympiad is September 26, 27, 28 and October 3, 4, 5, 8:00-1:00 p.m. daily. This involves presenting 40 minute hands-on sessions for 6th graders. Groups are generally 12-15 students with a chaperone. You present the same presentation 4 times each day. It is held at For Love of Children Outdoor Ed Center off Mission Rd near Harpers Ferry. Ellen can put you on that list for more info (pvasprograms@comcast.net).
The Berkeley Springs Birding Festival needs help. That’s September 16-18. Contact Helen Herlocker to volunteer and for more information on specific jobs. (hherlocker@gmail.com). There will also be classes and field excursions that you may enjoy.
The Charles Town Heritage Festival is September 17, 10-5 p.m. (set up 7:30-9:30). This is a “meet and greet” booth for PVAS and you can also talk about Master Naturalists. Contact Kristin Alexander (pvasmail@aol.com).
The Sharpsburg Heritage Festival is also September 17, 10-5 p.m. (set up 7:30-9:30). This is also a “meet and greet” booth for PVAS and Master Naturalists. (Same time as the Charles Town festival, but we have supplies for both places). Contact Kristin Alexander (pvasmail@aol.com).
Growing Native Seed Collection at Yankauer Preserve will be October 8, 10-12 noon. This is a fun event where you walk the trails at Yankauer and pick up nuts! Acorns, hickory nuts, etc are collected then sent to plant nurseries so that native trees can be cultivated for planting as buffer zones along local rivers and streams. Families often help with this. Contact Kristin Alexander (pvasmail@aol.com).
If you aren’t interested in any of this, there’s a whole section in your Master Naturalist binder about possible volunteer projects—6 or 8 pages. Most of those are citizen science ideas and you can contact the group to get involved.
Ellen and Wanda(Your friendly, neighborhood MN Member Services people)
Berkeley Springs Birding Festival
If you are look for some volunteer hours or elective class hours, the Fall Berkeley Springs Birding Festival might be just the thing! This is a terrific opportunity, very close to us and most of it is free! The preliminary poster is below.
If you are looking for volunteer hours, there are several ways you can be involved:
Be a volunteer at the reception booth for an hour or two (give out programs, sell tee shirts, answer questions or help with directions etc.). Please sign up for a two hour time slot on Friday between 4 pm and 9 pm, on Saturday between 9 am and 9:30 pm, or on Sunday between 9 am and noon. Contact Judy Webb at natureniche@earthlink.net.
Volunteer to help with this year’s Silent Auction. Last year this event was generously supported by donations from local artists, organizations, shops, and individuals and purchased by birders attending the evening events. It was a tremendous help to off-set expenses. If you would like to donate an item or help with the auction, please contact Helen Herlocker at hherlocker@gmail.com
If you are looking for volunteer hours, there are several ways you can be involved:
Be a volunteer at the reception booth for an hour or two (give out programs, sell tee shirts, answer questions or help with directions etc.). Please sign up for a two hour time slot on Friday between 4 pm and 9 pm, on Saturday between 9 am and 9:30 pm, or on Sunday between 9 am and noon. Contact Judy Webb at natureniche@earthlink.net.
Volunteer to help with this year’s Silent Auction. Last year this event was generously supported by donations from local artists, organizations, shops, and individuals and purchased by birders attending the evening events. It was a tremendous help to off-set expenses. If you would like to donate an item or help with the auction, please contact Helen Herlocker at hherlocker@gmail.com
PVAS Picnic
Don’t miss one of the best (eating) events of the year! This Saturday, June 11, is the PVAS annual meeting at 6:30 p.m. in the pavilion at the Yankauer Nature Preserve.
All PVAS members are invited and children are welcome! As a MN, you were given a one-year membership in PVAS and if you haven’t already renewed, you can come and remember what makes PVAS such a great organization.
The meeting includes the election of directors and recognition of volunteers, but we always eat first!! (And the meeting is pretty short.)
The potluck supper is provided by YOU and everyone asked to bring a dish to share. Those whose last names begin with the letters A-H are asked to bring vegetables or fruit; I-L, a dessert; M-R, a protein dish; and S-Z, a starch dish. The chances are good that some of the BEST pies you will ever eat will be there (hint, hint, Susan!)
All are asked to bring their own dishes, flatware, and the like. You might also want to bring a lawn chair if you don’t want to sit on the benches.PVAS will provide water and lemonade.
For more info, contact Kristin Alexander at 304-676-3397 or pvasmail@aol.com
All PVAS members are invited and children are welcome! As a MN, you were given a one-year membership in PVAS and if you haven’t already renewed, you can come and remember what makes PVAS such a great organization.
The meeting includes the election of directors and recognition of volunteers, but we always eat first!! (And the meeting is pretty short.)
The potluck supper is provided by YOU and everyone asked to bring a dish to share. Those whose last names begin with the letters A-H are asked to bring vegetables or fruit; I-L, a dessert; M-R, a protein dish; and S-Z, a starch dish. The chances are good that some of the BEST pies you will ever eat will be there (hint, hint, Susan!)
All are asked to bring their own dishes, flatware, and the like. You might also want to bring a lawn chair if you don’t want to sit on the benches.PVAS will provide water and lemonade.
For more info, contact Kristin Alexander at 304-676-3397 or pvasmail@aol.com
The Marcellus Academy
As Master Naturalists, we are not allowed to use our status to support or oppose political issues. However, you are certainly allowed to attend events and opportunities that interest you as an individual. This may be of interest to some.
================================================================================
Meals and lodging are provided, mileage is reimbursed.
Registration is limited, so get your application in early.
Schedule below.
The purpose of the Marcellus Academy is to educate volunteer activists about the facts and impacts of drilling with horizontal hydraulic fracturing and to train them on how to bring about meaningful regulation.
There may be a special session this summer to pass Marcellus regulation and we want to be ready to show our legislators how we voters feel, as opposed to hordes of well paid industry lobbyists. Marcellus Academy will train a new cadre of activists who can proactively work on Marcellus in their communities and build grassroots support for new legislation.
You ideally would be willing to organize citizens in your communities by talking to neighbors, holding meetings, giving presentations, organizing house parties…..generally serving as a leader for building public support. The training will also equip you to enlist others to help you with these tasks.
All of your expenses for the workshop (lodging, meals, mileage) will be covered by WV Sierra Club. Several environmental organizations in WV are collaborating on this workshop, but no personal affiliation with any of them is necessary. The program will run from 10AM Saturday until 3PM Sunday.
Our trainers have backgrounds in politics, lobbying, geology, organizing and activism. There will be sessions on direct action organizing, including identifying goals, targets, strategies and tactics; how to do house parties, LTEs, planning events and news media. Saturday evening will be “entertainment” by videos of experts from other states. Sunday, trainees will do actual planning, report-backs, role playing, and then refining action plans.
We want to stress that there is limited space so only a limited number of registrations will be accepted. Applicants will be considered based primarily on geographical region, resulting in new organizers in as many regions as possible. We do hope to see more than one person from a community, so they can be a team, but the number will depend on applications from the rest of the state.
Since space is limited, please respond as soon as possible listing your name, address, county, phone number and email. If you cannot attend but know of someone in your community who fits our guidelines and could benefit from joining us, please let us know. Again, they should be people who can make a clear commitment to do what it takes to build local grassroots on their home turf.
We hope you will consider this opportunity to grow our numbers and create a strong, intelligent response to the challenge of Marcellus drilling in our neighborhoods.
Here's the agenda for the weekend. We hope to see you there.
Contact: Chuck Wyrostok, Sierra Club Outreach Organizer
Toll free 877 252 0257 E: outreach@marcellus-wv.com http://www.marcellus-wv.com/
Marcellus Academy
June 18-19
West Virginia Wesleyan College, Buckhannon
Purpose: To train activists to be ready to take on the Marcellus issue in the special and regular legislative session and to proactively work on Marcellus in their communities.
Schedule
Saturday
10:00 Coffee and Registration
10:30 Welcome and Introductions
10:45 Kickoff - Hiram Lewis, Morgantown, WV, a fiery lawyer who has battled to protect citizen
land owners from the worst abuses of the Marcellus onslaught.
11:30 Training Goals & Objectives Orientation – Jim Kotcon, Chair, WV Sierra Club Energy Committee;
teaches environmental protection at WVU
12:00 Lunch
1:00 Marcellus Geology and Drilling Technology – what actually happens - Dan Soeder, Sierra Club member
and geologist with 30 years experience in shale gas drilling and hydrology
2:00 Regulation - current regulation, needed regulation – Don Garvin, WV Environmental Council
Legislative Coordinator
3:00 Break
3:15 How to get what we want - strategy and tactics – Chuck Wyrostok, Outreach Organizer WV Sierra Club;
Leslee McCarty & John Christensen, WV Environmental Council lobbyists;
Jim Kotcon, WV Sierra Club Energy Committee; Beth Little, WV Sierra Club
Marcellus Campaign Chair
4:30 The WV Legislature - who’s who, how it works – Delegate Mike Manypenny (D-Taylor Co.)
5:30 Supper
7:30 Video presentations – Ron Bishop, Anthony Ingraffea,
“A Snowmobile for George”, “Gasland”
Sunday
8:00 Breakfast
8:45 Risks - what has happened, what can happen – Beth Little, WV Sierra Club Marcellus
Campaign Chair
9:30 Legal Framework - surface owners, mineral owners, contracts - Dave McMahon,
Director, WV Surface Owners’ Rights Organization
10:30 Break
10:45 Environmental Activist Skills and Resources - Bill Price, Sierra Club Organizing
Representative, Environmental Justice Program, Beyond Coal to Clean
Energy Campaign
12:00 Lunch – Groups meet over lunch and do local planning
1:00 Report Back & Role Playing
2:30 Refine Plans Develop Action Schedules
================================================================================
ANNOUNCEMENT OF EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITY
Presented by the WV Sierra Club
THE MARCELLUS ACADEMY
A Weekend of presentations and workshops about Marcellus shale gas drilling in WV
June 18-19, 2011 at WV Wesleyan College in Buckhannon.
Meals and lodging are provided, mileage is reimbursed.
Registration is limited, so get your application in early.
Schedule below.
The purpose of the Marcellus Academy is to educate volunteer activists about the facts and impacts of drilling with horizontal hydraulic fracturing and to train them on how to bring about meaningful regulation.
There may be a special session this summer to pass Marcellus regulation and we want to be ready to show our legislators how we voters feel, as opposed to hordes of well paid industry lobbyists. Marcellus Academy will train a new cadre of activists who can proactively work on Marcellus in their communities and build grassroots support for new legislation.
You ideally would be willing to organize citizens in your communities by talking to neighbors, holding meetings, giving presentations, organizing house parties…..generally serving as a leader for building public support. The training will also equip you to enlist others to help you with these tasks.
All of your expenses for the workshop (lodging, meals, mileage) will be covered by WV Sierra Club. Several environmental organizations in WV are collaborating on this workshop, but no personal affiliation with any of them is necessary. The program will run from 10AM Saturday until 3PM Sunday.
Our trainers have backgrounds in politics, lobbying, geology, organizing and activism. There will be sessions on direct action organizing, including identifying goals, targets, strategies and tactics; how to do house parties, LTEs, planning events and news media. Saturday evening will be “entertainment” by videos of experts from other states. Sunday, trainees will do actual planning, report-backs, role playing, and then refining action plans.
We want to stress that there is limited space so only a limited number of registrations will be accepted. Applicants will be considered based primarily on geographical region, resulting in new organizers in as many regions as possible. We do hope to see more than one person from a community, so they can be a team, but the number will depend on applications from the rest of the state.
Since space is limited, please respond as soon as possible listing your name, address, county, phone number and email. If you cannot attend but know of someone in your community who fits our guidelines and could benefit from joining us, please let us know. Again, they should be people who can make a clear commitment to do what it takes to build local grassroots on their home turf.
We hope you will consider this opportunity to grow our numbers and create a strong, intelligent response to the challenge of Marcellus drilling in our neighborhoods.
Here's the agenda for the weekend. We hope to see you there.
Contact: Chuck Wyrostok, Sierra Club Outreach Organizer
Toll free 877 252 0257 E: outreach@marcellus-wv.com http://www.marcellus-wv.com/
Marcellus Academy
June 18-19
West Virginia Wesleyan College, Buckhannon
Purpose: To train activists to be ready to take on the Marcellus issue in the special and regular legislative session and to proactively work on Marcellus in their communities.
Schedule
Saturday
10:00 Coffee and Registration
10:30 Welcome and Introductions
10:45 Kickoff - Hiram Lewis, Morgantown, WV, a fiery lawyer who has battled to protect citizen
land owners from the worst abuses of the Marcellus onslaught.
11:30 Training Goals & Objectives Orientation – Jim Kotcon, Chair, WV Sierra Club Energy Committee;
teaches environmental protection at WVU
12:00 Lunch
1:00 Marcellus Geology and Drilling Technology – what actually happens - Dan Soeder, Sierra Club member
and geologist with 30 years experience in shale gas drilling and hydrology
2:00 Regulation - current regulation, needed regulation – Don Garvin, WV Environmental Council
Legislative Coordinator
3:00 Break
3:15 How to get what we want - strategy and tactics – Chuck Wyrostok, Outreach Organizer WV Sierra Club;
Leslee McCarty & John Christensen, WV Environmental Council lobbyists;
Jim Kotcon, WV Sierra Club Energy Committee; Beth Little, WV Sierra Club
Marcellus Campaign Chair
4:30 The WV Legislature - who’s who, how it works – Delegate Mike Manypenny (D-Taylor Co.)
