Bluebird Trail Monitoring Training

The upcoming trail technician training workshop is required for those interested in participating in the bluebird nest box monitoring project at Seven Bends State Park for the 2020 season, which is scheduled to start Saturday, March 28 and continue through Sunday, August 30. 

Date:  Saturday, February 22, 2020

Time:  9am to noon

Where:  Friends of the North Fork Shenandoah River Office, 305 W. Court Street, Woodstock, Virginia

Registration is required: Please register by Thursday, February 20, 2020 by contacting Kaycee Lichliter, Seven Bends State Park Volunteer Bluebird Trail Manager: kayceelichliter@hotmail.com

Additional Information:

• Workshop is open to participants who will commit to volunteering for at least one monitoring season.
• Trail objectives are: 1) provide habitat, 2) education, and 3) research. 
• Learn about bluebirds and other native cavity-nesting birds that utilize the nest boxes.
• Learn proper monitoring techniques, including making critical observations and recording concise and consistent data. 
• Trail technicians will be assigned to monitor on specifically scheduled dates. Monitoring days/times are Saturday or Sunday, starting no earlier than 12:00 noon, and must be completed at least one hour before dusk. 
• Advance monitoring schedule is coordinated throughout the season by trail manager wherein every effort will be made to work around planned vacations, etc. A backup/substitute call system will be utilized. Volunteers are given choices for frequency of participation; ex.: once a month/twice a month.
• The trail technician will agree to inform the trail manager if they cannot monitor their assigned date and will be responsible for obtaining a substitute to monitor and immediately relay that change to the trail manager.
• Close communication between trail manager and all volunteers, along with strict adherence to protocol, is required in order to make the trail system operate in a safe manner for both the technicians and the birds.  
• This Citizen Science project is a fun way to make a contribution to conservation and a great opportunity to participate in field-related scientific study.
• Workshop and monitoring volunteer hours are recognized by the Virginia Master Naturalist program.