Field Trips
We have planned a spectacular line up of field trips led by an impressive group of naturalists. Current options include early morning birdwatching trips (Mon-Wed, before symposia/ presentations), a half-day excursion, and several one-day excursions. Don't miss out on one of the best parts about coming to an SCB Congress. Please remember that you must sign up and pay for field trips when you register for the Congress. You may bring guests on field trips even if they are not registering for the NACCB - simply purchase their reservation during online registration using the online participant Registration Form (available at the Registration Information tab). Field trip reservations are first come, first served. [please note non-consecutive numbering of trips, as some have been cancelled].
EARLY BIRD MORNINGS
Bird Morning 1 (FTR1). Crown Memorial State Beach, Alameda Island. Monday, July 16th, 6:00-8:00AM.
Crown Memorial State Beach is located a few minutes south of Oakland on Alameda Island. Features include a restored 2.5 mile beach and Crab Cove Marine Protected Area (MPA). In response to severe erosion, the beach was restored in 1982 with sand from San Francisco Bay pumped ashore by pipeline from a barge. Horseshoe-shaped Crab Cove MPA, located at the eastern end of the State Beach, is surrounded by barnacles and crab-filled tide pools. Possible sightings include two or more species of terns, early returning shorebirds, oystercatchers, and, hopefully, some surprises.
Cost $30.00. Group size: 25 maximum.
Leader: Bob Power, Executive Director, Santa Clara Valley Audubon Society
Bird Morning 2 (FTR2). Middle Harbor Shoreline Park, Oakland. Tuesday, July 17th, 6:00-8:00AM.
Middle Harbor Shoreline Park, operated by the Port of Oakland, is built on the former Oakland Naval Supply Depot which was decommissioned in 1998 after serving the Navy since World War II. Originally a tidal wetland, public agencies, community representatives, and scientists worked together to design the habitat restoration for the ~150-acre water area of the harbor and the integration of the park with the habitat. Middle Harbor has become an ecological reserve of shallow bay and shoreline habitats for many species, such as Dungeness crab, flatfish, anchovy, herring, and perch. Possible sightings include long-billed curlew, least Western sandpipers, black-bellied plovers, Forster's terns, and if we are lucky, endangered least tern.
Cost $30.00. Group size: 25 maximum.
Leader: Eddie Bartley, Owner, Nature Trip
Bird Morning 3 (FTR3). Arrowhead Marsh, Oakland. Wednesday, July 18th, 6:00-8:30AM.
Arrowhead Marsh is a part of Martin Luther King Regional Shoreline, managed by the East Bay Regional Parks system. This 50-acre tidal marsh in San Leandro Bay is a stopover on the Pacific Flyway and is included in the Western Hemisphere Shorebird Reserve Network. We will discuss tidal marsh systems and the species supported by this limited habitat, including the endemic and endangered California clapper rail. We will also have up close examples of the various stages of tidal marsh restoration in response to wide-spread invasion by a non-native plant, hybrid cordgrass (Spartina alterniflora x foliosa). Please note: This trip may return late due to traffic.
Cost $30.00. Group size: 25 maximum.
Leader: Toby Rohmer, Senior Biologist, Olofson Environmental, Inc.
HALF-DAY EXCURSION
Excursion 1 (FTR4). San Francisco Bay: South Bay Salt Pond Restoration. Thursday, July 19th, 9:00AM-2:00PM.
Birders and restoration ecologists are in for a treat on this half-day trip to the heart of the San Francisco Bay and wetlands that host over 280 species of birds each year. San Francisco Bay has lost an estimated 85 percent of its historic wetlands to fill or alteration. This has caused wildlife to dwindle, decreased water quality, and increased local flood risks. The South Bay Salt Pond Restoration Project, the largest tidal wetland restoration project on the West Coast, is beginning to reverse these trends. When complete, the project will restore 15,100 acres of industrial salt ponds to a rich mosaic of tidal wetlands, managed ponds, and other habitats. Throughout project planning and implementation, science has guided adaptive management decisions, development of restoration targets, and measurement of project success. Join the project leaders and scientists from the San Francisco Bay Bird Observatory and U.S. Geological Survey as we discuss the restoration project, learn about current research, and visit two of the restoration sites: Eden Landing Ecological Reserve (Union City) and Ravenswood ponds of the Don Edwards SF Bay National Wildlife Refuge (Menlo Park). Bay Area weather can be quite variable, so please bring a jacket and/or extra layer in case it's needed. *Transportation for this trip will begin and end with a ride on BART, the Bay Area's rapid transit system. The BART station is located one block from the Oakland Marriott. Trip leaders will meet participants with vans at the South Hayward BART Station.
Cost $50.00. Group size: 24 maximum.
Leaders: John Bourgeois, Executive Project Manager, California Coastal Conservancy; Cheryl Strong, US Fish and Wildlife Service
Trip hosts and partners: California Coastal Conservancy, US Fish and Wildlife Service, US Geological Survey, San Francisco Bay Bird Observatory.
