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Center Activities
evening classes and weekend fieldtrips:
Classes meet at Humboldt State University in Founders Hall Room
163, on Tuesdays or Thursdays from 7-9pm with field trips on the following weekend.
Additional information can be found in the Center Activities Spring 2002 catalogue.
For more information call HSU Center Activities at 826-3357, Arcata or LBJ Enterprises
at 442-0339, Eureka with your questions.
Gull, Tern, and Skua Identification
This class will focus on the identification of adult and juvenile plumaged gulls of the Pacific Coast. We will discuss molt sequences and the development of adult plumage. The Sunday field trip will visit local gull roosts where we can study several species in a variety of plumages. At this time of year, there is also a good chance of picking out the less common Herring or Thayer's Gulls.
A continuation of our focus on the gull family, we turn our attention to the terns and skuas. Recently published books have shed new light on the identification of these birds in the field. This class will discuss how and where to observe these seabirds, and tips for identification in flight and out at sea.
Class: Part I Tues Oct 29, 7-9pm
Part II Tues Nov 5, 7-9pm
Field Trip: Sun Nov 10, 0730 Arcata Marsh Interpretive Center parking lot, S. G. Street, Arcata.
Price: $34 (Students) $41 (Others)
Large numbers of ducks winter in our area. This class will give an overview of the species we can expect to find and discuss identification of the more difficult females and males in eclipse plumage. Note that the field trip will be held the following weekend, where we will visit Lake Earl in Del Norte in search of wintering ducks. Alan Barron, Del Norte's leading resident birder will be an additional leader and will certainly add new species to our list, in 1999 we recorded over 100 bird species.
Class: Tues Dec 3, 7-9pm
Field Trip: Sun Dec 8, Crescent City Harbor 0900 (Guintoli Lane Ray's Food Place for car pool 0730).
Price: $34 (Students) $41 (Others)
An interest in backyard birds extends back into childhood memories for most. Rob's earliest memories of birds are of those on his grandfather's bird-feeder. Taking things one step further, Rob investigated the City of Arcata's birdlife as part of his graduate studies at Humboldt State University, as well as maintaining an active wildlife garden at home. Backyard wildlife has become a widespread pastime and a booming industry, in part because all walks of life can participate. Whether it's throwing bread out for the sparrows or developing sophisticated drip water systems, it all centers on the simple pleasure of observing and interacting with wildlife on a day to day basis. The presentation will focus on the species expected to occur locally, what types of seed and feeders to use as well as general guidelines for promoting backyard wildlife.
Rob Hewitt is the owner/director of LBJ Enterprises ("little bird jobs"). A
former president of the local Redwood Region Audubon Society, he is active in
such local bird activities as the Breeding Bird Atlas, BBS (summer survey) Routes
and bird banding. He also teaches a variety of classes in birdwatching through
Center Activities at HSU. For those of you wishing to join Rob on a field trip
to specifically view backyard wildlife, they can contact LBJ Enterprises at
442-0339. The trip leaves Sunday, December 9th at 8:00 a.m. from the Arcata
Marsh Interpretive Center, South G Street.
INSTRUCTOR: Rob Hewitt
LBJ BASE FEE: $29 HSU students; $31 others
EVENING CLASS: 7pm Tuesday, December 4 th, Founders Hall 163, HSU
FIELD TRIP: 8:00 am Sunday December, 9th, Arcata Marsh Interpretive Center on South G St.
INTRODUCTION TO BIRDWATCHING JANUARY 29 & FEB 3, 2002
Birdwatching, or birding as it is called, is one of the nation's fastest growing pastimes, and why not, when you can combine outdoor activity with nature study and environmental awareness. For many the first lessons are the hardest: What kind of binoculars should I use? What's the best field guide? Where can I go to see the birds? And of course the question that gets us all going, what kind of bird is that? This course won't turn you into an expert overnight, but it will get you jump started in this rewarding pastime. The fastest way to learn birds is from an experienced birdwatcher. Rob Hewitt has been birding in Humboldt County for over a decade, and has introduced many novice birders to the craft. An informal evening session will answer these questions and present a slide show of the area's common birds to prepare you for the field trip. The field trip for this class will be to the Eel River bottoms.
INSTRUCTOR: Rob Hewitt
LBJ BASE FEE: $29 HSU students; $31 others
EVENING CLASS: 7pm Tuesday, January 29th, Founders Hall 163, HSU
FIELD TRIP: 7:30am Sunday,
Elk River Exit (See below, no extra charge)
LET'S GO BIRDING - EEL RIVER BOTTOMS FEBRUARY 3, 2002
For many, just getting out locally and going birding is a fine way to enjoy birds. This day will focus on the area's many winter species as demonstrated on the Centerville Christmas Bird Count which is one of the top 25 each year. We will bird the Eel River bottoms, King Salmon, Fields Landing, Humboldt Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Ocean Ranch, and Ferndale. The Eel River valley supprts a wide range of species. Tundra Swan and other waterfowl will be seen and possible Ferruginous Hawk or Bald Eagle. Shorebirds and waterbirds are plentiful at this time and our day list is sure to exceed 100. Other LBJ staff members will also join the group to enhance bird identification. Carpool will be arranged as needed.
