CAMPPHIBIAN

Twin Lakes Amphibian Bioblitz

As part of our citizen science and outreach programs for youth, AHS has partnered with the Girl Scouts of America and the U.S. Forest Service to undertake an amphibian-oriented bioblitz at the Twin Lakes long-term monitoring site on the Stikine River. The program is in its second year and research was conducted in both June of 2014 and May of 2015! This excellent opportunity allowed youth to learn about local non-game species and field methods while contributing valuable scientific data to the Stikine Long-term Amphibian Monitoring Program (SLAMP). We hope that grants and partnerships will allow for this program to continue well into the future!

CLICK HERE TO READ THE WRANGELL SENTINEL ARTICLE ON CAMP'PHIBIAN Year 2!

CLICK HERE TO READ THE WRANGELL SENTINEL ARTICLE ON CAMP'PHIBIAN Year 1!

Camp'Phibian participants pose outside of the Twin Lakes Public Use Cabin in June of 2014!

Scouts, scout leaders, USFS staff and AHS representatives came together for a 3-4 day annual camping trip in this remote site in the Stikine-LeConte Wilderness. "Teams" conducted sight, auditory and dipnet surveys in assigned areas of the Twin Lakes site, with the goal of conducting an intensive and relatively comprehensive amphibian inventory. The teams competed for the most number of species encounters, the greatest number of animals of a given species, and the greatest number of life stage observations.

AHS representatives helped to organize the events and to oversee data collection. They offered educational lectures, materials and training for proper implementation of the program. The data collected under this project will be submitted to the University of Alaska Museum's Arctos database, and AHS is attempting to publish the program results in peer reviewed publications. Stay tuned for the manuscript!

Camp'Phibian participants walk the Twin Lake Transects searching for amphibians in June of 2014!

We believe that Camp'Phibian has been a huge success. Not only did we collect a wealth of valuable data, but we were able to meet our mission of providing excellent outreach and education opportunity's for Alaska's youth. The Scouts helped us to conduct a thorough amphibian inventory of the Twin Lakes site, and 2014 was the first time that AHS was able to sample the same site twice in the same year. The scouts also engaged in a number of valuable training programs to prepare them for this wilderness outing - an experience they are unlikely to forget!

A Columbia-Spotted Frog found during Camp'Phibian at Twin Lakes in the June of 2014!

AHS is incredibly thankful to Girl Scout Troop 4156, the Wrangell Ranger District of the U.S. Forest Service and the Stikine Sportsman's Association for helping to make Camp'Phibian a reality!

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