5:30 Supper
7:30 Video presentations – Ron Bishop, Anthony Ingraffea,
“A Snowmobile for George”, “Gasland”
Sunday
8:00 Breakfast
8:45 Risks - what has happened, what can happen – Beth Little, WV Sierra Club Marcellus
Campaign Chair
9:30 Legal Framework - surface owners, mineral owners, contracts - Dave McMahon,
Director, WV Surface Owners’ Rights Organization
10:30 Break
10:45 Environmental Activist Skills and Resources - Bill Price, Sierra Club Organizing
Representative, Environmental Justice Program, Beyond Coal to Clean
Energy Campaign
12:00 Lunch – Groups meet over lunch and do local planning
1:00 Report Back & Role Playing
2:30 Refine Plans Develop Action Schedules
PVAS preschool Volunteer Opportunity
If you are looking for some volunteer hours, and you like working with kids, this is for you! The PVAS preschool session for 3 and 4 year olds and a parent is Tuesday May 31-June 3. Hours are 9:00 a.m.-11:30 a.m. This is at Yankauer Nature Preserve in Berkeley County, between Shepherdstown and Martinsburg.
You are NOT in charge of the program, just helping the main instructor with distributing materials, getting activities set up, and helping with the activities. Parents accompany their camper so all kids have a parent on site and involved in the activities.
All hours count toward Master Naturalist certification. Help each day during the week and you have 10 hours!
If you are interested, contact Ellen Murphy.
You are NOT in charge of the program, just helping the main instructor with distributing materials, getting activities set up, and helping with the activities. Parents accompany their camper so all kids have a parent on site and involved in the activities.
All hours count toward Master Naturalist certification. Help each day during the week and you have 10 hours!
If you are interested, contact Ellen Murphy.
Mile-A-Minute Volunteer Opportunity
Saturday June 4 is the MN effort to remove Mile-A-Minute at Flowing Springs Park in Ranson (next to Home Depot). Time is 10 a.m.-12 noon.
This is not a lot of time, but with many hands, we will pull a lot of this weed! Bring leather gloves (we have some).
PLEASE let me know if you plan to attend so that we will know how many to plan for. This is a great way to earn 2 hours of volunteer time (VH)!!
We have a present for you if you help! And, yes, you can bring friends along.
email: Ellen & Wanda
This is not a lot of time, but with many hands, we will pull a lot of this weed! Bring leather gloves (we have some).
PLEASE let me know if you plan to attend so that we will know how many to plan for. This is a great way to earn 2 hours of volunteer time (VH)!!
We have a present for you if you help! And, yes, you can bring friends along.
email: Ellen & Wanda
Weed ID local workshop
The Potomac Highlands Cooperative Weed and Pest Management Area is hosting a free Invasive Species Identification Workshop on Saturday, May 21st 2011 at Thorn Spring Park in Franklin, WV.
The workshop is from 9:30 am – 2:00 pm with lunch provided at 11:30 am. Registration is required for the provided lunch, so please respond as soon as possible!
Please come and meet others in the community who are concerned about and trying to address the problems associated with invasive species. Presentations on woody and non-woody plants as well as pests will be given along with more detailed information on Emerald Ash Borers and the effects on Ash trees. Guided walks at Thorn Spring Park will begin shortly after lunch for an opportunity to view invasive species first hand!
Please view the attached flyer for more information. If you have any questions, feel free to contact me at anytime.
Looking forward to seeing you this Saturday!
Andrea Brandon
The workshop is from 9:30 am – 2:00 pm with lunch provided at 11:30 am. Registration is required for the provided lunch, so please respond as soon as possible!
Please come and meet others in the community who are concerned about and trying to address the problems associated with invasive species. Presentations on woody and non-woody plants as well as pests will be given along with more detailed information on Emerald Ash Borers and the effects on Ash trees. Guided walks at Thorn Spring Park will begin shortly after lunch for an opportunity to view invasive species first hand!
Please view the attached flyer for more information. If you have any questions, feel free to contact me at anytime.
Looking forward to seeing you this Saturday!
Andrea Brandon
PollinatorLIVE Program
We have so many opportunities that come to us from NCTC that it is amazing. Here is the link to video on pollinators that you may be interested in. After you watch it, there is another link to a feedback form.
Greetings Pollinator Partners:
If you weren't able to watch "Nature's Partners: Pollinators, Plants and
People" live on April 13, the program is now available as streaming video at
http://pollinatorlive.pwnet.org/webcasts/natures_partners.php. (Make sure
you refresh the page to access the proper videos.) The program is available
in English and Spanish. Watching the video and conducting a lesson plan
available at http://pollinatorlive.pwnet.org/teacher/lessons.php would be a
great end-of-the-school-year activity to get students learning outside.
EVALUATIONS AND PRIZES
Your feedback is important to us. After you watch the program, please fill
out an evaluation at http://pollinatorlive.pwnet.org/evaluation.php. As
thanks for completing the survey, we will: send you a Bee Basics booklet and
maps of the national forests and national refuges; enter your name into
drawing to win one of 10 garden baskets full of educational tools and
materials to help pollinators; and plant one milkweed plant in a school
garden or USDA People's Garden to help our pollinator friends during their
lifecycles!
MORE INFORMATION AND LESSON PLANS
The April 13 program at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center was the last
live event planned for PollinatorLIVE. However, all of the previous
webcasts are available on the web site at http://pollinatorlive.pwnet.org
to watch with your class at any time. For more information, lesson plans,
resources that meet National Science Education Standards, or citizen science
activities, check out the web site.
Questions? Contact Kristy Liercke at lierckkx@pwcs.edu or at (800)
609-2680. PollinatorLIVE is brought to you by the USDA Forest Service,
Partners in Resource Education, and many other sponsors and partners.
Greetings Pollinator Partners:
If you weren't able to watch "Nature's Partners: Pollinators, Plants and
People" live on April 13, the program is now available as streaming video at
http://pollinatorlive.pwnet.org/webcasts/natures_partners.php. (Make sure
you refresh the page to access the proper videos.) The program is available
in English and Spanish. Watching the video and conducting a lesson plan
available at http://pollinatorlive.pwnet.org/teacher/lessons.php would be a
great end-of-the-school-year activity to get students learning outside.
EVALUATIONS AND PRIZES
Your feedback is important to us. After you watch the program, please fill
out an evaluation at http://pollinatorlive.pwnet.org/evaluation.php. As
thanks for completing the survey, we will: send you a Bee Basics booklet and
maps of the national forests and national refuges; enter your name into
drawing to win one of 10 garden baskets full of educational tools and
materials to help pollinators; and plant one milkweed plant in a school
garden or USDA People's Garden to help our pollinator friends during their
lifecycles!
MORE INFORMATION AND LESSON PLANS
The April 13 program at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center was the last
live event planned for PollinatorLIVE. However, all of the previous
webcasts are available on the web site at http://pollinatorlive.pwnet.org
to watch with your class at any time. For more information, lesson plans,
resources that meet National Science Education Standards, or citizen science
activities, check out the web site.
Questions? Contact Kristy Liercke at lierckkx@pwcs.edu or at (800)
609-2680. PollinatorLIVE is brought to you by the USDA Forest Service,
Partners in Resource Education, and many other sponsors and partners.
Harpers Ferry Volunteer Opportunities
Good Morning Hike Leaders!
We have just a few hikes left for this school year and I am looking for some
folks to help lead them. On May 2, HFMS students would like to hike from
Keys Gap to Harpers Ferry along the AT. This hike will board a bus at
school at 9:00 and will be back at school at 2:00. On May 5 and May 6 I am
looking for a hike leader to do an easy or medium difficulty hike with
students from Wildwood. A hike schedule with the specifics for the rest of
the year is attached below. Please let me know if you are able to lead one
of these hikes.
Below is a flier for a GPS training we are offering for all hike
leaders or potential hike leaders. Please RSVP to me by 4/29 to participate
in this training.
Looking forward to hearing from you soon!
Amber Kraft
Education Specialist
Harpers Ferry National Historical Park
Phone: 304-535-6293
Amber_Kraft@nps.gov
We have just a few hikes left for this school year and I am looking for some
folks to help lead them. On May 2, HFMS students would like to hike from
Keys Gap to Harpers Ferry along the AT. This hike will board a bus at
school at 9:00 and will be back at school at 2:00. On May 5 and May 6 I am
looking for a hike leader to do an easy or medium difficulty hike with
students from Wildwood. A hike schedule with the specifics for the rest of
the year is attached below. Please let me know if you are able to lead one
of these hikes.
Below is a flier for a GPS training we are offering for all hike
leaders or potential hike leaders. Please RSVP to me by 4/29 to participate
in this training.
Looking forward to hearing from you soon!
Amber Kraft
Education Specialist
Harpers Ferry National Historical Park
Phone: 304-535-6293
Amber_Kraft@nps.gov
Pharmaceutical Collection Event Comes to Berkeley County
On April 30, 2011, the Berkeley County Sheriff's Department will conduct a collection event of expired, unwanted or unused pharmaceutical controlled substances and other medications for destruction.
This event is part of a National Take-Back Day initiative by the United States Drug Enforcement Agency to coordinate a collaborative effort with state and local law enforcement agencies to remove potentially dangerous controlled substances from our nation’s medicine cabinets. Collection activities will take place from 10:00 a.m. through 2:00 p.m. at two sites established in the county. The National Take-Back Day provides an opportunity for the public to surrender expired, unwanted, or unused pharmaceutical controlled substances and other medications for destruction. These drugs are a potential source of supply for illegal use and an unacceptable risk to public health and safety. In addition, many Americans do not know how to properly dispose of their unused medicine, often flushing them down the toilet or throwing them away – both potential safety and health hazards.
This one-day effort is intended to bring national focus to the issue of increasing pharmaceutical controlled substance abuse.
•The program is anonymous.
•Prescription and over the counter solid dosage medications, i.e. tablets and capsules accepted.
•Intra-venous solutions, injectables, and needles will not be accepted.
•Illicit substances such as marijuana or methamphetamines are not a part of this initiative.
The two collection sites in Berkeley County are:
1) Hedgesville Volunteer Fire Department
4217 Hedgesville Road
Hedgesville, WV 25427
2) South Berkeley Volunteer Fire Department
8009 Winchester Avenue
Inwood, WV 25428
More regional locations can be found at: Find collection site(s) near you
Should you have any questions or comments, please contact Lt. Gary Harmison of the Berkeley County Sheriff's Department at 304-267-7000.
This event is part of a National Take-Back Day initiative by the United States Drug Enforcement Agency to coordinate a collaborative effort with state and local law enforcement agencies to remove potentially dangerous controlled substances from our nation’s medicine cabinets. Collection activities will take place from 10:00 a.m. through 2:00 p.m. at two sites established in the county. The National Take-Back Day provides an opportunity for the public to surrender expired, unwanted, or unused pharmaceutical controlled substances and other medications for destruction. These drugs are a potential source of supply for illegal use and an unacceptable risk to public health and safety. In addition, many Americans do not know how to properly dispose of their unused medicine, often flushing them down the toilet or throwing them away – both potential safety and health hazards.
This one-day effort is intended to bring national focus to the issue of increasing pharmaceutical controlled substance abuse.
•The program is anonymous.
•Prescription and over the counter solid dosage medications, i.e. tablets and capsules accepted.
•Intra-venous solutions, injectables, and needles will not be accepted.
•Illicit substances such as marijuana or methamphetamines are not a part of this initiative.
The two collection sites in Berkeley County are:
1) Hedgesville Volunteer Fire Department
4217 Hedgesville Road
Hedgesville, WV 25427
2) South Berkeley Volunteer Fire Department
8009 Winchester Avenue
Inwood, WV 25428
More regional locations can be found at: Find collection site(s) near you
Should you have any questions or comments, please contact Lt. Gary Harmison of the Berkeley County Sheriff's Department at 304-267-7000.
Mill Creek Volunteer Opportunity
Hi everyone, please consider joining us to plant some trees in Mill Creek watershed at Edgewood Manor on April 30, 2011, at 9:00 a.m.
Please consider sharing it with your local scout troop, church, Ruritan, garden club, etc etc!
Alana C. Hartman
WV Dept. of Environmental Protection, Potomac Basin Coordinator
HC 63 Box 2545 Romney, WV 26757 (304) 822-7266 alana.c.hartman@wv.gov
May Volunteer Opportunities
Most of these were postponed by the weather earlier this month.
May 3 and May 4 are 2nd graders at Yankauer, 8:30-1:00. We are in DESPERATE need on Tuesday May 3 as we have about 75 kids coming (with teachers and chaperones), but that is a HUGE group to handle with only 2 people.
May 5 is a hike on the Kingfisher Trail with middle school students from The Park School in Baltimore. They come every year as a school trip. Time is 2:15 to 3:45. There are only about 12 students expected (with chaperones).
May 24 and 25 are watershed field trips at Back Creek, on Route 9 past Hedgesville, just before Tomahawk School. This is 4th grade and we will have a couple of classes in the morning, then a couple right after lunch. Time is approximately 8:30-2 p.m. Activities will be water quality testing, looking for macroinvertebrates, and a short nature hike/stream bank assessment.
May 26 is a watershed field trip at Mountain Ridge School on Route 45 out of Inwood (Exit 5 off I-81). We have several activities for them to do outside the school as well as cross the road to get to Mill Creek so they can look for macroinvertebrates. Time approximate is 8:30-2:00.
If you can think of someone who might like to help, please pass on the information or let Ellen know and she will contact them. (It all counts as VH!)
Growing Up WILD Volunteer Opportunity
If you are interested, this would count as about 4 hours for elective or recertification. This is a preschool program and a good one.
