JRBP('O'O) Feb 2025 Newsletter
February 2025
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ANNOUNCEMENTS
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Tuesday, February 18, 2025, 8 AM-12 PM: Prescribed Fire Research Convening
We will be hosting a convening for prescribed fire research. Almost one year after the pile burns, the convening will include research presentations and a panel session with faculty, for the community to gain new insights on pile burn research. Please note that we are at capacity for this event. Thank you to everyone who has RSVP’d—you will receive an email with additional details for attending the event.
Tuesday, March 11, 2025, 4 PM: Evening Lectures with Chinmay Sonawane Ph.D. Candidate, Stanford Biology
Join us on March 11, 4-6 PM to meet and be in conversation with Chinmay Sonawane, PhD student in Prof. Rodolfo Dirzo's lab, a Knight-Hennessy Scholar, and a Jasper Ridge docent class of 2022. Chinmay will share his presentation titled: “Pumas trigger a trophic cascade in a human-dominated landscape”. Bring a friend with you!
Apply to be a 2025 Summer Stewardship Intern!
The Stewardship Intern Program is an opportunity for Stanford students to work at Jasper Ridge to further develop existing skills in ecology, natural history and field work, while learning about stewardship and research under the mentorship of a diverse team of scientists. Deadline Feb 21, 2025. More information and application here!
We have a new team member!
John Stannard joined our team in January and is now working as the Operations Assistant with Steve. If you see him out on the trails, make sure you say hi!
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RESEARCH
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New Research
Maya Xu and Marty Freeland, two undergraduate researchers working under the mentorship of Assoc. Dean and Prof. Rodolfo Dirzo, will compare the efficacy of three bird survey methodologies in capturing avian community composition at Jasper Ridge: passive acoustic monitoring, ongoing point and transect counts, and “mob” surveys. Mob surveys use recordings of known bird species to attract guilds of responding bird species – this project will be among the first, if not the first, to provide a protocol for mob surveying. The study will also be replicated at TomKat Ranch. Grant funding will be used to purchase audio recording and playback equipment, and climate data loggers.
While we are chirping about birds, stop by and explore the Birds of Jasper Ridge Photo Gallery. The Birds of Jasper Ridge Photo Gallery is a growing collection from the photography team of Peter and Diane Hart documenting the species and families of birds of JRBP ('O'O) in their natural habitats.
Oakmead Herbarium and Collections
All 5000+ vascular plant vouchers underwent a period of freezing, which kills pests to prevent damage to plant tissues. Thank you, Dawn Neisser, for leading and completing this effort! Fore more information on our Herbarium, visit their website.
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EDUCATION
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FOR DOCENTS: Title IX and Safe Field Practices Training Refresher March 1, 2025.
The next in-person Title IX and Safe Field Practices training will take place at Jasper Ridge for our docent community from 10 AM - 12 PM on Saturday March 1, 2025. As a reminder, all docents leading tours must take a training refresher every two years. Reach out Katie Glover if you need to check the status of your last training and timing for your renewal. More details will be sent in a separate email.
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STEWARDSHIP
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Stewardship Scientist Sheena Sidhu has began developing two major stewardship plans for Jasper Ridge: an invasive species management plan, and a fuel monitoring & maintenance plan. Contact Sheena Sidhu for more information. Start refreshing and polishing your hand removal techniques for pulling the invasive French broom!
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GRACIAS! THANK YOU!
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Thank you, docents for your help leading tours this month: Klaus Porzig, Cheryl Gold Shaffer, Claire Elliott, Joyce Friedrichs, Christine Martens, Jane Moss, Mary Bernstein, Catherine Magill, Jonathan Segal, Robert Siegel, Adelaide Nye, Eva Yu Shen, Dawn Neisser, Varun Shirhatti, Dan Quinn, Helen Quinn, Mary Hufty, Kathleen Bennett, Thomas Henri, Tom Malloy, Sara Macway, Teal Derrer.
Thank you, to docent Bill Gomez, for helping researchers!
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SUPPORT JASPER RIDGE
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To support JRBP ('O'O) in its new challenges, please visit our Donate page (link here), thank you!
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PICTURE OF THE MONTH
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Fun-guy and resident ranger Brooke Fabricant enjoys leading members of the Jasper Ridge community on his annuals mushrooms walks. As he likes to say: "Rain brings mushrooms, but too much rain makes them go away…" Make sure you sign up to one of his walks! Picture credit: Katie Glover
