JRBP('O'O) June 2024 Newsletter
June 2024
Link to 2023-2024 JRBP ('O'O) Newsletters.
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ANNOUNCEMENTS
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New blog: Celebrating Jasper Ridge’s legacy and vision in the 50th anniversary symposium!
Enjoy reading a summary of our 50th anniversary symposium and feel free to relive the moment by watching the recording of the presentation! Click here to access the blog and video (link at the end).
New siding for the Leslie Shao-ming Sun Field Station
The project to remove the old redwood siding and insulation from the field station started last week. The project will continue for another 3-4 weeks. The new siding will be installed in August. The new siding is made of a high density bakelite body combined with wood veneer and synthetic resins. The material is both fire resistant as well as extremely hard which should prevent acorn woodpeckers from pecking holes in the new siding! To accommodate the debris boxes, the ADA parking has temporarily moved to the east pad of the field station.
We are still seeking a 50% time Temporary Operations Assistant. Employee will perform routine and extraordinary maintenance on the Jasper Ridge Biological Preserve buildings, infrastructure, equipment, and roads. Employee will assist the Operations Manager in the execution of special projects as needed. Pay Rate: $25-$30/hourly, commensurate with experience. For more information click on this link.
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RESEARCH
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New Research
Dr. Avaneesh Narla, Stanford Science Fellow in the Dept. of Applied Physics, hosted by Prof. Daniel Fisher and Prof. Benjamin Good, will experiment with western tent caterpillars (Malacosoma californicum). Dr. Narla and his collaborators aim to understand how social caterpillar behavior changes in response to various auditory signals and on different substrates, and they will look at how caterpillars respond when they are in a group compared to individual behavior.
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EDUCATION
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Ecology and Natural History of Jasper Ridge Graduation Ceremony!
We graduated the new class of docents from the 2024 BIO/ESYS 105 Ecology and Natural History of Jasper Ridge course on June 6. They include: Kim Beil, Kelley Langhans, Derek Knowles, AJ Naddaff, Sue Schmitt, Kiara Fufunan, Pearl Shing-Roth, Alexa Pollock, Calvin Probst, Laney Conger, John Lowndes, Tina Truong, Eva Shen, Katie Savage, Katherine Lai, Varun Shirhatti, Marty Freeland, Rodrigo Carvalho, and Isabella Cruz-Krahn. Check out the updated Class of 2024 members in our Alumni Directory We can't wait to see what they go on to do at Jasper Ridge as docents, researchers, writers, and artists. Congrats to Rodolfo, Katie and TAs, Sydney and Diego for completing another great year of BIO/ESYS 105!
New JRBP ('O'O) Environmental Education Scholar Award Recipients
We awarded the Environmental Education Scholar Award to Chrysanthe Frangos (2023), Shreya Garg (2024), and Diego Perez (2024). You can read more about the Jasper Ridge Environmental Education Award and the profiles of our latest awardees on our website
Continue updating the Jasper Ridge Docent Alumni Directory
We hope that this directory will support docents staying in touch with JRBP('O'O) and each other, and to show the scope of independent work done by past students. This directory is only accessible to alumni of the Ecology and Natural History of Jasper Ridge class. You can read more about it on this blog. If you are an alumni and wish to explore the directory and update your information, please click here visit the complete directory. If you wish to submit an update, please contact Katie Glover and she will send you the correct form.
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STEWARDSHIP
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Year 2 of JRBP('O'O) Stewardship Intern Program!
Summer is here and we are excited for the second summer of our Stewardship Intern Program! Starting today, two Stanford students, John Lowndes (docent class of 2024!) and Nick Rodriguez will be interning at the preserve for 10 weeks this summer to help to continue collecting data from the fuel reduction monitoring plots, support invasive species management, and explore independent projects. Stop by to say hi!
Science-based stewardship starting at JRBP'O'O!
JRBP'O'O staff is following up on the fuel reduction work that was completed last fall and burning this spring by monitoring vegetation growth, fuel level changes, and presence of small mammals and birds. This data will be used to inform future maintenance plans, which is part of our adaptive management strategy which involves using data and feedback from the system to implement long-term stewardship practices.
Living Lab Fellowship completed by Zander Opperman
As the quarter ended, we said farewell to our Living Lab Fellow, Zander Opperman. Zander worked with Jasper Ridge staff throughout the academic year to support the pile burning for fuel reduction in March. His project involved interviewing key players before and after the burns to assess the cultural change and collaboration needed for successful burning. In addition, he also participated in the burn crew as a certified type II wildland firefighter! We congratulate Zander on a job well done!
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GRACIAS! THANK YOU!
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Thanks to docents that helped lead tours in May of 2024: Adelaide Nye, Alix Marduel, Bob Dodge, Caroline Blythe, Cheryl Gold, Christine Martens, Claire Elliott, Dawn Neisser, Diego Perez, Jane Moss, Jeff Schwegman, Jonathan Segal, Klaus Porzig, Lydia Villa, Mary Bernstein, Maryanne Welton, Nancy Lund, Paul Heiple, Rodolfo Dirzo, Stu Koretz, Susan Walz, Teal Derrer and Zander Opperman
Thanks to docents that helped researchers in May of 2024: Perry McCarty, Kit Gordon, Mary Hufty
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PICTURE OF THE MONTH
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Group picture of the BIO/ESYS Ecology and Natural History class of 2024 during the graduation ceremony on June 6, 2024! Check out the alumni directory for their names, pictures and project titles. The picture includes Kim Beil, Kelley Langhans, Derek Knowles, AJ Naddaff, Sue Schmitt, Kiara Fufunan, Pearl Shing-Roth, Alexa Pollock, Calvin Probst, Laney Conger, John Lowndes, Tina Truong, Eva Shen, Katie Savage, Katherine Lai, Varun Shirhatti, Marty Freeland, Rodrigo Carvalho, and Isabella Cruz-Krahn. Picture by Bob Siegel.