Hello WILD folks,
I am pleased to announce an upcoming Growing Up WILD workshop in Romney, WV, May 12, 2011. Please see attached for details. Please feel free to forward this to anyone you think might want to attend as a participant. If you are a facilitator and are interested in attending with me to observe and help, please contact me. Thanks.
Karen McClure
Project Wild Coordinator
WVDNR - Wildlife Resources
---------------------------------------------
Hello WILD folks,
I am pleased to announce an upcoming Growing Up WILD workshop in Romney, WV, May 12, 2011. Please see attached for details. Please feel free to forward this to anyone you think might want to attend as a participant. If you are a facilitator and are interested in attending with me to observe and help, please contact me. Thanks.
Karen McClure
Project Wild Coordinator
WVDNR - Wildlife Resources
---------------------------------------------
Meet Your Standards with Wildlife Activities in Classrooms – Scouts – Parks - Camps
Fun, engaging activities about animals
WILD Days for ages 3-7
Correlated to Head Start and NAEYC standards and scout badges.
Free workshop and Curriculum Guide
Hosted by Brittny Redman, Romney Little Rascals Day Care
Directions: 53 W Main ST Romney, WV 304-822-3456
Dress to be Active Inside AND Outside
Thursday, May 12, 2011. 9:00 am until 2:00 pm
For more information, check out www.projectwild.org/GrowingUpWILD.htm
To sign up, please email Brittny Redman: mrsredman@live.com
For questions, please contact Karen McClure: karen.a.mcclure@wv.gov
WV Garlic Mustard Challenge
The West Virginia Garlic Mustard Challenge is coming to Yankauer Nature Preserve on Saturday May 7 from 10 a.m.-12 noon! It is sponsored by PVMN and all members are encouraged to be there! There’s certainly plenty of garlic mustard to pull and it’s always more fun to have lots of volunteers helping. Bring your family and friends even if you can only stay for an hour.
This is our first PVMN sponsored service project for the year. Others are the Mile A Minute Eradication effort at Flowing Springs Park on Saturday June 4 and service projects at Cacapon State Park and Yankauer Nature Preserve later this year.
The Garlic Mustard Challenge is a cooperative effort by the Monongahela National Forest, the Potomac Highlands Cooperative Weed and Pest Management Area, and the Appalachian Forest Heritage Area. This is the third year of the Garlic Mustard Challenge. The state goal for 2011 is pulling up 20,000 pounds of garlic mustard!
Garlic mustard is one of West Virginia’s most invasive plant species. It out competes native plants by hogging all the light, moisture, nutrients, soil and space. Garlic mustard also deprives wildlife, such as the rare West Virginia white butterfly, of food sources that are instrumental to their survival. Garlic mustard likes the moist, shaded soil of floodplains, forests, roadsides and forest openings. Areas that have been disturbed are even more vulnerable to invasion.
We look forward to your help on May 4!
Ellen, Wanda, Krystal, and Nancy
This is our first PVMN sponsored service project for the year. Others are the Mile A Minute Eradication effort at Flowing Springs Park on Saturday June 4 and service projects at Cacapon State Park and Yankauer Nature Preserve later this year.
The Garlic Mustard Challenge is a cooperative effort by the Monongahela National Forest, the Potomac Highlands Cooperative Weed and Pest Management Area, and the Appalachian Forest Heritage Area. This is the third year of the Garlic Mustard Challenge. The state goal for 2011 is pulling up 20,000 pounds of garlic mustard!
Garlic mustard is one of West Virginia’s most invasive plant species. It out competes native plants by hogging all the light, moisture, nutrients, soil and space. Garlic mustard also deprives wildlife, such as the rare West Virginia white butterfly, of food sources that are instrumental to their survival. Garlic mustard likes the moist, shaded soil of floodplains, forests, roadsides and forest openings. Areas that have been disturbed are even more vulnerable to invasion.
We look forward to your help on May 4!
Ellen, Wanda, Krystal, and Nancy
Opequon Creek Volunteer Opportunities
Greetings from Opequon Creek Project Team,
We have two great volunteer activities. The annual Alice P. Ferguson cleanup event is this Saturday, April 9, 9:00 AM, at Stonebridge on Flaggs Crossing Road near Blairton Road just east of Martinsburg and just west of Stonebridge Golf Course. We will be cleaning the creek side and wooded area around the public access parking lot. Join us if you can!
The second event is a buffer planting next week on the Opequon. More information about this event is on the flyer below.
These events are held rain or shine. Please dress according to the weather.
Thanks for all your help!
We have two great volunteer activities. The annual Alice P. Ferguson cleanup event is this Saturday, April 9, 9:00 AM, at Stonebridge on Flaggs Crossing Road near Blairton Road just east of Martinsburg and just west of Stonebridge Golf Course. We will be cleaning the creek side and wooded area around the public access parking lot. Join us if you can!
The second event is a buffer planting next week on the Opequon. More information about this event is on the flyer below.
These events are held rain or shine. Please dress according to the weather.
Thanks for all your help!
Local Pollinators Volunteer Opportunity
This spring, I am enlisting the help of interested volunteers to observe local pollinators of spring beauty (Claytonia virginica and Claytonia caroliniana). I thought you all might be interested in observing and learning about the pollinators of these native plants!
This project aims to document changing pollinator populations - by monitoring the insects that visit spring beauty throughout the eastern US, we can determine how pollinator communities change depending on the year, the location, and the season. This information will help us better understand the biology of native pollinators, as well as help us determine the best way to evaluate their value for native plant reproduction. At the same time, you will learn more about the native bees and flies visiting our early spring flora, and spend some time outdoors during the lovely spring weather.
To help, you need to be able to get to a patch of our study plants, Claytonia virginica and Claytonia caroliniana, which are easily found throughout the Eastern US and southeastern Ontario. We'll help you learn to distinguish the plants and pollinators, and assist you with questions along the way. We ask for about 2 hours of observations over the course of three weeks, all during sunny weather. As you observe, you'll fill out data sheets (which we will provide), which you will then mail or email to us along with any comments or concerns.
For more information, visit http://springbeauties.wordpress.com. To volunteer, please email spring.beauty.pollinators@gmail.com with your name and location. We'll get in touch with you soon with more information!
Thank you very much,
Alison Parker
Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
University of Toronto
This project aims to document changing pollinator populations - by monitoring the insects that visit spring beauty throughout the eastern US, we can determine how pollinator communities change depending on the year, the location, and the season. This information will help us better understand the biology of native pollinators, as well as help us determine the best way to evaluate their value for native plant reproduction. At the same time, you will learn more about the native bees and flies visiting our early spring flora, and spend some time outdoors during the lovely spring weather.
To help, you need to be able to get to a patch of our study plants, Claytonia virginica and Claytonia caroliniana, which are easily found throughout the Eastern US and southeastern Ontario. We'll help you learn to distinguish the plants and pollinators, and assist you with questions along the way. We ask for about 2 hours of observations over the course of three weeks, all during sunny weather. As you observe, you'll fill out data sheets (which we will provide), which you will then mail or email to us along with any comments or concerns.
For more information, visit http://springbeauties.
Thank you very much,
Alison Parker
Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
University of Toronto
Frog eggs
Did you know that frogs tend to lay their eggs in masses, while toads tend to lay them in long chains? This photo, by 2010 classmate Scott MacKinnon, taken at Sleepy Creek on March 12th, shows a typical mass of frog eggs. It takes anywhere between 6-21 days for the eggs to hatch, after being fertilized. Scott said he visited the small pond again just this week and most of the frogs have hatched and are now little pollywogs.
Here's a link I found on the Wisconsin DNR site to help you identify frog spawn that you find this Spring. Click here.
Thanks Scott!
Eagle Cams
We have posted 2 links to the right of this post under Interesting Links. The links are for local eagle cams.
Unfortunately there has been some disturbance at the nest on the NCTC eagle cam and much discussion in regards to the happenings, of which you can read about here. The eagle chick, which hatched on March 17th, survived only a few days and it is unlikely to see any additional chicks hatch this season. There are high hopes to see the eagles nesting again next season. Stay tuned and you can keep a lookout yourself on the NCTC eagle cam here.
However the Norfolk Botantical Garden has a pair of eagles that began building their nest in 2003 and are being filmed beautifully along with their eaglets. Check out the Norfolk Botantical Garden eagle cam here.
Unfortunately there has been some disturbance at the nest on the NCTC eagle cam and much discussion in regards to the happenings, of which you can read about here. The eagle chick, which hatched on March 17th, survived only a few days and it is unlikely to see any additional chicks hatch this season. There are high hopes to see the eagles nesting again next season. Stay tuned and you can keep a lookout yourself on the NCTC eagle cam here.
However the Norfolk Botantical Garden has a pair of eagles that began building their nest in 2003 and are being filmed beautifully along with their eaglets. Check out the Norfolk Botantical Garden eagle cam here.
Feathers in Flight: A Birding Seminar at Ivrine Nature Center
Join Irvine for its first annual birding seminar, Feathers in Flight, scheduled for Saturday, April 9, 2011. The exciting new event will feature a keynote from nationally known naturalists Clay & Pat Sutton. This is a great opportunity for beginner, intermediate and advanced birders to increase their knowledge and skills.
Below is a brochure for the event, including a pricing information, times and a registration form. Contact Courtney Sagal if you have any questions.
Courtney Sagal
Education Administrative Assistant
Irvine Nature Center
11201 Garrison Forest Road
Owings Mills, MD 21117
443-738-9224
SagalC@ExploreNature.org
http://www.explorenature.org/
Below is a brochure for the event, including a pricing information, times and a registration form. Contact Courtney Sagal if you have any questions.
Courtney Sagal
Education Administrative Assistant
Irvine Nature Center
11201 Garrison Forest Road
Owings Mills, MD 21117
443-738-9224
SagalC@ExploreNature.org
http://www.explorenature.org/
Woods in Your Backyard
Below information promoting a workshop program in May called "Woods in your Backyard". This program would count for recertification hours if you have not already taken the class. Information times and cost are on the brochure.
If you have any questions please feel free to contact Jennifer Garlesky below.
Jennifer Garlesky
Conservation Specialist
West Virginia Conservation Agency
Eastern Panhandle Conservation District
151 Aikens Center, Suite 1
Martinsburg, WV 25401
Office: 304-263-4376 ext. 118
Cell: 304-951-1776
Fax: 304-263-4986
The West Virginia Division of Forestry and Forestry for the Bay will host a two part Woods in Your Backyard workshop for landowners in Berkeley & Jefferson Counties on May 5th & 12th.
Small lots, such as the one you may own, are a big deal. The vast majority of landowners in West Virginia have less than 10 acres. This land wooded or not is a vital for all. By enhancing wooded areas or creating natural areas on your lot, you can enjoy recreation, aesthetics, wildlife, improved water quality and more.
The Woods in your Backyard program was collaboratively developed by cooperative extension educators in the Mid Atlantic region to help meet the natural resources needs of a growing number of smaller acreage landowners. Owners of even just a few acres can make a positive difference in their environment through planning and implementing simple stewardship practices outlined in this program. Each workshop is two sessions one week apart. The time in-between is for the purpose of applying lessons. The sessions are designed to go over the program manual and provide guidance on how to use the resources.
Topics will include:
• Forest ecology & woodland management principles
• Tree identification techniques
• Wildlife habitat projects
• Converting lawn to natural areas
• Invasive species control
When:
Thursdays, May 5th & 12th
6:00 pm – 9:00 pm
Where:
Faith Christian Academy
138 Greensburg Road
Martinsburg, WV 25401
Cost for Workshop:
$15 individual or $20 family
Fee includes a book & light refreshments.
For more information, please contact
Craig Highfield, 410-267-5723, chighfield@chesapeakebay.net
Or visit: http://www.forestryforthebay.org/files/WBYBrochureWV1.pdf
If you have any questions please feel free to contact Jennifer Garlesky below.
Jennifer Garlesky
Conservation Specialist
West Virginia Conservation Agency
Eastern Panhandle Conservation District
151 Aikens Center, Suite 1
Martinsburg, WV 25401
Office: 304-263-4376 ext. 118
Cell: 304-951-1776
Fax: 304-263-4986
Small Woodlots are a Big Deal
The West Virginia Division of Forestry and Forestry for the Bay will host a two part Woods in Your Backyard workshop for landowners in Berkeley & Jefferson Counties on May 5th & 12th.
Small lots, such as the one you may own, are a big deal. The vast majority of landowners in West Virginia have less than 10 acres. This land wooded or not is a vital for all. By enhancing wooded areas or creating natural areas on your lot, you can enjoy recreation, aesthetics, wildlife, improved water quality and more.
The Woods in your Backyard program was collaboratively developed by cooperative extension educators in the Mid Atlantic region to help meet the natural resources needs of a growing number of smaller acreage landowners. Owners of even just a few acres can make a positive difference in their environment through planning and implementing simple stewardship practices outlined in this program. Each workshop is two sessions one week apart. The time in-between is for the purpose of applying lessons. The sessions are designed to go over the program manual and provide guidance on how to use the resources.
Topics will include:
• Forest ecology & woodland management principles
• Tree identification techniques
• Wildlife habitat projects
• Converting lawn to natural areas
• Invasive species control
When:
Thursdays, May 5th & 12th
6:00 pm – 9:00 pm
Where:
Faith Christian Academy
138 Greensburg Road
Martinsburg, WV 25401
Cost for Workshop:
$15 individual or $20 family
Fee includes a book & light refreshments.
For more information, please contact
Craig Highfield, 410-267-5723, chighfield@chesapeakebay.net
Or visit: http://www.forestryforthebay.org/files/WBYBrochureWV1.pdf
GLOBE at Night: March 22 - April 4
GLOBE at Night 2011
Less of Our Light for More Star Light!
