Thank you to everyone who made our first Pillar Point intertidal citizen science field season a huge success! In 2012 we held eight field days (three of which started around 5:30 am!) and had almost 60 volunteers come out and survey with us. In those eight days, we made over 350 observations comprising close to 120 species. Those observations are the beginning of what will eventually be a comprehensive species list for Pillar Point, since one does not currently exist.

This fall we also worked with our citizen scientists to set up permanent survey plots that will be used to monitor a select group of species. The goal is to eventually develop a set of protocols that volunteers can do on their own time, in groups, throughout the year.

We're currently putting our 2013 calendar together! This year we look forward to working with everyone again, adding new faces to our corps, and hopefully expanding our monitoring into the Fitzgerald Marine Reserve.

If you're interested in volunteering for the 2013 field season, please send an email to citizenscience@calacademy.org.