Looking Good this Weekend

Well, the rain is still expected, but it's finally warming up past 41 degrees, making conditions better for surveys. Spring is starting to feel more like a reality than just a wish. Observations are starting to really pick up throughout the iNaturalist community in Washington and our project. And, our kudos this week go to @conwaysuz - nice photo and data fields in this observation http://www.inaturalist.org/observations/5495428 Good survey!
Over the next few weeks, I'd like to introduce you to our awesome curators. We have some great experts supporting our project and helping volunteers identify what they see. These folks work for Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) as professional biologists and researchers with deep experience in amphibians, aquatic habitats, conservation, community engagement and volunteer projects – we’re grateful for the time they commit to this effort.
Some of you may have already "met" one of our curators, communicating with him in the comments on one of your trickier egg mass identifications. Marc Hayes @demonpumpkin is a research herpetologist with 44 years of experience, the last 26 of which have been in the Pacific Northwest. He leads the Aquatic Research Section in the Habitat Program’s Science Division at WDFW. Marc has a great passion for amphibians and has been a lead researcher on Oregon Spotted Frogs for most of his career. Several folks on his team are also helping to review observations so we'll "meet" them in future journal posts.
Hope you're all having fun!

Posted on March 31, 2017 03:18 PM by wendyc_wdfwcitsci