Join the 6th worldwide GLOBE at Night 2011 Campaign
22 March to 4 April 2011: Northern Hemisphere Leo Observation Campaign
With half of the world’s population now living in cities, many urban dwellers have never experienced the wonderment of pristinely dark skies and maybe never will. This loss, caused by light pollution, is a concern on many fronts: safety, energy conservation, cost, health and effects on wildlife, as well as our ability to view the stars. Even though light pollution is a serious and growing global concern, it is one of the easiest environmental problems you can address on local levels. Participation in the international star-hunting campaign, GLOBE at Night, helps to address the light pollution issue locally as well as globally.
This year, 2 sets of campaigns are being offered. For the first campaign from February 21 through March 6, 2011, everyone all over the world is invited to record the brightness of the night sky. The second campaign runs from March 22 through April 4 in the Northern Hemisphere and March 24 through April 6 in the Southern Hemisphere. The campaign is easy and fun to do. First, you match the appearance of the constellation Orion in the first campaign (and Leo or Crux in the second campaign) with simple star maps of progressively fainter stars found. Then you submit your measurements, including the date, time, and location of your comparison. After all the campaign’s observations are submitted, the project’s organizers release a map of light- pollution levels worldwide. Over the last five annual 2-week campaigns, volunteers from more than 100 nations contributed 52,000 measurements, one third of which came from last year’s campaign.
To learn the five easy steps to participate in the GLOBE at Night program, see the GLOBE at Night website. You can listen to last year’s 10-minute audio podcast on light pollution and GLOBE at Night. Or download a 45-minute powerpoint and accompanying audio. GLOBE at Night is also on Facebook and Twitter. The big news is that children and adults can submit their measurements in real time if they have a smart phone or tablet. To do this, you can use the web application. With smart phones and tablets, the location, date and time are put in automatically. And if you do not have a smart phone or tablet, there are user friendly tools on the GLOBE at Night report page to find latitude and longitude. For activities that have children explore what light pollution is, what its effects are on wildlife and how to prepare for participating in the GLOBE at Night campaign, see the Dark Skies Rangers activities. Monitoring our environment will allow us as citizen-scientists to identify and preserve the dark sky oases in cities and locate areas where light pollution is increasing. All it takes is a few minutes during the 2011 campaign to measure sky brightness and contribute those observations on-line. Help us exceed the 17,800 observations contributed last year. Your measurements will make a world of difference.
Star Maps: http://www.globeatnight.org/observe_magnitude.html
Submitting Measurements: http://www.globeatnight.org/report.html
GLOBE at Night: http://www.globeatnight.org/
Audio Podcast: http://365daysofastronomy.org/2010/02/03/february-3rd-the-globe-at-night-campaign-our-light-or-starlight/
Powerpoint: http://www.globeatnight.org/files/NSN_GaN_2011_slides.ppt
Accompanying Audio: http://www.globeatnight.org/files/NSN_GaN_2011_audio.mp3
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/GLOBEatNight
Twitter: http://twitter.com/GLOBEatNight
Web App for Reporting: http://www.globeatnight.org/webapp/
Dark Skies Activities: http://www.darkskiesawareness.org/DarkSkiesRangers/
Less of Our Light for More Star Light!
Join the 6th worldwide GLOBE at Night 2011 Campaign
22 March to 4 April 2011: Northern Hemisphere Leo Observation Campaign
With half of the world’s population now living in cities, many urban dwellers have never experienced the wonderment of pristinely dark skies and maybe never will. This loss, caused by light pollution, is a concern on many fronts: safety, energy conservation, cost, health and effects on wildlife, as well as our ability to view the stars. Even though light pollution is a serious and growing global concern, it is one of the easiest environmental problems you can address on local levels. Participation in the international star-hunting campaign, GLOBE at Night, helps to address the light pollution issue locally as well as globally.
This year, 2 sets of campaigns are being offered. For the first campaign from February 21 through March 6, 2011, everyone all over the world is invited to record the brightness of the night sky. The second campaign runs from March 22 through April 4 in the Northern Hemisphere and March 24 through April 6 in the Southern Hemisphere. The campaign is easy and fun to do. First, you match the appearance of the constellation Orion in the first campaign (and Leo or Crux in the second campaign) with simple star maps of progressively fainter stars found. Then you submit your measurements, including the date, time, and location of your comparison. After all the campaign’s observations are submitted, the project’s organizers release a map of light- pollution levels worldwide. Over the last five annual 2-week campaigns, volunteers from more than 100 nations contributed 52,000 measurements, one third of which came from last year’s campaign.
To learn the five easy steps to participate in the GLOBE at Night program, see the GLOBE at Night website. You can listen to last year’s 10-minute audio podcast on light pollution and GLOBE at Night. Or download a 45-minute powerpoint and accompanying audio. GLOBE at Night is also on Facebook and Twitter. The big news is that children and adults can submit their measurements in real time if they have a smart phone or tablet. To do this, you can use the web application. With smart phones and tablets, the location, date and time are put in automatically. And if you do not have a smart phone or tablet, there are user friendly tools on the GLOBE at Night report page to find latitude and longitude. For activities that have children explore what light pollution is, what its effects are on wildlife and how to prepare for participating in the GLOBE at Night campaign, see the Dark Skies Rangers activities. Monitoring our environment will allow us as citizen-scientists to identify and preserve the dark sky oases in cities and locate areas where light pollution is increasing. All it takes is a few minutes during the 2011 campaign to measure sky brightness and contribute those observations on-line. Help us exceed the 17,800 observations contributed last year. Your measurements will make a world of difference.
Star Maps: http://www.globeatnight.org/observe_magnitude.html
Submitting Measurements: http://www.globeatnight.org/report.html
GLOBE at Night: http://www.globeatnight.org/
Audio Podcast: http://365daysofastronomy.org/2010/02/03/february-3rd-the-globe-at-night-campaign-our-light-or-starlight/
Powerpoint: http://www.globeatnight.org/files/NSN_GaN_2011_slides.ppt
Accompanying Audio: http://www.globeatnight.org/files/NSN_GaN_2011_audio.mp3
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/GLOBEatNight
Twitter: http://twitter.com/GLOBEatNight
Web App for Reporting: http://www.globeatnight.org/webapp/
Dark Skies Activities: http://www.darkskiesawareness.org/DarkSkiesRangers/
Flowing Springs Volunteer Opportunity
The first all-PVMN volunteer project of 2011 is at Flowing Springs Park (next to Home Depot in Ranson) on Saturday April 2. The event time is 11 a.m.-4:00 p.m. but you can volunteer for only an hour if that meets your schedule better. This event is one that all Master Naturalists and current students should consider a priority to help with. We will be having other “all PVMN” volunteer projects this year as well because the purpose of being a Master Naturalist is to give back to the community.
Master Naturalists are particularly needed to help with leading walking tours of the property showing various highlights such as the source area of the spring, invasives that we are trying to eradicate, identifying plants, looking for animal signs, sharing the future vision of park for trails, etc. Now quit thinking you don’t know anything about those things—you are Master Naturalists and can share your interest in discovering nature if nothing else!!! You don’t have to be an expert to share your interest in nature with others.
Help is also needed with invasive removal (that doesn’t require that you talk to anyone!!), stream exploration in the water, and at the “meet and greet” table.
Contact Ellen ellen.l.murphy@comcast.net or Kristin Alexander (pvasmail@aol.com) to set up the time and activity you can help with.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Virgina Winston has passed on this information about the annual Native Plants in the Landscape Conference held at Millersville Univ, PA (Lancaster area) June 2-3-4 this year. They have attended this conference several times in the past and it is really well done, we have always learned a lot. Our own Wil Hershberger will be one of the featured speakers at this year's event. The website is http://www.millersvillenativeplants.org// It looks quite interesting!
Master Naturalists are particularly needed to help with leading walking tours of the property showing various highlights such as the source area of the spring, invasives that we are trying to eradicate, identifying plants, looking for animal signs, sharing the future vision of park for trails, etc. Now quit thinking you don’t know anything about those things—you are Master Naturalists and can share your interest in discovering nature if nothing else!!! You don’t have to be an expert to share your interest in nature with others.
Help is also needed with invasive removal (that doesn’t require that you talk to anyone!!), stream exploration in the water, and at the “meet and greet” table.
Contact Ellen ellen.l.murphy@comcast.net or Kristin Alexander (pvasmail@aol.com) to set up the time and activity you can help with.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Virgina Winston has passed on this information about the annual Native Plants in the Landscape Conference held at Millersville Univ, PA (Lancaster area) June 2-3-4 this year. They have attended this conference several times in the past and it is really well done, we have always learned a lot. Our own Wil Hershberger will be one of the featured speakers at this year's event. The website is http://www.millersvillenativeplants.org// It looks quite interesting!
Bird Walk Volunteer Opportunity
Sandy Sagalkin has taken the lead in organizing and providing adult birdwalks in the Eastern Panhandle. If you would like to help with them, contact him. Working with Sandy would be a great way to learn more about birds yourself and become more confident as a Birding Master Naturalist.
Help in Leading PVAS Birdwalks. PVAS conduct 3-4 birdwalks each month at various locations in Jefferson, Berkeley, Morgan and Washington counties. If you would like to lead birdwalks or help the trip leaders, contact Sandy Sagalkin at monsansagalkin@myactv.net or 240-291-6465
Help in Leading PVAS Birdwalks. PVAS conduct 3-4 birdwalks each month at various locations in Jefferson, Berkeley, Morgan and Washington counties. If you would like to lead birdwalks or help the trip leaders, contact Sandy Sagalkin at monsansagalkin@myactv.net or 240-291-6465
Horn Point Laboratory Lecture for MN Credit
If you are looking for a reason to go to the Eastern Shore, you can get MN class hours by attending a lecture on the Chesapeake Bay!
Click here for additional information.
Click here for additional information.
2011 Citizen Science Projects
Below is a list of Citizen Science projects that you may be interested in.
West Virginia Citizen Science Opportunities
Crayfishes in WV: Zach Loughman, Natural History Research Specialist at West Liberty State College, is running a statewide survey of the Crayfishes found in WV and would appreciate any help in collecting. Contact him at: Zachary J. Loughman, Natural History Research Specialist, Campus Service Center Box 139, West Liberty State College, West Liberty, WV, 26704, Phone: (304) 336-8923, Fax: (304) 336-8266, zloughman@westliberty.edu .
WVDNR Research Projects: Contact Keiran O’Malley at Romney and volunteer to help on any surveys or other projects. (He teaches the PVMN Reptiles and Amphibian Class.) Contact him at kieranomalley@wv.gov
Bird Banding: Contact Bob Dean who bands locally and volunteer to help him. Contact Bob
at 304-754-3042 or BobDean52@gmail.com .
Fish Research Projects: Contact Vicki Blazer at the USGS National Fish Health Research Lab in Kearneysville WV. You’ll start out recording notes during research field work, but as you gain knowledge and experience, you can do more. Contact Vicki at fishdoc322@frontiernet.net .
Citizen Science Opportunities
Astronomy and Weather
The Milky Way Project www.Milkywayproject.org
The Milky Way Project is currently working with data taken from the Galactic Legacy Infrared Mid-Plane Survey Extraordinaire (GLIMPSE) and the Multiband Imaging Photometer for Spitzer Galactic Plane Survey (MIPSGAL). We're looking for bubbles. These bubbles are part of the life cycle of stars. Some bubbles have already been found - by the study that inspired this project - but we want to find more! By finding more, we will build up a comprehensive view of not only these bubbles, but our galaxy as a whole. We're asking you to help us map star formation in our galaxy.
Galaxy Zoo www.galaxyzoo.org
Your job is very simple! When classifying you will be shown an image of a galaxy and be asked a series of questions about it. All you need to do is to look for features that mark out different types of galaxy and answer the questions as well as you can. This is a job that humans are much better at than computers, so most of the questions should be fairly easy. If you find it hard to decide upon the answer to a particular question, don't worry! There often won't be a 'correct' answer. Just pick the one that seems best and move on to the next question. By looking at all the answers given for each galaxy the Galaxy Zoo scientists will be able to work out which is most likely to be the right one, and how sure we can be about it. Your individual opinion is extremely important to making that possible.
The Old Weather Project www.oldweather.org
The Old Weather project isn't about proving or disproving global warming. We need to collect as much historical data as we can over the oceans, because if we wish to understand what the weather will do in the future, then we need to understand what the weather was doing in the past. Help scientists recover worldwide weather observations made by Royal Navy ships around the time of World War I. These transcriptions will contribute to climate model projections and improve a database of weather extremes. Historians will use your work to track past ship movements and the stories of the people on board.
Moon Zoo www.moonzoo.org
The aim of Moon Zoo is to provide detailed crater counts for as much of the Moon's surface as possible. Unlike here on Earth where weather quickly erodes any signs of all but the most recent impacts, craters on the lunar surface stay almost until eternity. That means that the number of craters on a particular piece of the surface tells us how old it is. This technique is used all over the Solar System, but the Moon is particularly important because we have ground truth — samples brought back by the Apollo missions — which allow us to calibrate our estimates. Planetary scientists have always carried out this kind of analysis on large scales, but with your help and the fabulous LRO images then we should be able to uncover the finer details of the Moon's history. We need your help to explore the lunar surface, by answering a series of questions about what you see.
Snow Core http://snowcore.uwaterloo.ca/snowtweets
Contribute to cryosphere research! Snow and cryosphere researchers at the University of Waterloo ask you to tweet snow depths in your area. Sign in to your Twitter account (or sign up, it’s free!) and write a message that looks like this: #snowtweetsat
We’ll be using your contributions to help us verify satellite observations around the world.
