Connect

April 17th

at 6:30pm

at the Quincy Public Library
Quincy, CA

PRESENTATION INFORMATION:
Mari will present on the importance of intact landscapes for healthy ecosystems and discuss ongoing efforts, including research, wildlife crossings, and policy, to connect habitats in the Northern Sierra and beyond.

ABOUT THE SPEAKER:
Mari spent her childhood on a farm in the San Joaquin Valley of California and her summers in the Sierra Nevada, near Ebbetts Pass. Her outdoor exposure inspired her to study ecology, pursuing her bachelor degree in environmental science from Humboldt State University. Recognizing the threats to these ecosystems motivated her to protect them, prompting her to obtain a law degree at the University of Oregon in 2020. Mari has combined her passion for science and policy through working with wildlife and ecology experts to advance innovative legislation and on-the-ground landscape-scale initiatives.

Mari lives in Sacramento, California. When not strategizing a connected California, you’ll find her outside with her dog, Bodie, either backpacking, trail running, sketching, and gardening.

May 11th

at 10:30am

at the Quincy Public Library
Quincy, CA

PRESENTATION INFORMATION:
Roads and highways can have dramatic effects on wildlife movement and landscape connectivity. Some species may have complete aversion to roads, which would limit their movement through landscapes with roads. Other species may try to cross roads even with traffic present resulting in wildlife mortality and risks to drivers. UC Davis’ Road Ecology Center uses the California Roadkill Observation System (CROS), a volunteer driven citizen science database, to study the impact of roads on wildlife movement at multiple geographic scales, from individual animals at road crossing structures, to hypothetical movement pathways at the landscape scale. Information about where wildlife vehicle collisions occur, what animals are involved, on what roads collisions are frequent, and other data can help inform policy, management, and financial investment in reducing roadkill.

Paul will provide participants with a history of the database, context regarding its relationship to  wildlife movement and barriers, as well as provide an overview of the state-wide funding environment in relation to this work. Paul will lead people through the CROS application process and explain the data entry process. Participants will then be split into up to 3 groups to head out into the field to collect data before returning to the library to review the data and enter it into the CROS. 

ABOUT THE SPEAKER:
Paul Hardy founded the Feather River Land Trust in 1999, where he served as its Executive Director for 18 years. ​His 35 years of conservation, land management, and non-profit experience includes working as an avian researcher for the University of Arizona for 3 years, a wildlife biologist on the Plumas National Forest for 5 years, ​co-creating the Sierra Land Trust Council and Northern Sierra Partnership,​ and ​serving on the​ boards of the California Council of Land Trusts and Plumas Audubon Society.

Paul was born along the Middle Fork Feather River at the Western Pacific Railroad Hospital in Portola. He and his brother, Mark, were lucky to have parents (Richard and Becky Hardy) who took them fishing, hunting, hiking, wildlife watching, and camping throughout the Feather River Watershed and western U.S. After obtaining degrees in wildlife biology from the Universities of California and Arizona, Paul moved back to the Feather River region in 1998 to help start FRLT. Paul currently works as a consulting conservation biologist with Hardy Conservation; however, his primary focus and joy is currently supporting his teenage kids, Emmalyn and Andrew, as they transition into adulthood.

June 4th

at 6:30pm

at the West End Theater
Quincy, CA

PRESENTATION INFORMATION:
This panel discussion features California Department of Fish & Wildlife biologists, Jay Lombardi, Arjun Dheer, and Axel Hunnicutt, as well as National Council for Air & Stream Improvement Wildlife Biologist, Katie Moriarty, who specialize in Mountain Lion, Black Bear, Wolf, and Pacific Marten respectively. The moderated panel will delve into newly initiated and ongoing carnivore research efforts in the region. 

According to research published by the Royal Society, 64% of large terrestrial carnivores are threatened with extinction, and 80% have declining population trends. Large carnivores have lost 60% of their habitat in the last several centuries.

Carnivores help shape nearly every aspect of an ecosystem, from keeping prey populations balanced, to impacting plant growth and riparian river systems by dispersing herbivores and small carnivores, to reducing animal disease breakouts in ungulates and other animals.

Join biologists from California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) and the National Council for Air & Stream Improvement (NCASI) to discuss local Black Bear, Mountain Lion, Wolf, and Pacific Marten research projects. During the summer of 2024, field crews will be working throughout Plumas County to collect data that will contribute to the projects shared throughout the presentation

July 3rd

at 10am – 3pm

at the Almanor Parks & Recreation Building
Chester, CA

PRESENTATION INFORMATION:
The final event in the series dedicated to aquatic connectivity and will feature Department of Water Resources’ Environmental Program Manager, Jason Kindopp, and Feather River Trout Unlimited board member, Vincent Rogers. The event will explore research efforts pertaining to the feasibility of salmon reintroduction and climate resilient watersheds in our region. The presentation will be followed by a field tour to the Chester diversion dam to observe the methods being used in the North Fork Feather River Fish Passage Feasibility Study in action.