Parktips – August 2010
The National Park Service submits the following ideas for news stories for your consideration. For more information about any of them, please contact Elise Cleva at 202-208-6843 or Elise_M_Cleva@nps.gov.
American Journal of Public Health Explores New Role for Rangers In the future, park rangers may educate visitors about not only canyons and Civil War battles, but also infectious diseases, long-term wellness, and other health-related topics. In “Park Rangers as Public Health Educators,”
an article in the August issue of the American Journal of Public Health, David Wong and Charles L. Higgins of the National Park Service report on a project that tested the viability of national parks as settings for health education. The Public Health in the Parks grants initiative funded outreach programs in parks throughout the country. In one program, Native American children engaged in actual exercise, which they translated into a “virtual walk” of the 74-mile length of Badlands National Park. In another program, visitors to Lowell National Historical Park in Massachusetts learned about a typhoid epidemic, the transformation of a local river into an agent of death, and the ensuing epidemiologic investigation. “Further exploration of national parks as nontraditional and underutilized venues for health education is warranted,” Wong and Higgins conclude.
Lighthouses Change Hands
Two historic light stations will receive new owners later this year. On June 21, Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar recommended that the Buffalo Harbor South Entrance Light in Buffalo, New York, go to the Buffalo Lighthouse Association, Inc., a local nonprofit. Salazar recommended transferring the Burrows Island Light Station near Anacortes, Washington, to the Northwest Schooner Society, another nonprofit. Under the National Historic Lighthouse Preservation Act (NHLPA) of 2000, federally owned, historic light stations may be transferred at no cost to federal agencies, state and local governments, nonprofit corporations, educational agencies, and community development organizations. Ten lighthouses are currently available. See http://www.nps.gov/history/maritime/nhlpa/nhlpa.htm for more information about the NHLPA Program.
Acadia Welcomes Wabanaki
Passamaquoddy birchbark artist David Moses Bridges kneels next to his hand-hewn canoe and calls to his son, Tobias Francis, 15, the youngest ranger in Acadia National Park. “Can you hand me the bear fat and pine sap mixture?” asks Bridges, who is demonstrating birchbark canoe making, a craft perfected thousands of years ago by his ancestors. Bridges is descended from four distinct tribes known collectively as the Wabanaki.
Their members traveled to this area to hunt and fish. Bridges’s cultural demonstration is one of many programs initiated by Acadia to allow Wabanaki people to share their traditions and culture with visitors. In another program, Francis shows the raw materials and tools used by Wabanaki people in the past and today to make ash and sweetgrass baskets. Future initiatives include producing Wabanaki language podcasts for visitors and positioning Wabanaki youth in Acadia through internships and mentoring programs.
NPS Handbooks Available Online as History E-Library Grows The online library of almost 4,000 books, reports, and articles developed by the National Park Service (NPS) keeps growing. Historian Harry Butowsky expands the collection every week. Recently, he added the popular NPS handbooks. First published in the 1950s by the NPS Harpers Ferry Center, they provide a wealth of comprehensive information drawn from the latest scientific and historical research available at the time of publication.
Photographs, maps, and original art complement the texts. The contents of many of these handbooks are available online at http://www.nps.gov/history/history/online_books/handbooks/index.htm.
To access the entire History E-Library, go to http://www.nps.gov/history/history/hisnps/.
Fisher Census
Researchers in Yosemite National Park are trying to determine the size of the Pacific fisher (Martes pennanti pacifica) population. The Pacific fisher is now found only in roughly 50% of its historical range in California and is listed as a federal candidate species, meaning that federal authorities can propose that Pacific fishers be designated endangered or threatened. The Yosemite population suffers from low reproductive capacity, reduced genetic diversity, and ongoing habitat loss.
In Yosemite, researchers have placed motion-activated camera stations to document the presence and habitat requirements of fishers. Please see http://www.nps.gov/yose/naturescience/fishers.htm.
Beneath the Surface of National Parks
To find out the current geoscientific issues facing national parks, take a look at proposals from the National Park Service (NPS) for 2011 Geoscientists-in-the-Parks (GIP) positions. The GIP program places geoscientists in parks and central offices for three to 12 months. In response to a call just issued by The NPS Geologic Resources Division, staff at parks, regions, and central offices can propose projects in geoscientific research, resource management, inventory, monitoring, and interpretation/education.
You can view past issues of Parktips and register to receive Parktips via e-mail.
If you need help, please contact the NPS Communications Office at 202-208-6843.