INSTRUCTOR: Rob Hewitt
FEE: $29 HSU students; $31 others
FIELD TRIP: 7:30am Sunday, February
3rd, Park & Ride lot, Elk River Road exit off Hwy 101 south of
Eureka
VOCATIONAL BIRDWATCHING SERIES MARCH 14, MARCH 16, MARCH 17, 2002 (SESSION 1)
APRIL 9, APRIL 13, APRIL 14 (SESSION 2)
APRIL 30, 2001 (SESSION 3)
Taken for pleasure or as a way to meet the increasing demand for skilled ornithologists
in the field, this series will improve your birdwatching skills. Each session
will focus on endangered species field training with field trips designed to
observe these species in the wild. Individual sessions can be attended separately,
but the combined series will be the most valuable in building experience. The
series may be combined with the classic weekend blitz trip to NE California.
For information contact Rob Hewitt at 442-0339.
SESSION 1 - ENDANGERED SPECIES MARCH 14-17, 2001
An introduction to the official protocol surveys for endangered species. Birds included will be the Northern Spotted Owl, Marbled Murrelet, Northern Goshawk, Snowy Plover, and Willow Flycatcher. Prior to the field visit on local forestlands to "mouse" an owl, some wonderful owl video footage will prepare students for this activity. That evening, after a social gathering and BBQ, a nighttime survey loop will be completed with local wildlife biologists that regularly complete such tasks. Other owl species and nocturnal animals will also be encountered.
MARCH 14
CLASS SESSION: HSU, Founders Hall 7pm - 9pm
MARCH 16
SPOTTED OWL PROTOCOL 10am - 12pm
LUNCH 12pm - 1pm
SPOTTED OWL FIELD TRAINING: 1pm - 4pm
SOCIAL AND BBQ: Freshwater Road, Eureka 5pm - 7pm
SPOTTED OWL NIGHT SURVEY: 7pm - 9pm
MARCH 17
ENDANGERED SPECIES DATA SHEETS & REPORT WRITING 11am - 1pm
SPOTTED OWL MAPPING, RAPTOR SURVEYS,
AERIAL PHOTOGRAPH INTERPRETATION 1:30pm - 3:30pm
INSTRUCTORS: Rob Hewitt, Pablo Herrera
FEE: $39 (HSU students) or $41 (others) single session or $84 (students) or $86 (others) for all three sessions
EVENING CLASS: 7:00pm Thursday, March 14th, Founders Hall 163, HSU.
FIELD TRIP: 10:00am Saturday, March 16th, 1204 Freshwater Road, Eureka.
SOCIAL & BBQ: 5:00pm Saturday, March 16th, 1204 Freshwater Road, Eureka.
NIGHT SURVEY: 7:00pm Saturday, March 16th, 1204 Freshwater Road, Eureka. (707) 269-0271
REPORTS & MAPPING: 11am Sunday, March 17th, Founders Hall 163, HSU.
SESSION 2 - INTRODUCTORY BIRDING BY EAR - FIELD NOTES APRIL 9, APRIL 13, APRIL 14, 2002
Taking good field notes, how to write bird descriptions, and an introduction to the "Grinnel" method will be covered. Next, we will provide the basics for all ornithologists and also introduce the skill of "ear birding". Most identification of birds is by song and call. Acquiring this skill takes time, but it is a must for field ornithologists. Bird songs of our typical forest landbirds will be covered. Expertise is not required and for many this can be the first serious exposure to this skill. Field trip scheduled for April 13th. Meet at 7:00am, at 14th and Union Streets to bird the Arcata Community Forest and Arcata and Blue Lake riparian habitats. An optional field trip will be April 14th for training in Marbled Murrelet surveying. Meet at 5:45am to see Marbled Murrelets and hear the dawn chorus, at Lost Man Creek, Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park, off of Highway 101.
APRIL 9
CLASS SESSION: HSU, Founders Hall 7pm - 9pm
APRIL 13
INTRODUCTORY BIRDING BY EAR TRAINING 7am - 2pm
APRIL 14
MARBLED MURRELET EXPOSURE AND INTRODUCTION TO THE PACIFIC SEABIRD GROUP
SURVEY PROTOCOL (OPTIONAL) 5:45am - 8am
INSTRUCTORS: Rob Hewitt, Tristan McKee
LBJ BASE FEE: $39 (HSU students) or $41 (others) single session or $84 (students) or $86 (others) for all three sessions
FIELD TRIP: 7:00am Saturday, April 13th, 14th & Union Streets, Arcata, return 2pm.