ONE-DAY EXCURSIONS
Excursion 3 (FTR6). San Francisco and Southern Marin Parklands: Saving Endangered Species in an Urban National Park. Thursday July 19th, 8:30AM-5:00PM.
This field tour offers spectacular coastal scenery and valuable time with internationallly recognized bird and native plant experts. The Golden Gate National Parks are not only the largest urban park in America, but they're home to many endangered species that the National Park Service works diligently to protect. We will visit three of the most beautiful sites and hear planners, biologists, and vegetation ecologists describe the work they're doing to enhance endangered species habitat. The sites include tidal and dune habitat at San Francisco's Crissy Field (restored in 2001 after serving as an airfield for the Presidio Army Base from the 1920s to 1974); a remnant habitat for the mission blue butterfly at Hawk Hill in the Marin Headlands; and red-legged frog and Coho salmon habitat at Muir Beach, downstream from Muir Woods. There will also be a stop at the Presidio Nursery where native and rare plants are propagated from seeds collected within the park and used to support native plant populations and preserve rare plant communities. Bay Area weather can be quite variable, so please bring a jacket and/or extra layer in case it's needed.
Cost $85.00. Group size: 15 maximum.
Leaders: Allen Fish, Sharon Farrell, and Betty Young with the Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy
Trip hosts and partners: Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy, Golden Gate National Recreation Area, Golden Gate Raptor Observatory, Presidio Trust
Excursion 4 (FTR7). East Bay Regional Parks: Vasco Caves Regional Preserve. Thursday, July 19th, 8:30AM-4:00PM.
Vasco Caves Regional Preserve, located in the Altamont Pass Wind Resource Area, covers 5,400 of the 110,000 acres of land managed by the East Bay Regional Park District. The preserve hosts a unique combination of resources including spectacular rock outcrops that protrude from a landscape rich in California grasslands, threatened and endangered species from fairy shrimp to California tiger salamanders, and habitat for the San Joaquin kit fox. Raptors frequent the outcrops which also support ancient Native American rock art. Given the presence of fragile natural and archaeological sites, the preserve is only open to the public on a restricted basis through naturalist-led interpretive tours. The trip will highlight several complex resource issues and their management including grazing and native grassland restoration, threatened and endangered species management, implementation of the East Contra Costa County Habitat Conservation Plan, wind energy development (including repowering of wind farms and the mitigation of impacts, especially to raptors), and the cultural significance of the preserve to Native Americans. Internal and external research at the preserve will also be highlighted, including results from a 10 year grassland study by U.C. Berkeley. Participants will have an opportunity to view a host of wildlife typical of California grasslands from golden eagles to possibly badgers and cultural resources such as Native American rock art. Layered clothing, hat, sunscreen, water, and sturdy hiking shoes are recommended. The likelihood of encountering rattlesnakes is high.
Cost $85.00. Group size: 30 maximum.
Trip hosts and partners: Doug Bell, East Bay Regional Park District.
Excursion 5 (FTR8). Parajo River Watershed: Sustainable Agriculture and Floodplain Conservation. Thursday, July 19th, 8:00AM-7:00PM.
Conservation science has rapidly expanded into agroecology at a landscape scale and demonstrated much can be done in the agricultural matrix to improve ecosystem function, processes and community composition. Come see a successful on-the-ground project at the urbanizing fringe of the San Francisco Bay Area that integrates agricultural and and ecosystem conservation at a large scale. This one-day tour of the Pajaro River and Watershed will demonstrate how agriculture and natural systems can mutually benefit from floodplain conservation and how we can enhance adaptation to climate change for human and natural communities. The watershed of the Pajaro River encompasses expanses of interior rangelands and forests, highly-productive commercial agriculture, portions of the densely urban Bay Area, interior wetlands, and coastal wetlands near its mouth at Monterey Bay. The river channel and floodplains provide ecosystem services to agriculture and urban communities in the form of flood risk reduction, water quality improvement, groundwater recharge, soil enrichment, and crop pollination—all increasingly important as the region's climate changes. The Nature Conservancy and partner organizations will lead participants from the coast through the river valley and surrounding mountains, stopping to meet and hear from farmers, wildlife biologists, and local partners how conservation is helping them address climate change, enhance wildlife connectivity, and abate threats from flooding and development.
Although open to all SCB 2012 registrants, this field trip will particularly complement the Symposium Floodplain conservation to sustain urban, agricultural and natural communities: Case studies from two coastal California watersheds.
Cost $85.00. Group size: 35 maximum.Leaders: Sasha Gennet, The Nature Conservancy plus researchers, practitioners, and landowners
Â
PLEASE NOTE: Field trips will be cancelled with full refund if minimum number of particpants is not met by May 15, 2012.