For the latest news from the National Park Service, visit www.nps.gov/news.
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My Tags: America, California, Community, Health, Massachusetts, Mentor, New York, News, Park, Podcast, Rat, WashingtonRelated posts
]]>news release
Date: July 28, 2010
Contact: Kendra Barkoff (DOI), (202) 208-6416
Kathy Kupper (NPS) (202) 208-6843
Salazar Announces National Park Service Will Waive Fees on August 14 & 15 WASHINGTON – Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar today announced that the National Park Service will waive entrance fees on August 14 and 15 to encourage all Americans to visit our national parks.
“This fee-free weekend provides an opportunity for individuals and families alike to take an affordable vacation or to explore a nearby park they have never visited before,” Salazar said. “I encourage everyone to take advantage of the free admission to visit not only our greatest natural wonders but also our nation’s historic and cultural icons.”
There are 391 national parks located across the country in 49 states, many of which will hold free events on August 14 and 15. A complete list by park or state is available at www.nps.gov. A sampling of offerings include:
Ranger-led programs with free instruction and equipment loans for
those who want to get wet. Enjoy snorkeling at Cape Cod, kayaking at
DeSoto, or canoeing in Congaree or Big Cypress. Prefer to simply
chill out near the water? Bring your blanket to one of the 50 parks
with beaches.
Watch history come to life at military encampments and firing
demonstrations at Antietam, Gettysburg, Fort Laramie, Fort McHenry,
Fort Vancouver, Fort Stanwix, Fort Matanzas, Kings Mountain, Wilson
Creek, Kennesaw Mountain, and Yorktown.
Dance or tap your toes to the sounds of the Pig War Band at San Juan
Island, Cajun music at Jean Lafitte, Ojibwe music at Grand Portage,
mountain music on the Blue Ridge Parkway, folk songs at Carl
Sandburg, classical music at Saint-Gaudens, or dulcimer music on the
Natchez Trace Parkway.
The entrance fees being waived at the 146 sites usually charge for admission range from $3 to $25. There are 246 other parks that do not have entrance fees so you can plan a free visit year-round. The fee free waiver does not include other fees collected in advance or by contractors—such as fees charged for camping, reservations, tours and use of concessions.
The National Park Service website provides information to help the public plan their park adventures at www.nps.gov.
My Tags: America, Camping, News, Park, Rat, WashingtonRelated posts
]]>FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 28, 2010
Contacts: Emily Prigot, New Bedford Whaling National Historical Park, Emily_Prigot@nps.gov, 508-996-4095
Elise Cleva, NPS Headquarters, Elise_M_Cleva@nps.gov, 202-208-6843
New Bedford Whaling National Historical Park America’s Best Idea: National Park Getaway
NEW BEDFORD, Mass. – This week, the National Park Getaway series drops
anchor in the former whaling town of New Bedford, Massachusetts. In the
past, when candles and oil lamps served as light sources, New Bedford
became known for “lighting the world,” since the creatures hunted by the
townspeople supplied wax and oil. Today, New Bedford remains an
enlightening place to visit.
The town, which makes up the national historical park, tells a focused and
fascinating story from America’s past. The Whaling Museum, historic
buildings such as a whaling merchant’s mansion, and living history
presenters bring to life the New Bedford of the 1800s. The now-prohibited
economic activity from which the town prospered drew people from around the
world, and the cultural heterogeneity that developed in New Bedford appears
today in festivals and in the town’s restaurant scene.
This week’s National Park Getaway article—the 59th in the series—points out
the highlights of New Bedford and helps you plan a visit there. Access this
week’s Getaway and the others in the series at www.nps.gov/getaways.
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With 482 turtles found dead and 167 turtles found alive but impacted by oil, last week’s good news about sea turtle releases in the Gulf isn’t looking as good this week:
Federal biologists are releasing thousands of endangered baby sea turtles into the western Gulf of Mexico, betting that by the time the silver dollar-sized swimmers make it to the oil-fouled waters of the eastern Gulf, BP will have cleaned up its goopy mess.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and National Park Service are proceeding with the annual release of Kemp’s ridley turtle hatchlings off Padre Island National Seashore because Texas has not been significantly impacted by the oil spill. For years, scientists have incubated and hatched the turtles to give the endangered creatures a boost.
Critics argue the decision to free vulnerable hatchlings doesn’t adequately account for hurricanes, storms or a seasonal change in current, all of which could bring the oil west and directly into their path. Nesting mothers, they say, are also at risk because many deposit their eggs in northern Mexico or south Texas and head for heavily impacted areas.