Students’ Cloud Observations On-Line (S’COOL)
http://science-edu.larc.nasa.gov/SCOOL/index.php
Students’ Cloud Observations On-Line (S’COOL) is a citizen science project in which volunteers make and report cloud observations from sites of their choosing, such as a field trip, vacation, or even a backyard. The project aims to collect data on cloud type, height, cover, and related conditions from all over the world. Observations are sent to NASA for comparison to similar information obtained from satellite. The S'COOL observations help validate satellite data and give a more complete picture of clouds in the atmosphere and their interactions with other parts of the integrated global Earth system.
Insects, Arthropods, and Arachnids
Firefly Watch https://www.mos.org/fireflywatch /
Firefly Watch combines an annual summer evening ritual with scientific research. Boston's Museum of Science has teamed up with researchers from Tufts University and Fitchburg State College to track the fate of these amazing insects. With your help, we hope to learn about the geographic distribution of fireflies and their activity during the summer season. Fireflies also may be affected by human-made light and pesticides in lawns, so we hope to also learn more about those effects.
Odonata Central http://www.odonatacentral.org
OdonataCentral is a website designed to make available what we know about the distribution, biogeography, biodiversity, and identification of Odonata (dragonflies and damselflies) worldwide. The photographic records submitted by amateur natural historians and citizen scientists help generate a large database of distributional records. OdonataCentral makes its database available to researchers to dynamically generate maps, checklists, and accompanying data.
Monarch Watch http://www.monarchwatch.org/waystations /
Monarch butterflies need our help. You can aid them by creating "Monarch Waystations" (monarch habitats) in home gardens, at schools, businesses, parks, zoos, nature centers, along roadsides, and on other unused plots of land. You can certify your new or existing monarch habitat to show that you are contributing to monarch conservation. Upon certification your site will be included in the International Monarch Waystation Registry, an online listing of Monarch Waystations. By creating and maintaining a Monarch Waystation you are contributing to monarch conservation, an effort that will help assure the preservation of the species and the continuation of the spectacular monarch migration phenomenon.
Monarch Larva Monitoring Project www.mlmp.org. The overarching goal of the project is to better understand how and why monarch populations vary in time and space, with a focus on monarch distribution and abundance during the breeding season in North America. As an MLMP volunteer, you'll conduct weekly monarch and milkweed surveys, measuring per plant densities of monarch eggs and larvae. You'll also be able to participate in more detailed optional activities, such as measuring parasitism rates and milkweed quality. Your contributions will aid in conserving monarchs and their threatened migratory phenomenon, and advance our understanding of butterfly ecology in general.
Monarch Tagging Program www.monarchwatch.org ($15 for tags and record forms).
The purpose of monarch tagging is to associate the location of capture with the point of recovery for each butterfly. The data from these recaptures are used to determine the pathways taken by migrating monarchs, the influence of weather on the migration, the survival rate of the monarchs, etc. Tags are purchased in kits. Each kit contains a premigration newsletter, datasheet, instructions and a multiple of 25 tags, depending on how many are ordered in that kit. With tags and datasheets in hand, participants tag as many monarchs as they are able and record the date, location and other information onto their datasheets and return the information so that when monarchs are collected the information you recorded will be in the data base.
Bee Hunt http://www.discoverlife.org/bee /
Bee Hunt participants use digital photography to record and study the interactions between plants and pollinators, following rigorous protocols to ensure high-quality data. The data collected will help provide a better understanding of pollinators' importance in growing food and maintaining healthy natural ecosystems. Bee Hunt is open to anyone, anywhere, whenever pollinators are flying. In North America, depending upon your location, you can start as early as March and go as late as November.
There are four ways to participate in Bee Hunt:
1. Inventory pollinators at your site with photographs
2. Compare species in two patches
3. Provide nesting sites for mason bees and study when they are active
4. Use bowls and soapy water to collect insects for a more complete inventory of species
Viburnum Leaf Beetle Project http://www.hort.cornell.edu/vlb/
Participants in this project monitor gardens, parks, or school yards throughout the spring and summer to identify viburnum leaf beetles. As a citizen scientist, you gather data that researchers can use to help stop the spread of this pest, reduce the damage it causes, and help us all be better prepared for future invasions by exotic pests. The viburnum leaf beetle is an invasive, non-native beetle that first appeared in New York State along Lake Ontario in 1996, and has steadily spread. It has been reported in Maine, Pennsylvania, Vermont, and parts of Ohio, as well as Ontario, the Canadian Maritime Provinces, and British Columbia. It is a voracious eater that can defoliate viburnum shrubs entirely. Plants may die after two or three years of heavy infestation. (Although WV is not listed, the surrounding states probably put us at risk.)
Lost Ladybug Project http://www.lostladybug.org/index.php
The Lost Ladybug Project asks citizen scientists to find, collect, and photograph the native species of ladybugs that have become quite rare in recent years. Ladybugs are important and beneficial predators because they eat harmful insects like aphids that damage plants. To help ladybug species, scientists need detailed information on which species are still out there and how many exist.
Spider Web Watch http://www.spiderwebwatch.org /
Spider WebWatch is a biodiversity monitoring effort for biologists, naturalists, educators, students, and anyone else with a strong interest in spiders. Learn to identify nine species of spiders and make your own submissions.
Birds
Nest Watch http://watch.birds.cornell.edu/nest/home/index
NestWatch teaches people about bird breeding biology and engages them in collecting and submitting nest records. Such records include information about nest site location, habitat, species, and number of eggs, young, and fledglings. “Citizen scientists” submit their nest records to our online database where their observations are compiled with those of other participants in a continent-wide effort to better understand and manage the impacts of environmental change on bird populations.
Great Backyard Bird Count http://www.birdsource.org/gbbc/
The Great Backyard Bird Count is an annual four-day event during which bird watchers count birds to create a real-time snapshot of where birds are located across the continent. (In 2011, dates are February 18-21). Anyone, from beginning bird watchers to experts, can participate. It takes as little as 15 minutes on one day, or you can count for as long as you like during each day of the event. Yearly data collection makes the information more meaningful and allows scientists to investigate far-reaching questions.
Project Feeder Watch http://www.birds.cornell.edu/pfw /
Project FeederWatch is a winter-long survey of birds that visit feeders at backyards, nature centers, community areas, and other locales in North America. FeederWatchers periodically count the birds they see at their feeders from November through early April and send their counts to Project FeederWatch. FeederWatch data help scientists track broadscale movements of winter bird populations and long-term trends in bird distribution and abundance. Project FeederWatch is operated by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and Bird Studies Canada.
Plants
Project BudBurst http://budburst.org/
Project BudBurst engages the public in making careful observations of phenophases such as first leafing, first flower, and first fruit ripening of a diversity of trees, shrubs, flowers, and grasses in their local area. Project BudBurst has targeted 75 native trees, shrubs, wildflowers, and grasses to monitor throughout the year. With the help of citizen scientists, the project will compile valuable environmental information that can be compared to historical records. By recording the timing of the leafing and flowering of native species each year, scientists can learn about the prevailing climatic characteristics in a region over time.
Global Garlic Mustard Field Survey
http://scienceforcitizens.net/project/168/www.GarlicMustard.org
Help scientists gather much-needed data on the abundance and distribution of an invasive plant called 'garlic mustard' (scientific name: Alliaria petiolata). Many invasive species, like garlic mustard, are quickly changing North America's ecosystems, but scientists still don't understand why or how this happens. To figure this out we need sample data from all over the world, but that requires a large group effort. Fortunately, it does not require specialized training because plant performance can be reliably quantified with simple measurements such as height and seed production of individuals, as well as area of coverage and density of plants. By spending as little as a single day on this project, you could help scientists to come to a new understanding about invasive species. This in turn could ultimately lead to important new management strategies.
Animals
Project Squirrel http://projectsquirrel.org/index.shtml
Project Squirrel is calling all citizen scientists to count the number of squirrels in their neighborhoods and report their findings. The goal is to understand urban squirrel biology, including everything from squirrels to migratory birds, nocturnal mammals, and secretive reptiles and amphibians. To gain data on squirrel populations across the United States, citizen scientists will also be asked, when possible, to distinguish between two different types of tree squirrels - gray and fox. Anyone can participate in Project Squirrel. No matter where you live, city or suburb, from the Midwest to the East Coast, Canada to California, if squirrels live in your neighborhood, you are encouraged to become a squirrel monitor.
Project NOAH http://www.networkedorganisms.com/
Noah is a mobile phone app that allows nature lovers to document local wildlife and add their observations to a growing database for use by ongoing citizen-science projects.
Using the Noah mobile application, users take a photograph of an interesting organism, select the appropriate category, add descriptive tags, and click submit. The application captures the location details along with the submitted information and stores all of it in the species database (You do need an iPhone with the app installed.)
Reptiles, Amphibians
Frog Watch USA http://www.aza.org/frogwatch /
FrogWatch USA is the Association of Zoos and Aquarium’s (AZA) flagship citizen science program that allows individuals and families to learn about the wetlands in their communities and help conserve amphibians by reporting the calls of local frogs and toads. For over ten years, volunteers have been trained to enter their FrogWatch USA information and ongoing analyses of these data have been used to help develop practical strategies for the conservation of these important species.
General Nature
Picture Post http://picturepost.unh.edu/
Picture Post invites everyone with a digital camera to become an environmental monitor. All you have to do is place a 4-inch-by-4-inch wood or plastic post in the ground, with the top at chest-height. Then, resting your camera on the top of the post, take a series of nine photographs: eight to cover a panoramic view of the surrounding landscape and a ninth of the sky directly over the post. Upload your photos to the Picture Post website, and you’ve just helped track our changing environment. Sponsored by NASA and housed at the University of New Hampshire.
Nature’s Notebook http://www.usanpn.org/how-observe
Nature's Notebook is a national plant and animal phenology observation program. You can join thousands of other individuals who are providing valuable observations that scientists, educators, policy makers, and resource managers are using to understand how plants and animals are responding to climate change and other environmental changes. Your observations will make a difference! Phenology is the study of recurring plant and animal life cycle stages, or phenophases, such as leafing and flowering of plants, maturation of agricultural crops, emergence of insects, and migration of birds. Many of these events are sensitive to climatic variation and change, and are simple to observe and record. As a USA-NPN observer, you can help scientists identify and understand environmental trends so we can better adapt to climate change.
Wildlife Watch http://www.nwf.org/wildlifewatch/
Wildlife Watch is a national, nature-watching program created for people of all ages. When you record your observations, National Wildlife Federation and Wildlife Watch partners collect and review your findings to track the health and behavior of wildlife and plant species.
World Water Monitoring Day
http://www.worldwatermonitoringday.org/About/About_Main.html
World Water Monitoring Day is an international program that encourages citizen volunteers to monitor their local water bodies. An easy-to-use test kit enables everyone from children to adults to sample local water bodies for basic water quality parameters: temperature, acidity (pH), clarity (turbidity), and dissolved oxygen. Though World Water Monitoring Day is officially celebrated in September, the monitoring window is usually extended to cover the period from March 22 (World Water Day) until December 31. Participants are encouraged to make their observations at anytime within that extended window.
Don’t like any of these suggestions? Find your own! Work just needs to be in West Virginia to qualify for Master Naturalist Volunteer Hours. http://scienceforcitizens.net/finder /
POTOMAC VALLEY MASTER NATURALISTS
Citizen Science Projects 2011
West Virginia Citizen Science Opportunities
Crayfishes in WV: Zach Loughman, Natural History Research Specialist at West Liberty State College, is running a statewide survey of the Crayfishes found in WV and would appreciate any help in collecting. Contact him at: Zachary J. Loughman, Natural History Research Specialist, Campus Service Center Box 139, West Liberty State College, West Liberty, WV, 26704, Phone: (304) 336-8923, Fax: (304) 336-8266, zloughman@westliberty.edu .
WVDNR Research Projects: Contact Keiran O’Malley at Romney and volunteer to help on any surveys or other projects. (He teaches the PVMN Reptiles and Amphibian Class.) Contact him at kieranomalley@wv.gov
Bird Banding: Contact Bob Dean who bands locally and volunteer to help him. Contact Bob
at 304-754-3042 or BobDean52@gmail.com .
Fish Research Projects: Contact Vicki Blazer at the USGS National Fish Health Research Lab in Kearneysville WV. You’ll start out recording notes during research field work, but as you gain knowledge and experience, you can do more. Contact Vicki at fishdoc322@frontiernet.net .
Citizen Science Opportunities
Astronomy and Weather
The Milky Way Project www.Milkywayproject.org
The Milky Way Project is currently working with data taken from the Galactic Legacy Infrared Mid-Plane Survey Extraordinaire (GLIMPSE) and the Multiband Imaging Photometer for Spitzer Galactic Plane Survey (MIPSGAL). We're looking for bubbles. These bubbles are part of the life cycle of stars. Some bubbles have already been found - by the study that inspired this project - but we want to find more! By finding more, we will build up a comprehensive view of not only these bubbles, but our galaxy as a whole. We're asking you to help us map star formation in our galaxy.
Galaxy Zoo www.galaxyzoo.org
Your job is very simple! When classifying you will be shown an image of a galaxy and be asked a series of questions about it. All you need to do is to look for features that mark out different types of galaxy and answer the questions as well as you can. This is a job that humans are much better at than computers, so most of the questions should be fairly easy. If you find it hard to decide upon the answer to a particular question, don't worry! There often won't be a 'correct' answer. Just pick the one that seems best and move on to the next question. By looking at all the answers given for each galaxy the Galaxy Zoo scientists will be able to work out which is most likely to be the right one, and how sure we can be about it. Your individual opinion is extremely important to making that possible.
