Week 3 on Wasatch Wildlife Watch: It's Almost Time for Your Camera Check!

Dear Volunteer,

You set your camera up during Week 1, and now it's nearly time for your first check! Visit your site between May 17 - May 23 to check your batteries, fill out a data sheet, and check the SD card.

Remember to let Austin know if you aren't able to complete the visit as planned.

Don't Forget

Skunk image captured by a Wasatch Wildlife Watch wildlife camera in 2020.

Skunk image captured by a Wasatch Wildlife Watch wildlife camera in 2020.

1 - ​Fill out our training survey if you haven't yet. Your feedback is incredibly important to us and helps us improve future trainings.

2 - Stay safe! As you plan for your participation, make sure you're keeping COVID and backcountry hunting in mind and, if possible, going into the field with a partner or letting someone know about your plans. In addition, please follow Wild Utah Project's Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion policies.

3 - Send us photos, videos, or stories from the field and join the new Wasatch Wildlife Watch Community Scientists Facebook page. We'd love to hear how the season is going and highlight your stories. You can also tag us on social media.

4 - Make edits as needed to your completed Camera Rotation Schedule form at any point in the season. To edit your response, search your email inbox for "Wasatch Wildlife Watch Camera Rotation Schedule" from sender "Google Forms." If you haven't filled out the form, make sure to do so ASAP.

Contact: To reach Austin through May 16, please use this number: (801) 560-6207. You can also email him at austin.m.green2015@gmail.com. Please excuse any delays in response, as he will be traveling during this time.

Volunteer Highlight

Tom Jones is a dedicated volunteer in his third year as a Wasatch Wildlife Watch community scientist. A huge thank you for all your work, Tom!

What originally drew you to participate in Wasatch Wildlife Watch? I've been doing volunteer work and community science for non-profits that are involved in conservation of wildlife and wild places for the last ten years. A friend that directs a non-profit in this area steered me to Wild Utah Project for volunteer opportunities. I was immediately drawn to Wasatch Wildlife Watch.

Wasatch Wildlife Watch Volunteer Highlight Tom Jones on a project with Hawkwatch.

Wasatch Wildlife Watch Volunteer Highlight Tom Jones on a project with Hawkwatch.

What has been your favorite part of volunteering so far? Discovering the amount of activity after dark in Dimple Dell. I would see female mule deer, young bucks on daylight hikes, and occasionally a coyote, but when I looked at the photos from the camera trap, I was surprised by the number of large male mule deer and the frequency of coyotes after dark.

Why is wildlife conservation important to you? I feel strongly about protecting what we have here along the Wasatch Front. We don’t have to make growth and development a zero sum game; i.e. if humans win, wildlife must lose. If we understand the dynamics of good healthy habitat and protect it, there is room for both humans and wildlife to thrive. Urban habitats like Dimple Dell, the Jordan River, and the Canyons along the Wasatch Front are unique resources that need to be protected.

Cooper's Hawk fledgling art by Tom Jones, seen while setting up a camera.

Cooper's Hawk fledgling art by Tom Jones, seen while setting up a camera.

Are there any stories you'd like to share from the field? When I was scouting for a camera site in a small, secluded ephemeral drainage in Dimple Dell, I heard something screaming at me. I looked up and saw a female Cooper’s. I thought I might been near her nest, so I immediately left and picked a less secluded site. When I returned a few weeks later to install the camera, I couldn’t find a suitable tree since there was lots of small gambel oak in the area. So I decided to go back down in the drainage I had scouted earlier and place the camera there. The female Cooper’s Hawk was still there, but she was joined by her fledgling. They both seemed relaxed and okay with my presence, so I set the camera up. I snapped a photo of the pair and later drew a picture of the fledgling. That site was a great one—the camera even got a photo of one of the hawks on the ground.

Project Resources

General - For resources and updates all in one place, visit the Wasatch Wildlife Watch project page with everything from project flyers to t-shirts.

Thank You

Thank you for your passion for wildlife in the Wasatch. We could not maintain this crucial wildlife project—​especially during such an uncertain time—​without the power of our dedicated community scientists.

 

Happy trails,

The Wasatch Wildlife Watch Team

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