To read the full article, click here.
My Tags: Gulf Oil Spill Wildlife Disaster, News, Park, Texas, WildlifeRelated posts
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AGENCIES WORK TO IMPROVE ANIMAS RIVER FISHERY DURANGO, Colo. — In an effort to improve the fishery in the Animas River through Durango and the Southern Ute Indian Reservation, three agencies are working to stock 100,000 rainbow trout in the river annually.
In early July, the Colorado Division of Wildlife and the Southern Ute Indian Tribe spread the fish in the river from Santa Rita Park in Durango to Bondad about 16 miles south of Durango. The fish were 5-6 inches in size.
The fish stocking is paid for by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation as mitigation for the removal of water from the Animas River to Ridges Basin Reservoir, also known as Lake Nighthorse. An agreement on a stocking and monitoring program was developed by the BOR, the Southern Ute Tribe and the DOW.
The fish are being raised at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service national fish hatchery in Hotchkiss. An additional 50,000 trout, 10 inches in size, will be raised at the hatchery and stocked annually in the reservoir. Stocking in the reservoir will start this fall.
The stocking and monitoring of the fish will be performed by the DOW and the Southern Ute Tribe.
"We are really excited about the agreement because everyone gets something out of the deal," said Jim White, DOW aquatic biologist in Durango, "The Southern Utes get a healthier fishery, we get stocking extended into the Gold Medal reach of the Animas River, and the BOR gets some of their environmental commitments covered through our fish survey work."
The agreement will enhance the cooperative efforts of the tribe and the DOW in maintaining a healthy fishery in the Animas River.
"The agreement allows all parties to decide how best to manage these stocked trout using the information gathered during our coordinated fish surveys," said Steve Whiteman, director of wildlife resource management for the Southern Utes. "If our current stocking parameters are off in some way, there is now a formal mechanism in place to address problems and do what is best for the resource."
As stocking efforts continue every year, more and more of the fish stocked will be the whirling-disease resistant strain of rainbows that are being developed by DOW at its hatcheries. Aquatic biologists hope that those fish will begin to reproduce naturally in a couple of years. This is the second year that fish have been stocked in the river.
DOW and Southern Ute biologists will conduct surveys in the river to determine how many of the stocked fish are surviving.
The BOR began pumping water from the Animas River into the reservoir in 2009. Agency officials expect that the reservoir will be filled to capacity by mid-summer 2011.
For more information about Division of Wildlife go to: http://wildlife.state.co.us. My Tags: Bow, Colorado, DOW, Health, Park, Rainbow Trout, Rat, WildlifeRelated posts
]]>For immediate release – July 26, 2010
Contacts: David Barna, (202) 208-6843, David_Barna@nps.gov
Patrick O’Driscoll, (303) 969-2839, Patrick_O’Driscoll@nps.gov
Wessels Named Intermountain Regional Director
Will lead one of seven National Park Service regions
WASHINGTON – National Park Service Director Jonathan Jarvis has named John
A. Wessels as the Service’s Intermountain regional director, responsible
for leading 5,000 employees and 92 national parks visited by more than 42
million people annually. Wessels, who serves as the region’s associate
director for administration, business and technology, assumes his new
position in Denver in August.
“John has an incredible track record of tackling tough issues and finding
innovative solutions,” Jarvis said. “Results-oriented and goal-driven, John
manages by inclusion, building a collaborative work ethic among employees
and with partners. He strives for the highest standards of transparency and
accountability. He has an easy grasp of the big picture and is dedicated to
the effective use of new and emerging technologies to meet the needs of the
National Park Service. As the National Park Service looks toward its second
century, he will be a valuable member of our national senior management
team.”
“Serving as the Intermountain regional director is a tremendous honor,”
Wessels said. “The region is home to some of this country’s most
spectacular landscapes and most compelling stories, places that have been
entrusted to the National Park Service by the American people for nearly
100 years. It is our privilege to care for the natural and cultural
resources in parks and to work with communities around the region to help
them preserve local history and create close-to-home recreational
opportunities for their citizens.
“For me, this is an opportunity to support employees in their dedicated
efforts to care for these special places and engage park visitors,
partners, and communities. I will listen carefully to their voices as we
work together to preserve these places, engage the public, draw young
people to the parks, and provide meaningful experiences to our diverse
audiences.”