The Old Weather Project www.oldweather.org
The Old Weather project isn't about proving or disproving global warming. We need to collect as much historical data as we can over the oceans, because if we wish to understand what the weather will do in the future, then we need to understand what the weather was doing in the past. Help scientists recover worldwide weather observations made by Royal Navy ships around the time of World War I. These transcriptions will contribute to climate model projections and improve a database of weather extremes. Historians will use your work to track past ship movements and the stories of the people on board.
Moon Zoo www.moonzoo.org
The aim of Moon Zoo is to provide detailed crater counts for as much of the Moon's surface as possible. Unlike here on Earth where weather quickly erodes any signs of all but the most recent impacts, craters on the lunar surface stay almost until eternity. That means that the number of craters on a particular piece of the surface tells us how old it is. This technique is used all over the Solar System, but the Moon is particularly important because we have ground truth — samples brought back by the Apollo missions — which allow us to calibrate our estimates. Planetary scientists have always carried out this kind of analysis on large scales, but with your help and the fabulous LRO images then we should be able to uncover the finer details of the Moon's history. We need your help to explore the lunar surface, by answering a series of questions about what you see.
Snow Core http://snowcore.uwaterloo.ca/snowtweets
Contribute to cryosphere research! Snow and cryosphere researchers at the University of Waterloo ask you to tweet snow depths in your area. Sign in to your Twitter account (or sign up, it’s free!) and write a message that looks like this: #snowtweets
We’ll be using your contributions to help us verify satellite observations around the world.
Students’ Cloud Observations On-Line (S’COOL)
http://science-edu.larc.nasa.gov/SCOOL/index.php
Students’ Cloud Observations On-Line (S’COOL) is a citizen science project in which volunteers make and report cloud observations from sites of their choosing, such as a field trip, vacation, or even a backyard. The project aims to collect data on cloud type, height, cover, and related conditions from all over the world. Observations are sent to NASA for comparison to similar information obtained from satellite. The S'COOL observations help validate satellite data and give a more complete picture of clouds in the atmosphere and their interactions with other parts of the integrated global Earth system.
Insects, Arthropods, and Arachnids
Firefly Watch https://www.mos.org/fireflywatch /
Firefly Watch combines an annual summer evening ritual with scientific research. Boston's Museum of Science has teamed up with researchers from Tufts University and Fitchburg State College to track the fate of these amazing insects. With your help, we hope to learn about the geographic distribution of fireflies and their activity during the summer season. Fireflies also may be affected by human-made light and pesticides in lawns, so we hope to also learn more about those effects.
Odonata Central http://www.odonatacentral.org
OdonataCentral is a website designed to make available what we know about the distribution, biogeography, biodiversity, and identification of Odonata (dragonflies and damselflies) worldwide. The photographic records submitted by amateur natural historians and citizen scientists help generate a large database of distributional records. OdonataCentral makes its database available to researchers to dynamically generate maps, checklists, and accompanying data.
Monarch Watch http://www.monarchwatch.org/waystations /
Monarch butterflies need our help. You can aid them by creating "Monarch Waystations" (monarch habitats) in home gardens, at schools, businesses, parks, zoos, nature centers, along roadsides, and on other unused plots of land. You can certify your new or existing monarch habitat to show that you are contributing to monarch conservation. Upon certification your site will be included in the International Monarch Waystation Registry, an online listing of Monarch Waystations. By creating and maintaining a Monarch Waystation you are contributing to monarch conservation, an effort that will help assure the preservation of the species and the continuation of the spectacular monarch migration phenomenon.
Monarch Larva Monitoring Project www.mlmp.org. The overarching goal of the project is to better understand how and why monarch populations vary in time and space, with a focus on monarch distribution and abundance during the breeding season in North America. As an MLMP volunteer, you'll conduct weekly monarch and milkweed surveys, measuring per plant densities of monarch eggs and larvae. You'll also be able to participate in more detailed optional activities, such as measuring parasitism rates and milkweed quality. Your contributions will aid in conserving monarchs and their threatened migratory phenomenon, and advance our understanding of butterfly ecology in general.
Monarch Tagging Program www.monarchwatch.org ($15 for tags and record forms).
The purpose of monarch tagging is to associate the location of capture with the point of recovery for each butterfly. The data from these recaptures are used to determine the pathways taken by migrating monarchs, the influence of weather on the migration, the survival rate of the monarchs, etc. Tags are purchased in kits. Each kit contains a premigration newsletter, datasheet, instructions and a multiple of 25 tags, depending on how many are ordered in that kit. With tags and datasheets in hand, participants tag as many monarchs as they are able and record the date, location and other information onto their datasheets and return the information so that when monarchs are collected the information you recorded will be in the data base.
Bee Hunt http://www.discoverlife.org/bee /
Bee Hunt participants use digital photography to record and study the interactions between plants and pollinators, following rigorous protocols to ensure high-quality data. The data collected will help provide a better understanding of pollinators' importance in growing food and maintaining healthy natural ecosystems. Bee Hunt is open to anyone, anywhere, whenever pollinators are flying. In North America, depending upon your location, you can start as early as March and go as late as November.
There are four ways to participate in Bee Hunt:
1. Inventory pollinators at your site with photographs
2. Compare species in two patches
3. Provide nesting sites for mason bees and study when they are active
4. Use bowls and soapy water to collect insects for a more complete inventory of species
Viburnum Leaf Beetle Project http://www.hort.cornell.edu/vlb/
Participants in this project monitor gardens, parks, or school yards throughout the spring and summer to identify viburnum leaf beetles. As a citizen scientist, you gather data that researchers can use to help stop the spread of this pest, reduce the damage it causes, and help us all be better prepared for future invasions by exotic pests. The viburnum leaf beetle is an invasive, non-native beetle that first appeared in New York State along Lake Ontario in 1996, and has steadily spread. It has been reported in Maine, Pennsylvania, Vermont, and parts of Ohio, as well as Ontario, the Canadian Maritime Provinces, and British Columbia. It is a voracious eater that can defoliate viburnum shrubs entirely. Plants may die after two or three years of heavy infestation. (Although WV is not listed, the surrounding states probably put us at risk.)
Lost Ladybug Project http://www.lostladybug.org/index.php
The Lost Ladybug Project asks citizen scientists to find, collect, and photograph the native species of ladybugs that have become quite rare in recent years. Ladybugs are important and beneficial predators because they eat harmful insects like aphids that damage plants. To help ladybug species, scientists need detailed information on which species are still out there and how many exist.
Spider Web Watch http://www.spiderwebwatch.org /
Spider WebWatch is a biodiversity monitoring effort for biologists, naturalists, educators, students, and anyone else with a strong interest in spiders. Learn to identify nine species of spiders and make your own submissions.
Birds
Nest Watch http://watch.birds.cornell.edu/nest/home/index
NestWatch teaches people about bird breeding biology and engages them in collecting and submitting nest records. Such records include information about nest site location, habitat, species, and number of eggs, young, and fledglings. “Citizen scientists” submit their nest records to our online database where their observations are compiled with those of other participants in a continent-wide effort to better understand and manage the impacts of environmental change on bird populations.
Great Backyard Bird Count http://www.birdsource.org/gbbc/
The Great Backyard Bird Count is an annual four-day event during which bird watchers count birds to create a real-time snapshot of where birds are located across the continent. (In 2011, dates are February 18-21). Anyone, from beginning bird watchers to experts, can participate. It takes as little as 15 minutes on one day, or you can count for as long as you like during each day of the event. Yearly data collection makes the information more meaningful and allows scientists to investigate far-reaching questions.
Project Feeder Watch http://www.birds.cornell.edu/pfw /
Project FeederWatch is a winter-long survey of birds that visit feeders at backyards, nature centers, community areas, and other locales in North America. FeederWatchers periodically count the birds they see at their feeders from November through early April and send their counts to Project FeederWatch. FeederWatch data help scientists track broadscale movements of winter bird populations and long-term trends in bird distribution and abundance. Project FeederWatch is operated by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and Bird Studies Canada.
Plants
Project BudBurst http://budburst.org/
Project BudBurst engages the public in making careful observations of phenophases such as first leafing, first flower, and first fruit ripening of a diversity of trees, shrubs, flowers, and grasses in their local area. Project BudBurst has targeted 75 native trees, shrubs, wildflowers, and grasses to monitor throughout the year. With the help of citizen scientists, the project will compile valuable environmental information that can be compared to historical records. By recording the timing of the leafing and flowering of native species each year, scientists can learn about the prevailing climatic characteristics in a region over time.
Global Garlic Mustard Field Survey
http://scienceforcitizens.net/project/168/www.GarlicMustard.org
Help scientists gather much-needed data on the abundance and distribution of an invasive plant called 'garlic mustard' (scientific name: Alliaria petiolata). Many invasive species, like garlic mustard, are quickly changing North America's ecosystems, but scientists still don't understand why or how this happens. To figure this out we need sample data from all over the world, but that requires a large group effort. Fortunately, it does not require specialized training because plant performance can be reliably quantified with simple measurements such as height and seed production of individuals, as well as area of coverage and density of plants. By spending as little as a single day on this project, you could help scientists to come to a new understanding about invasive species. This in turn could ultimately lead to important new management strategies.
Animals
Project Squirrel http://projectsquirrel.org/index.shtml
Project Squirrel is calling all citizen scientists to count the number of squirrels in their neighborhoods and report their findings. The goal is to understand urban squirrel biology, including everything from squirrels to migratory birds, nocturnal mammals, and secretive reptiles and amphibians. To gain data on squirrel populations across the United States, citizen scientists will also be asked, when possible, to distinguish between two different types of tree squirrels - gray and fox. Anyone can participate in Project Squirrel. No matter where you live, city or suburb, from the Midwest to the East Coast, Canada to California, if squirrels live in your neighborhood, you are encouraged to become a squirrel monitor.
Project NOAH http://www.networkedorganisms.com/
Noah is a mobile phone app that allows nature lovers to document local wildlife and add their observations to a growing database for use by ongoing citizen-science projects.
Using the Noah mobile application, users take a photograph of an interesting organism, select the appropriate category, add descriptive tags, and click submit. The application captures the location details along with the submitted information and stores all of it in the species database (You do need an iPhone with the app installed.)
Reptiles, Amphibians
Frog Watch USA http://www.aza.org/frogwatch /
FrogWatch USA is the Association of Zoos and Aquarium’s (AZA) flagship citizen science program that allows individuals and families to learn about the wetlands in their communities and help conserve amphibians by reporting the calls of local frogs and toads. For over ten years, volunteers have been trained to enter their FrogWatch USA information and ongoing analyses of these data have been used to help develop practical strategies for the conservation of these important species.
General Nature
Picture Post http://picturepost.unh.edu/
Picture Post invites everyone with a digital camera to become an environmental monitor. All you have to do is place a 4-inch-by-4-inch wood or plastic post in the ground, with the top at chest-height. Then, resting your camera on the top of the post, take a series of nine photographs: eight to cover a panoramic view of the surrounding landscape and a ninth of the sky directly over the post. Upload your photos to the Picture Post website, and you’ve just helped track our changing environment. Sponsored by NASA and housed at the University of New Hampshire.
Nature’s Notebook http://www.usanpn.org/how-observe
Nature's Notebook is a national plant and animal phenology observation program. You can join thousands of other individuals who are providing valuable observations that scientists, educators, policy makers, and resource managers are using to understand how plants and animals are responding to climate change and other environmental changes. Your observations will make a difference! Phenology is the study of recurring plant and animal life cycle stages, or phenophases, such as leafing and flowering of plants, maturation of agricultural crops, emergence of insects, and migration of birds. Many of these events are sensitive to climatic variation and change, and are simple to observe and record. As a USA-NPN observer, you can help scientists identify and understand environmental trends so we can better adapt to climate change.
Wildlife Watch http://www.nwf.org/wildlifewatch/
Wildlife Watch is a national, nature-watching program created for people of all ages. When you record your observations, National Wildlife Federation and Wildlife Watch partners collect and review your findings to track the health and behavior of wildlife and plant species.
World Water Monitoring Day
http://www.worldwatermonitoringday.org/About/About_Main.html
World Water Monitoring Day is an international program that encourages citizen volunteers to monitor their local water bodies. An easy-to-use test kit enables everyone from children to adults to sample local water bodies for basic water quality parameters: temperature, acidity (pH), clarity (turbidity), and dissolved oxygen. Though World Water Monitoring Day is officially celebrated in September, the monitoring window is usually extended to cover the period from March 22 (World Water Day) until December 31. Participants are encouraged to make their observations at anytime within that extended window.
Don’t like any of these suggestions? Find your own! Work just needs to be in West Virginia to qualify for Master Naturalist Volunteer Hours. http://scienceforcitizens.net/finder /
2011 Volunteer Opportunities
Below is a list of projects and activities where Potomac Valley Master Naturalists will be this spring! You should plan to make sure you are involved in one or more of them! Remember the whole point of being a Master Naturalist is GIVING BACK to the community through volunteer time.
Saturday April 2, PVAS is hosting an Open House at the NEW Flowing Springs Park in Ranson (near Home Depot). Many different activities are planned and we need volunteers to help with all of them! Activities include helping with tree plantings, leading bird/nature walks, stream sampling demonstrations, and possible invasive removal. There will also be a PVAS/PVMN contact table which will need volunteers to greet visitors, help providing refreshments, and talking about both organizations. Gloves, tools and refreshments will be provided to volunteers (and a t-shirt to thank you for all your hard work!) Hours are 11:00-4:00 p.m. and you can volunteer for all or part of that time. Contact Kristin Alexander to help: 304-274-0509.