OPTIONAL FIELD TRIP: 5:45am Sunday, April 14th, Lost Man Creek Parking Lot, Hwy 101, Redwood National Park
SESSION 3 - POINT COUNTS AND BIRD BANDING APRIL 30, MAY 4, 2002
Point counts and bird banding are critical skills for experienced field ornithologists. This class will take a detailed look at both techniques and advice will be provided with field practice that weekend. With regular practice both these skills can be aquired for the local species in a given season. There are only so many spring seasons and even the LBJ veterans will benefit from this annual refresher. The diverse riparian habitats of the Lower Eel and Van Duzen Rivers will be covered.
INSTRUCTORS: Rob Hewitt, Tristan McKee
FEE: $39 (HSU students) or $41 (others) single session or $84 (students) or $86 (others) for all three sessions
FIELD TRIP: 6:30am, Saturday, May 4, Park & Ride lot, Elk River Road exit off Hwy 101 south of Eureka
NORTHERN CALIFORNIA BIRD BLITZ MAY 7 - PRE-TRIP, MAY 18, MAY 19, 2001 - Trip
An introduction to the varied habitats of California and their associated birds will prepare us for the Bird Blitz weekend field trip. Avian distribution and its relation to California's habitat types provides valuable insight into what may be expected at study sites during the upcoming field season. The California Wildlife Habitats Relationships (WHR) system will be briefly introduced. Field trip arrangements will be discussed before class. Meet at 7pm Founders Hall Room 163. An incredible diversity of birds will be observed along the Modoc plateau and at Tule Lake with this outing at the beginning of the Spring migration. Following the classic route developed by Dr. Stan Harris, past trips have recorded more than 200 species. Included is overnight camping at the Whiskeytown Lake and Lava Beds National Monument. Transportation by carpool. Motel arrangements optional. For additional information call (707) 442-0339.
INSTRUCTORS: Rob Hewitt, Steve Tucker, Tristan McKee
FEE: $49 HSU students, $76 others
EVENING CLASS: 7:00pm Tuesday, May 7, Founders Hall 163, HSU.
FIELD TRIP: Departure Friday evening to base camp at Oak Bottom Campground, Whiskeytown, off Hwy 299. Depart base camp 8:00am Saturday. Return from Redding, Burney Falls, Sunday evening.
LET'S GO BIRDING - MENDOCINO COAST MARCH 2, MARCH 3, 2002
County birding is a great way to learn avian distribution. This weekend trip will include identification of birds by sight and song. Our LBJ Mendocino regional project manager will guide you around Fort Bragg, Ukiah, Lake Mendocino, and the Garcia River mouth . We will arrange a Friday evening carpool to Mendocino County and then meet at the cemetery in Fort Bragg on Saturday at 9:30am. Carpool and nighttime accommodations will be arranged as needed and Sunday is optional.
INSTRUCTOR: Justin Ward, LBJ Mendocino (707) 743-1805
FEE: $29 HSU students; $31 others
FIELD TRIP: 9:30am Saturday, March 2nd March 3rd (optional), Fort Bragg Cemetary.
Humboldt Bay is host to tens of thousands of wintering shorebirds. This class will focus on identification of shorebirds in winter, breeding and juvenile plumage. The Sunday field trip to the mudflats and roost sites around Humboldt Bay will put the skills to the test. At this time of year, there is always the chance of finding some of the rarer shorebirds during early fall migration
FEE: $34 HSU students, $41 others
Class: Tues Sep 10, 7-9pm
Field Trip: Sun Sep 15, 0730 Arcata Marsh Interpretive Center parking lot, S. G. Street, Arcata.
Our annual hawk class and weekend trip to the Marin headlands. Please refer to the separate write-up for further details. Please note: the single program fee will be $30 for students and $40 for all others. Full details and site maps will be provided at Tuesday's class.
FEE: $39 HSU students, $51 others
Class: Tues Sept 17, 7-9pm
Field Trip: Sat-Sun Sept 21-22, Marin Headlands, 10:00am.
This class focuses on the ecology and identification of our local breeding and wintering sparrows discussing the complexities of plumage and recent taxonomic revisions we will tease out the differences between the classic "Little Brown Jobs".
FEE: $34 HSU students; $41 others
Class: Tues Oct 22, 7-9pm
Field Trip: Sun Oct 27, 0730 Arcata Marsh Interpretive Center parking lot, S. G. Street, Arcata.
LBJ Tours and Classes Spring 2002