Designing a Long-Term Phenology Monitoring Program for Management and Outreach

Target Audience:

USFWS employees, Biologists, Visitor Service Specialists, Educators.

Summary and Objectives:

Phenology can inform many aspects of management of wildlife and their habitats, such as knowing which species of birds are breeding on your refuge, when to treat invasive species invasive species
An invasive species is any plant or animal that has spread or been introduced into a new area where they are, or could, cause harm to the environment, economy, or human, animal, or plant health. Their unwelcome presence can destroy ecosystems and cost millions of dollars.

Learn more about invasive species , and when to harvest native seeds. Phenology can also inform visitors about when to see species of interest, provide a strong scientific basis for education programming, and help plan outreach and education events. In this 2-day training, you will learn how to use the USA National Phenology Network's plant and animal observation program, Nature's Notebook, and other tools and resources on the USA-NPN's website to meet your needs for management and outreach.

Upon completion of this course, participants will be able to:

• Become familiar with the infrastructure of the USA National Phenology Network's Nature's Notebook program.
• Create a program plan, logic model, and action plan to guide phenology monitoring at your Refuge.
• Learn how to visualize your data with the USA-NPN Visualization Tool and create data summaries to share with staff and volunteers.
• Explore volunteer engagement strategies and create an action plan for volunteer management.
• Learn how to create an annual phenology report to keep track of your program.