Saturday, April 16, PVAS will be hosting a Wildflower Festival at the Yankauer Preserve
in northeast Berkeley County. We'll need some folks to help with children's activities, lead
walks, and lend a helping hand as required. Training in wildflowers is available before the big
day. The walks will be held on the hour from 11-3. Contact Kristin Alexander for more
information: 304-274-0509.
Sunday April 17, PVAS’s Annual Egg Hunt, 2-4 p.m. Help is needed in:
• putting out the eggs about 12:30 p.m.
• assisting with some of the activities (egg games, reading books, playing games, etc)
• baking cookies! We need several people to make 3 dozen cookies (your choice) and
drop them off at Yankauer Sunday morning. (The kids will be trading in their eggs for cookies and lemonade and there are lots of parents to feed.) Contact Ellen Murphy at 304-676-8739.
Saturday May 7, PVAS is participating in the Boonsboro GreenFest which is one of the best Earth Festivals in this area! Everything from solar energy systems to composting to fair trade products to heirloom tomato plants to special children's activities to recycling opportunities to clothing and children's book swaps will be featured throughout the park. We need volunteers to help with our contact booth. Time is 10:00-5:00 p.m. Contact Kristin Alexander to volunteer: 304-274-0509.
PVAS Educational Programs
Watershed Field Trips are scheduled for March and early April. All times are 8:30-1 p.m. We
need help with doing water quality testing, streambank assessment, and looking for critters in the water. We provide training, but this is not hard and it is fun!! Bring your own lunch. Contact Ellen Murphy at 304-676-8739
March 29 and March 31-Flowing Springs Park, Ranson WV
April 1-Mill Creek (across from Mountain Ridge Intermediate School), Inwood WV
April 5, 6, and 7-Cacapon River, near Great Cacapon WV
April 12 and 13-Back Creek (at Tomahawk Intermediate School), Hedgesville WV
April 8 and 14-Tuscarora Creek on E. John Street, Martinsburg WV
Watershed Planting Projects are the final service project for students in some watershed education programs. This year, we are planting at Mussleman, Martinsburg, and Jefferson
High Schools and in Berkeley Springs and Paw Paw! Contact Ellen Murphy: 304-676-8739.
April 14, Musselman High School Envirothon (7:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m.)
April 25, 26, 28 Warm Springs Intermediate School, Berkeley Springs (1:30-3:00 p.m. each day)
April 27, Paw Paw Schools (8:00 a.m.-3:00 p.m.)
May 6, Martinsburg High School (7:30-9:30 a.m.)
May 6, Jefferson High School (1:30-3:00 p.m.)
School Programs at Yankauer Programs are generally 8:30-1:30 p.m. We need 2 volunteers for EACH program. Contact Ellen Murphy: 304-676-8739.
Tuesday and Wednesday April 12 and 13, 2nd grade program (Plants vs. Animals)
Tuesday April 26, Kindergarten program (Insects)
Friday April 29, 1st grade program (Insects)
Thursday May, middle school hike, 2:00-3:30 p.m.
PVMN Sponsored Volunteer Opportunities
Saturday May 7; 10 a.m.-12 noon. Garlic Mustard Challenge at Yankauer You can be part of the Garlic Mustard Challenge sponsored by the US Forest Service. West Virginia is out to pull 20,000 pounds of the invasive weed. Contact Nan Johnson at gabbyvanv@frontier.com
Saturday June 4; 10 a.m.-12 noon. Mile-A-Minute Eradication (part 3) at Flowing Springs Park in Ranson Mile-A-Minute is a major invasive that we are trying to prevent from spreading. The new Flowing Springs Park is next to Home Depot in Ranson. Bring leather gloves and long pants as the weed is also called “Devil’s Tear-Thumb” for good reason! Contact Ellen Murphy at 304-676-8739.
Volunteer at Yankauer Nature Preserve or Eidolon Nature Preserve: There are always "self scheduled" projects as an option such as pulling invasives at Yankauer or Eidolon, adopting a flower garden at Yankauer, trimming trails, etc. Once you’re “up and running” with knowing what to do (and where), you can do projects as often as you li.ke to suit your own schedule
At Yankauer contact Tim Murphy at timurf@comcast.net for projects at Yankauer.
For Eidolon projects, contact Joe Gentile at 304-258-3197.
Kristin Alexander at pvasmail@aol.com can also answer questions.
West Virginia Volunteer Opportunities
Volunteer at the Peter Burr Farm near Bardane/Kearneysville Volunteers are needed to: Conduct a plant species inventory; Identify invasive species; Remove invasive species; Develop a plan to introduce native species to be added over time to increase plant diversity; Remove some old fencing and piles of debris; Construct wire fence along Warm Springs Rd; Developing a plan and creating a nature trail. Regular work days are scheduled. Contact Nan Johnson at
gabbyvanv@frontier.com
Volunteer at the Cacapon State Park Nature Center Kelly Smith, Park Naturalist can use help doing everything from manning the nature center to feeding the snakes and turtles to leading hikes to helping with other projects that are going on. You can arrange a specific time during the week or on weekends, year round. Kelly can be reached at CacaponNaturalist@wvdnr.gov or by calling her at 304-258-1022 x5209.
WV Raptor Rehabilitation Centers: West Virginia’s two raptor rehabilitation centers in the
state occasionally need help working at their facilities constructing flight cages and performing
other tasks. If any MN student would like to earn more volunteer hours, he or she should
contact these centers.
West Virginia Raptor Rehabilitation Center, P.O. Box 333, Morgantown, WV 26507. Phone 1-800-540-6390, (304)-366-2867, Fax (304) 592-1482, email: raptor@wvrrc.org . Website: www.wvrrc.org .
Three Rivers Avian Center, HC 74 Box 279, Brooks, WV 25951, (304) 466-4683, email: ron@tracwv.org. Website: www.tracwv.org . Both raptor centers would appreciate any volunteer service you could provide.
Crayfishes in WV: Zach Loughman, Natural History Research Specialist at West Liberty State College, is running a statewide survey of the Crayfishes found in WV and would appreciate any help in collecting. Contact him at: Zachary J. Loughman, Natural History Research Specialist, Campus Service Center Box 139, West Liberty State College, West Liberty, WV, 26704, Phone: (304) 336-8923, Fax: (304) 336-8266, zloughman@westliberty.edu .
WVDNR Research Projects: Contact Keiran O’Malley at Romney and ask if he needs help on any surveys or other projects. (He teaches the PVMN Reptiles and Amphibian Class.) Contact him at kieranomalley@wv.gov
Bird Banding: Contact Bob Dean who bands locally and volunteer to help him. Contact Bob
at 304-754-3042 or BobDean52@gmail.com .
Fish Research Projects: Contact Vicki Blazer at the USGS National Fish Health Research Lab in Kearneysville WV. You’ll start out recording notes during research field work, but as you gain knowledge and experience, you can do more. Contact Vicki at fishdoc322@frontiernet.net .
Working With Children Volunteer Opportunities
Science Olympiad in Loudoun County VA: This event will take place in the school yard, classrooms, hallways, gymnasium and offices of Mountain View School (Purcellville VA) on June 7, 2011, 8 a.m.-2 p.m. Students attending the programs will be fourth and fifth graders. Presenters are asked to conduct four 50-minute, hands-on/active learning sessions. A gourmet lunch will be provided by the PTA. Contact Jim Jenkins at jenkinsjim@att.blackberry.net. (Although this opportunity does not qualify for Volunteer Hours for WV Master Naturalists, it is an important even. Jim Jenkins is a Certified WVMN and a member of PVMN, so volunteer to help just to be nice!)
Tigers on the Trail at Harpers Ferry: This program with students at Harpers Ferry Middle School is designed to get the students outside and physically active by using the trails around Harpers Ferry National Historic Park. Volunteers lead the hikes and can choose the trail, theme, and the date. The park will find a classroom that matches your availability, trail difficulty level, and theme. Themes can be anything from physical fitness to history to natural history to recreation. The focus is not content, but to get the kids outdoors, get students active, introduce them to the resources in their backyard, and give them a positive experience in nature. Of course Master Naturalists will have LOTS to share along the way, and for your volunteer hours, some sort of natural history theme would be appropriate. For more information about the program, contact Amber Kraft, Education Specialist at Amber_Kraft@nps.gov or 304-535-6293.
POTOMAC VALLEY MASTER NATURALISTS
Volunteer Opportunities-2011
PVAS Sponsored Events
Saturday April 2, PVAS is hosting an Open House at the NEW Flowing Springs Park in Ranson (near Home Depot). Many different activities are planned and we need volunteers to help with all of them! Activities include helping with tree plantings, leading bird/nature walks, stream sampling demonstrations, and possible invasive removal. There will also be a PVAS/PVMN contact table which will need volunteers to greet visitors, help providing refreshments, and talking about both organizations. Gloves, tools and refreshments will be provided to volunteers (and a t-shirt to thank you for all your hard work!) Hours are 11:00-4:00 p.m. and you can volunteer for all or part of that time. Contact Kristin Alexander to help: 304-274-0509.
Saturday, April 16, PVAS will be hosting a Wildflower Festival at the Yankauer Preserve
in northeast Berkeley County. We'll need some folks to help with children's activities, lead
walks, and lend a helping hand as required. Training in wildflowers is available before the big
day. The walks will be held on the hour from 11-3. Contact Kristin Alexander for more
information: 304-274-0509.
Sunday April 17, PVAS’s Annual Egg Hunt, 2-4 p.m. Help is needed in:
• putting out the eggs about 12:30 p.m.
• assisting with some of the activities (egg games, reading books, playing games, etc)
• baking cookies! We need several people to make 3 dozen cookies (your choice) and
drop them off at Yankauer Sunday morning. (The kids will be trading in their eggs for cookies and lemonade and there are lots of parents to feed.) Contact Ellen Murphy at 304-676-8739.
Saturday May 7, PVAS is participating in the Boonsboro GreenFest which is one of the best Earth Festivals in this area! Everything from solar energy systems to composting to fair trade products to heirloom tomato plants to special children's activities to recycling opportunities to clothing and children's book swaps will be featured throughout the park. We need volunteers to help with our contact booth. Time is 10:00-5:00 p.m. Contact Kristin Alexander to volunteer: 304-274-0509.
PVAS Educational Programs
Watershed Field Trips are scheduled for March and early April. All times are 8:30-1 p.m. We
need help with doing water quality testing, streambank assessment, and looking for critters in the water. We provide training, but this is not hard and it is fun!! Bring your own lunch. Contact Ellen Murphy at 304-676-8739
March 29 and March 31-Flowing Springs Park, Ranson WV
April 1-Mill Creek (across from Mountain Ridge Intermediate School), Inwood WV
April 5, 6, and 7-Cacapon River, near Great Cacapon WV
April 12 and 13-Back Creek (at Tomahawk Intermediate School), Hedgesville WV
April 8 and 14-Tuscarora Creek on E. John Street, Martinsburg WV
Watershed Planting Projects are the final service project for students in some watershed education programs. This year, we are planting at Mussleman, Martinsburg, and Jefferson
High Schools and in Berkeley Springs and Paw Paw! Contact Ellen Murphy: 304-676-8739.
April 14, Musselman High School Envirothon (7:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m.)
April 25, 26, 28 Warm Springs Intermediate School, Berkeley Springs (1:30-3:00 p.m. each day)
April 27, Paw Paw Schools (8:00 a.m.-3:00 p.m.)
May 6, Martinsburg High School (7:30-9:30 a.m.)
May 6, Jefferson High School (1:30-3:00 p.m.)
School Programs at Yankauer Programs are generally 8:30-1:30 p.m. We need 2 volunteers for EACH program. Contact Ellen Murphy: 304-676-8739.
Tuesday and Wednesday April 12 and 13, 2nd grade program (Plants vs. Animals)
Tuesday April 26, Kindergarten program (Insects)
Friday April 29, 1st grade program (Insects)
Thursday May, middle school hike, 2:00-3:30 p.m.
PVMN Sponsored Volunteer Opportunities
Saturday May 7; 10 a.m.-12 noon. Garlic Mustard Challenge at Yankauer You can be part of the Garlic Mustard Challenge sponsored by the US Forest Service. West Virginia is out to pull 20,000 pounds of the invasive weed. Contact Nan Johnson at gabbyvanv@frontier.com
Saturday June 4; 10 a.m.-12 noon. Mile-A-Minute Eradication (part 3) at Flowing Springs Park in Ranson Mile-A-Minute is a major invasive that we are trying to prevent from spreading. The new Flowing Springs Park is next to Home Depot in Ranson. Bring leather gloves and long pants as the weed is also called “Devil’s Tear-Thumb” for good reason! Contact Ellen Murphy at 304-676-8739.
Volunteer at Yankauer Nature Preserve or Eidolon Nature Preserve: There are always "self scheduled" projects as an option such as pulling invasives at Yankauer or Eidolon, adopting a flower garden at Yankauer, trimming trails, etc. Once you’re “up and running” with knowing what to do (and where), you can do projects as often as you li.ke to suit your own schedule
At Yankauer contact Tim Murphy at timurf@comcast.net for projects at Yankauer.
For Eidolon projects, contact Joe Gentile at 304-258-3197.
Kristin Alexander at pvasmail@aol.com can also answer questions.