As the regional associate director for administration, business and
technology since 2004, Wessels oversees a regional annual operating budget
of $500 million and the largest concessions contracting operation in the
National Park Service, more than 200 contracts that gross over $425 million
annually.
Over the last 18 months, he has also led the investment of $200 million in
American Reinvestment and Recovery Act funds in priority park projects
across the region. He was the key figure in developing a virtual
acquisition strategy that has improved accountability and empowered the
workforce with more flexibility for purchasing and contracting. He was
responsible for overseeing property management for 43 million acres of
public land and more than 2,000 park structures.
Wessels joined the National Park Service in 2000 as the Intermountain
Region’s comptroller, where he managed all finance and budget-related
activities and developed a web-based system to integrate financial systems
data and project information to provide park managers with real-time access
to critical income and expense data by park.
During his career he has served as acting deputy superintendent at Golden
Gate National Recreation Area in San Francisco, acting deputy Intermountain
regional director, acting associate director for business services at the
National Park Service headquarters in Washington, D.C., and most recently
as acting superintendent of Grand Teton National Park and the John D.
Rockefeller, Jr. Memorial Parkway in Wyoming.
From 1989 to 2000, Wessels worked for U.S. Department of Commerce’s
National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) in Boulder managing
financial and administrative functions and systems for the national physics
laboratory.
He was selected as a Presidential Management Fellow in 1985 and served in
the Office of Management and Budget where he become a permanent employee
(1985-1989) serving as the budget examiner for the $4 billion U.S.
Department of Housing and Urban Development. At OMB, he staffed two
presidential commissions – Management Improvement and Integrity and
Efficiency – and was the lead analyst on the Enterprise Zone Empowerment
Program, an initiative to spur investment in economically depressed
communities. In 1987, Wessels was commissioned as an ensign in the United
States Naval Reserve and served for six years as a reserve intelligence
analyst.
Wessels earned bachelor and master of science degrees in public finance and
policy analysis from Carnegie-Mellon University and a second master of
science degree in computer information systems from Regis University, where
he has served as an adjunct professor of business and information systems
in the College of Professional Studies since 1998.
He lives in Denver with his wife, Mary, and their children Grace and Jack.
Note to Editors: The National Park Service’s seven regional offices provide localized policy, leadership, and technical support to parks and communities. The Intermountain region is the largest region in the National Park Service, spanning the states of Montana, Wyoming, Utah, Colorado, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas and Oklahoma. The region includes 92 parks encompassing 11.1 million acres; employs 6,000 permanent and seasonal employees, and generates one-half of all National Park Service concession revenues. It has more than 230 national historic landmarks and more than 11,000 properties listed in the National Park Service’s National Register of Historic Places.
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My Tags: America, Arizona, Colorado, Denver, Montana, New Mexico, News, Oklahoma, Park, Rat, Texas, Washington, WyomingRelated posts
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The best time to go herping is common knowledge to the reptile community, but other people might not realize this.
In Texas, reports are climbing of Coral Snakes, which is bad with a shortage of anti-venom:
The coral snake is one of four types of venomous snakes common in Texas, though it is the least dangerous in the group.
“They have extremely small fangs and so if someone is wearing any protective garment like gloves, pants or shoes – the snake will not be able to bite you,” said Wildlife Biologist John Davis with the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department .
Davis said the best thing to do when someone crosses paths with a snake is to respect the reptile and walk away.
For the full article from Austin News, click here.
As reptile people, we are ALWAYS asked how to get rid of snakes. This article out of North Texas has the suggestion:
Snakes only eat live prey, so getting rid of mouse problem, may be the start to keeping away snakes.
Continue reading “Herp Report: Rain makes it "hot"”
My Tags: Community, Mouse, News, Park, Snake, Texas, WildlifeRelated posts
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Chytrid fungus is killing species of frogs as fast as they can be identified in Panama. From the Ticotimes.com:
The study confirmed a worldwide trend of amphibian populations being decimated by a fungal pathogen called chytrid. Three U.S. researchers studying amphibians in El Copé, Panama detailed the presence of the species from 1998 to 2003 before the fungus’ arrival and then after the fungus’ arrival from 2006 to 2008. They saw a drastic drop in the number of species from 63 to 33.
A sixth of those species now absent from Panama’s Omar Torrijos National Park had not been catalogued before.
