Transcript Document
Pierce Cedar Creek Institute
Biological Field Station
Summer Program
Kick-off Celebration
April 11, 2015
Registration and Pictures
You should have checked in and filled out forms as
you walked in. Please give Sara any forms you
haven’t turned in yet.
If you didn’t get your picture taken yet, please see
Dave to get your picture taken.
Welcome from Michelle
Introductions
Review of Day’s Agenda
promoting environmental
education, research,
preservation, and
appreciation.
Nature
Center
Family Programs
Hikes
Dinners and
Brunches
Conference Center
Biological Field Station
Albion College
Aquinas College
Calvin College
Central Michigan
University
Cornerstone University
Grand Rapids
Community College
Grand Valley State
University
Hope College
Kalamazoo College
Valparaiso University
Western Michigan
University
Staff!
Agenda
11:15 am Land Management and Learning
Opportunities
11:30 am Introduction of Participants & Projects
12:30 pm Lunch
1:20 pm BFS Logistics and General Information
1:35 pm Tour of Education Building, Meadow Lodge
and Research Lab
Land Management at Pierce
Cedar Creek Institute
Goals of Land
Management
Healthy and ecologically diverse
Natural
Biological communities consisting primarily of native
species
Communities inhabited by animals in balance with
vegetation
Inclusion of natural events
Accessible to researchers and local community for
interpretive and educational experiences
Strategies for Keeping
PCCI Natural
Mapping
Invasive plant & pest control
Increasing native biodiversity
Meeting specific needs of
wildlife
Creating Best Management
Practices (BMPs)
Monitoring
Mapping
Invasive Plant Control
• Manual
– Hand-pulling,
digging, cutting,
mowing,
prescribed fire
• Chemical
• Biological
– Biological
control agents,
grazing
Worst Offenders in SW MI
Autumn olive
Hogweed
Oriental bittersweet
Baby’s breath
Honeysuckles
Phragmites
Black alder
Common privet
Purple loosestrife
Black locust
Japanese barberry
Reed canary grass
Common buckthorn
Japanese knotweed
Spotted knapweed
Dame’s rocket
Lyme grass
Swallow-wort
Flowering rush
Multiflora rose
Teasel
Garlic mustard
Ornamental grasses
Thistles
Glossy buckthorn
Narrow-leaved cattail
Wild parsnip
Increasing Native
Biodiversity
Meeting Specific Wildlife Needs
Monitoring Management
Actions
July 2006
July 2009
• Necessary to show whether treatments are
effective
• Ensures efficient and effective use of resources
Comprehensive Land
Management Plan
Introduction
Purpose & Vision
Mission Statement
History of the Land
Ecological Site Descriptions
Management of Natural Areas
Appendices
Maps
Records/Control timelines
Policies
Policies in Management
Plan
Public Use
Research
Plant Collection
Invertebrate Collection
Fishing
Deer Management
Rx Fire in EMR Habitat
Volunteer Work Days
Attend 3…or more!
Gain experience
Plant Identification
Using tools, pesticides,
chainsaws
Give back!
Meet our volunteers
Help keep PCCI’s natural
areas pristine
Bonding
Volunteer Work Days
Early Successional Forests
(Garlic Mustard)
Every Friday in May, and
June 4 and 11
Prairies (Spotted Knapweed)
July 9, 23
Wetland Invasives
July 30
Prairies (Autumn Olive)
August 6, 20
Snake Fungal Disease
PCCI snakes tested
positive in 2014
Can be fatal
Populations found in
wetland areas
Protocol for preventing
the spread of SFD
Introduction of Participants
& Projects
Research teams introduce themselves and briefly (5 minutes) explain
their projects
Lunch!
Basic BFS
Requirements
• Attend 80% of all
meetings and talks
• Complete 9 hours of
land management
workdays
• Complete progress
report & talk by
June 17
• Present final talk
Sept. 26
• Turn in final report
by Oct. 5, revised
report by Oct. 31
What to
Expect
• Learn a lot
• Get help throughout
the entire process
• Classes tailored to
help you through
your project
• Get help from fellow
researchers, staff,
and volunteers.
• Meet new friends
• Work hard and
have lots of fun
• Really good food!
Professional
Development
• We will be working on
developing skills
outside your particular
project:
• Helping you write
and revise your
resume.
• Learning about land
management in
different
ecosystems.
• Practice speaking in
front of groups of
people (K-12
students , scientists,
and adults).
Basic Field Research Safety Rules
Don’t go out into the field by yourself. Tell someone where you are going
and when you should be back.
By going out with someone else, they can help you in the case that
something happens (even just when you need an extra hand).
Eastern massasauga rattlesnakes
These small, venomous snakes live in a couple areas of the Institute. If
you see any of them, leave them alone and report the sighting to Sara.
Wear closed-toed shoes/boots and long pants when you are out in tall
vegetation, especially in the wetlands.
Ticks and Mosquitoes
Be sure to check yourself over for ticks when you come back from the field.
Using bug spray can deter ticks and mosquitoes from bothering you.
Safe Field
Practices
• Tell Sara where you
will be doing
research. You can
either tell Sara in
person, text, email,
or call Sara.
• Have your cell
phone with you in
the field. We use
emergency texting
notifications.
• Wear bug spray and
sun screen as
needed.
Plants can cause you trouble,
too.
Use poison ivy block and/or after treatment to reduce the chance you
will get poison ivy, poison sumac, etc.
Safe Lab
Practices
• Wear Personal
Protective
Equipment.
• Be careful with
chemicals, read
MSDS before using
materials.
• Ask Sara or your
mentor if you need
training with a piece
of equipment.
• Keep building doors
shut at ed building
and research lab.
NEED GIS HELP?
If you have questions about GIS or GPS for your project, see AJ Smith in the
computer room of the Education Building.
[email protected]
Basic Life Stuff
• No alcohol or drugs. If you must, go somewhere else and use a designated
driver.
• Breakfast is in the visitors center from 8-9am, lunch from 12-1pm M-F. Let
Sara know if you have any dietary restrictions.
• Dinners and weekends you are on your own.
• No overnight guests without checking in with Sara.
• Before you arrive, talk to Sara to arrange key pick-up and get the door code.
• We will have weekly meetings, trips, and trainings throughout the summer to
help you gain experience outside of your project.
What to Do in Your Free
Time
At PCCI
Nearby Options
7 miles of trails
Many local parks
Bonfires
Community center at HHS
Fishing
Movies
Go to programs or
volunteer
Summer Concerts, Festivals,
and the Barry County Fair
Group Activities including:
Eminent Ecologists Series
at KBS, Trips to local sites,
Canoeing
Great places to eat
Bicycling
Beach at Gun Lake
Life after PCCI
• Understand
research on a deeper
level
• Do better in class
• Talk to others about
research
• Résumé builder
• Make important
connections
• Giving
presentations and
attending
conferences
Let’s go out
and tour the
facility
•Visitor Center
•Education
Building
•Research Lab
•Meadow Lodge