West Virginia Volunteer Opportunities
Volunteer at the Peter Burr Farm near Bardane/Kearneysville Volunteers are needed to: Conduct a plant species inventory; Identify invasive species; Remove invasive species; Develop a plan to introduce native species to be added over time to increase plant diversity; Remove some old fencing and piles of debris; Construct wire fence along Warm Springs Rd; Developing a plan and creating a nature trail. Regular work days are scheduled. Contact Nan Johnson at
gabbyvanv@frontier.com
Volunteer at the Cacapon State Park Nature Center Kelly Smith, Park Naturalist can use help doing everything from manning the nature center to feeding the snakes and turtles to leading hikes to helping with other projects that are going on. You can arrange a specific time during the week or on weekends, year round. Kelly can be reached at CacaponNaturalist@wvdnr.gov or by calling her at 304-258-1022 x5209.
WV Raptor Rehabilitation Centers: West Virginia’s two raptor rehabilitation centers in the
state occasionally need help working at their facilities constructing flight cages and performing
other tasks. If any MN student would like to earn more volunteer hours, he or she should
contact these centers.
West Virginia Raptor Rehabilitation Center, P.O. Box 333, Morgantown, WV 26507. Phone 1-800-540-6390, (304)-366-2867, Fax (304) 592-1482, email: raptor@wvrrc.org . Website: www.wvrrc.org .
Three Rivers Avian Center, HC 74 Box 279, Brooks, WV 25951, (304) 466-4683, email: ron@tracwv.org. Website: www.tracwv.org . Both raptor centers would appreciate any volunteer service you could provide.
Crayfishes in WV: Zach Loughman, Natural History Research Specialist at West Liberty State College, is running a statewide survey of the Crayfishes found in WV and would appreciate any help in collecting. Contact him at: Zachary J. Loughman, Natural History Research Specialist, Campus Service Center Box 139, West Liberty State College, West Liberty, WV, 26704, Phone: (304) 336-8923, Fax: (304) 336-8266, zloughman@westliberty.edu .
WVDNR Research Projects: Contact Keiran O’Malley at Romney and ask if he needs help on any surveys or other projects. (He teaches the PVMN Reptiles and Amphibian Class.) Contact him at kieranomalley@wv.gov
Bird Banding: Contact Bob Dean who bands locally and volunteer to help him. Contact Bob
at 304-754-3042 or BobDean52@gmail.com .
Fish Research Projects: Contact Vicki Blazer at the USGS National Fish Health Research Lab in Kearneysville WV. You’ll start out recording notes during research field work, but as you gain knowledge and experience, you can do more. Contact Vicki at fishdoc322@frontiernet.net .
Working With Children Volunteer Opportunities
Science Olympiad in Loudoun County VA: This event will take place in the school yard, classrooms, hallways, gymnasium and offices of Mountain View School (Purcellville VA) on June 7, 2011, 8 a.m.-2 p.m. Students attending the programs will be fourth and fifth graders. Presenters are asked to conduct four 50-minute, hands-on/active learning sessions. A gourmet lunch will be provided by the PTA. Contact Jim Jenkins at jenkinsjim@att.blackberry.net. (Although this opportunity does not qualify for Volunteer Hours for WV Master Naturalists, it is an important even. Jim Jenkins is a Certified WVMN and a member of PVMN, so volunteer to help just to be nice!)
Tigers on the Trail at Harpers Ferry: This program with students at Harpers Ferry Middle School is designed to get the students outside and physically active by using the trails around Harpers Ferry National Historic Park. Volunteers lead the hikes and can choose the trail, theme, and the date. The park will find a classroom that matches your availability, trail difficulty level, and theme. Themes can be anything from physical fitness to history to natural history to recreation. The focus is not content, but to get the kids outdoors, get students active, introduce them to the resources in their backyard, and give them a positive experience in nature. Of course Master Naturalists will have LOTS to share along the way, and for your volunteer hours, some sort of natural history theme would be appropriate. For more information about the program, contact Amber Kraft, Education Specialist at Amber_Kraft@nps.gov or 304-535-6293.
Opequon Creek Project workshop for MN Credits
If any of you did not attend this workshop last year when Laura presented it as a MN elective, you can still get class credit for the presentation this year. It's really interesting!
The Opequon Creek Project Team is pleased to announce our guest speaker for Wednesday, March 2, 2011, will be Laura from the Outfitter at Harpers Ferry and The Outfitter's General Store. Her presentation will be, "The History of the Beaver in WV". WV beavers were responsible for creating wetlands that provided natural habitat and helped capture, filter and clean water before it entered the Chesapeake Bay.
The Opequon Creek Project Team general meeting is held the first Wednesday of each month, except July and August, at 6:00 p.m. at the P.S.S.D. facility on District Way, off Edwin Miller Blvd. in Martinsburg. General meetings are open to the public and attendance is encouraged by members.
Directions:
From I-81 - take exit 16 East onto Edwin Miller Blvd (Rt 9). Turn left just past Sheetz on District Way (between Daily Grind and United Bank). PSSD building is on the left at end of street, a PSSD sign is on front door. The conference room is the door to your immediate left upon entering lobby.
The Opequon Creek Project Team is pleased to announce our guest speaker for Wednesday, March 2, 2011, will be Laura from the Outfitter at Harpers Ferry and The Outfitter's General Store. Her presentation will be, "The History of the Beaver in WV". WV beavers were responsible for creating wetlands that provided natural habitat and helped capture, filter and clean water before it entered the Chesapeake Bay.
The Opequon Creek Project Team general meeting is held the first Wednesday of each month, except July and August, at 6:00 p.m. at the P.S.S.D. facility on District Way, off Edwin Miller Blvd. in Martinsburg. General meetings are open to the public and attendance is encouraged by members.
Directions:
From I-81 - take exit 16 East onto Edwin Miller Blvd (Rt 9). Turn left just past Sheetz on District Way (between Daily Grind and United Bank). PSSD building is on the left at end of street, a PSSD sign is on front door. The conference room is the door to your immediate left upon entering lobby.
Earth Day Volunteer Opportunity
If you are interested in a fun VH opportunity, there are a couple of Earth Day events coming up that PVMN have been involved in, in past years. One is the ArtBerkeley Festival at War Memorial Park on April 16 from 10-4 p.m.
The other is the Earth Day Festival at Morgan Grove Park in Shepherdstown, April 23 from 12 noon-8 p.m.
In the past, we have had children’s activities, but we can do just a Master Naturalist contact booth as well. If you are interested, you can let me know and I can make sure you have access to the displays.
Those who are interested would be responsible for set up, manning the booth/activity, and taking stuff down. You could certainly share duties and time commitments. We would put all in touch with those who volunteer.
The other is the Earth Day Festival at Morgan Grove Park in Shepherdstown, April 23 from 12 noon-8 p.m.
In the past, we have had children’s activities, but we can do just a Master Naturalist contact booth as well. If you are interested, you can let me know and I can make sure you have access to the displays.
Those who are interested would be responsible for set up, manning the booth/activity, and taking stuff down. You could certainly share duties and time commitments. We would put all in touch with those who volunteer.
Peter Burr Farm Volunteer Opportunity
Volunteers needed for PVAS MN Burr Farm projects
Kickoff Date: February 26, 2011 at 10 AM
Contact: Nan Johnson, gabbyvanv@frontier.com
Location: Burr Farm, Kearneysville off Rt 9, Edmond Rd to Peter Burr Street (near Shamrock Lighting)
MN help is requested to assist at Burr Farm. Volunteers are needed to:
Conduct a plant species inventory
Identify invasive species
Remove invasive species
Develop a plan to introduce native species to be added over time to increase plant diversity
Remove some old fencing and piles of debris
Construct wire fence along Warm Springs Rd
Developing a plan and creating a nature trail
Please let Nan Johnson know if you are interested in volunteering for any of these projects at Burr Farm
Background: PVAS was approached by Jefferson County Historic Landmarks Commission to assist with improvements at Peter Burr Farm in Bardane. The group is interested in developing a nature trail on the property that highlights its natural features which include wetland, grassland, and others. PVAS has been invited to hold a summer camp on the property this summer as well as host bird walks and other nature oriented activities.
Burr Farm history: http://jeffersoncountyhlc.org/peterburrhouse.html
Kickoff Date: February 26, 2011 at 10 AM
Contact: Nan Johnson, gabbyvanv@frontier.com
Location: Burr Farm, Kearneysville off Rt 9, Edmond Rd to Peter Burr Street (near Shamrock Lighting)
MN help is requested to assist at Burr Farm. Volunteers are needed to:
Conduct a plant species inventory
Identify invasive species
Remove invasive species
Develop a plan to introduce native species to be added over time to increase plant diversity
Remove some old fencing and piles of debris
Construct wire fence along Warm Springs Rd
Developing a plan and creating a nature trail
Please let Nan Johnson know if you are interested in volunteering for any of these projects at Burr Farm
Background: PVAS was approached by Jefferson County Historic Landmarks Commission to assist with improvements at Peter Burr Farm in Bardane. The group is interested in developing a nature trail on the property that highlights its natural features which include wetland, grassland, and others. PVAS has been invited to hold a summer camp on the property this summer as well as host bird walks and other nature oriented activities.
Burr Farm history: http://jeffersoncountyhlc.org/peterburrhouse.html
Become a Project Wild Facilitator
If any of you are interested in becoming Project Wild facilitators (where you present the training to others), there is information about a free training below.
On behalf of the WV Wildlife Resources Section, I’d like to invite you to become a part of the Project WILD family. As the new state Project WILD Coordinator, I am recruiting and training a core of Project WILD facilitators from around the state to help lead workshops in their local area. This is a great opportunity for you to share your enthusiasm for learning about wildlife. The fun facilitator training is free and includes an overnight stay at Jackson’s Mill, complete with lodging and meals. The dates for the training are May 21-22, 2011. It will begin with dinner on Saturday and end after lunch on Sunday. You would need to provide transportation to and from Jackson’s Mill, located eight miles off I-79 near Weston.
You have been invited because of your interest in teaching people about wildlife. The workshop will consist of training in facilitator skills, review of the curriculum materials, and conducting hands-on activities. We will be working mostly with original Project WILD K-12 and Growing Up WILD for ages 3-7 this year. If it has been a while since you worked with the project WILD family, check out: www.projectwild.org and www.projectwild.org/GrowingUpWILD.htm . As a facilitator, you will be expected to lead one workshop a year (or more if you would like). This is a very flexible volunteer opportunity, so you can volunteer when it works best for you.
I need to confirm my tentative reservations soon, so I’m asking you to consider the invitation and call or email me within the next two weeks. I look forward to hearing from you and hope you decide to be a part of the West Virginia WILD family.
Karen McClure
WVDNR Wildlife Resources
4300 First Avenue, Suite 100
Nitro, WV 25143
Voice: 304-759-070
Fax: 304-759-0705
On behalf of the WV Wildlife Resources Section, I’d like to invite you to become a part of the Project WILD family. As the new state Project WILD Coordinator, I am recruiting and training a core of Project WILD facilitators from around the state to help lead workshops in their local area. This is a great opportunity for you to share your enthusiasm for learning about wildlife. The fun facilitator training is free and includes an overnight stay at Jackson’s Mill, complete with lodging and meals. The dates for the training are May 21-22, 2011. It will begin with dinner on Saturday and end after lunch on Sunday. You would need to provide transportation to and from Jackson’s Mill, located eight miles off I-79 near Weston.
You have been invited because of your interest in teaching people about wildlife. The workshop will consist of training in facilitator skills, review of the curriculum materials, and conducting hands-on activities. We will be working mostly with original Project WILD K-12 and Growing Up WILD for ages 3-7 this year. If it has been a while since you worked with the project WILD family, check out: www.projectwild.org and www.projectwild.org/GrowingUpWILD.htm . As a facilitator, you will be expected to lead one workshop a year (or more if you would like). This is a very flexible volunteer opportunity, so you can volunteer when it works best for you.
I need to confirm my tentative reservations soon, so I’m asking you to consider the invitation and call or email me within the next two weeks. I look forward to hearing from you and hope you decide to be a part of the West Virginia WILD family.
Karen McClure
WVDNR Wildlife Resources
4300 First Avenue, Suite 100
Nitro, WV 25143
Voice: 304-759-070
Fax: 304-759-0705
WV Environmental Education Association Conference
If you have not been to the WV Environmental Education Association Conference, you should think about it! Visit http://www.wveea.org/ for complete information. In particular, you may want to note that both Flying Wild and Growing Up Wild seminars will be offered. Each of these is 6 hours of class time and neither of them is in the immediate future for PVMN to offer. (Other sessions, while shorter, also count for recertification hours.) In addition, Wanda Miller will be presenting the graphic results of our “Body Farm” at Yankauer during last summer’s camp. Several other MN from our chapter will be going and if you are looking for a ride, let us know. We might be able to connect you with someone.
Stay tuned for information on PVMN’s participation in the Great Garlic Mustard Eradication Challenge, coming to Yankauer this spring!!
Ellen and Wanda
Stay tuned for information on PVMN’s participation in the Great Garlic Mustard Eradication Challenge, coming to Yankauer this spring!!
Ellen and Wanda
Leave No Trace Training for MN credits
As promised, Leave No Trace Training will be offered through Jefferson County Adult Education this spring. The class date is March 22 with the overnight to be announced at that time. Clark Dixon will be leading the session.
To register, go to the Jefferson County school website for Adult and Community Ed. On the left margin there are links to the Winter Catalog. That will bring up the entire booklet. The training is listed on page 11. There is a registration form in the booklet.
You can also find the booklet around the Jefferson County area, particularly in the schools.
If you have any questions about this course, email Clark Dixonconsultants@aol.com
To register, go to the Jefferson County school website for Adult and Community Ed. On the left margin there are links to the Winter Catalog. That will bring up the entire booklet. The training is listed on page 11. There is a registration form in the booklet.
You can also find the booklet around the Jefferson County area, particularly in the schools.
If you have any questions about this course, email Clark Dixonconsultants@aol.com
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