Another article from Wired.com follows biologist Karen Lips and her monitoring program in Costa Rica:
She walked the same transects year after year, and one day in October 2004 she started finding dead frogs instead of live ones, Crawford said. The strangest thing was that frogs that were previously rare, like subterranean frogs, became more abundant. They started coming out of the woodwork, so to speak, and then they died.
In the course of the long-term study, Lips and Crawford identified a total of 74 species in the region.
Within a couple of months of the fungus arriving, Crawford said, 30 of the species disappeared from the region, including five that were newly discovered. A survey in 2008 confirmed their absence.
Continue reading “Herp Report: Amphibian Round-up”
My Tags: ParkRelated posts
]]>For Immediate Release: July 22, 2010
Contact: Beth Boland, 202-354-2238, beth_boland@nps.gov
“Lafayette Park: First Amendment Rights on the President’s Doorstep”
National Park Service launches online lesson plan
WASHINGTON, DC: “The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall
not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account
of sex.” In the struggle to add these words of the 19th Amendment to the
U.S. Constitution, fires burned, picket signs waved, and prison doors
clanged shut on women young and old. The struggle for female suffrage comes
to life in the National Park Service’s new Teaching with Historic Places
lesson plan “Lafayette Park: First Amendment Rights on the President’s
Doorstep.”
“Lessons like this one from the Teaching with Historic Places program do a
superb job of carrying out the educational mission of the National Park
Service. It may not be obvious how properties, such as Lafayette Park, that
are listed in the National Register of Historic Places help members of the
education community teach fundamental aspects of our nation’s history, but
the lessons demonstrate the power places have to illuminate the past, even
for those who can’t visit,” said Jon Jarvis, Director of the National Park
Service.
The lesson uses Washington, DC’s Lafayette Park, a statue-adorned landscape
directly in front of the White House, as the jumping-off point for an
exploration of the final years in the campaign for women’s voting rights.
In January 1917, members of the National Woman’s Party (NWP), headquartered
in a house-turned-office that faced the park, began to picket in that
public space. They were exercising their First Amendment rights to speak
freely, assemble, and bring petitions before the government, and their
banners boldly addressed President Woodrow Wilson, whose speeches the
suffragists would later burn in their struggle for political equality.
The lesson plan puts this struggle in context through photographs, maps,
and readings. The readings cover the events that took place between January
1917 and November 2, 1920—the first Election Day on which American women
throughout the country could go to the polls—and provide the text of a
speech in which President Wilson urged the U.S. Senate to grant women the
right to vote.
Studying Wilson’s speech provides an opportunity for students to strengthen
their vocabularies, their reading comprehension, and (by example) their
command of rhetoric. The lesson’s questions and activities spur students to
think empathetically and analytically as they examine photos, maps, and
texts; compare and contrast the suffrage demonstrations to other protests
staged in Lafayette Park; and research Supreme Court cases bearing on First
Amendment rights.
The lesson is targeted to middle school students but can be adapted to
upper elementary and high school levels. The lesson meets national
educational standards in U.S. history (grades 5-12) and social studies. A
generous grant from the White House Historical Association provided crucial
support for this lesson, which is the 139th in the Teaching with Historic
Places series. Teachers, students, and other inquiring minds should check
out http://www.nps.gov/learn/ for other educational products from the
National Park Service.
My Tags: America, Community, News, Park, Photos, Rat, WashingtonRelated posts
]]>Who: The Unified Area Command in New Orleans, represented by the National Park Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and other key federal, state and private partners.
What: Accredited media are invited to cover the excavation of Kemp’s Ridley sea turtle eggs from a nest on the Gulf Coast of Florida for transport and later release. Kemp’s Ridley sea turtles are an endangered species, and this is the first nest to be relocated from Gulf Islands National Seashore.
There will be opportunities for interviews with biologists supervising the relocation, volunteers from the group “Turtle Patrollers,” and other key leaders in this effort to save these and other Gulf Coast sea turtles from the impact of the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill.
Where: Fort Pickens Area of Gulf Islands National Seashore, located near Pensacola Beach on Santa Rosa Island.
When: Friday, July 23, 5 p.m. CDT. Nest excavation at 6 p.m. Expect extraction to be 1 hour. Reservations are required by calling (251) 233-6834. Shuttle will be provided to the press conference.
Participants:
Jonathan B. Jarvis, Director, National Park Service
Nina Kelson, Deputy Superintendent, Gulf Islands National Seashore
For information about the response effort, visit www.deepwaterhorizonresponse.com.
-NPS-
My Tags: Conservation, Florida, Park, Wildlife