November-December 2017 Volume 37, Issue 6
Non-Profit Org. U.S. Postage PAID Permit #115 Albany, OR
Extending Knowledge and Changing Lives in Linn and Benton Counties
Mid-Valley Residents Pitching In for Science Each morning, rain or shine, dozens of midWillamette Valley residents venture outside their homes to check a rain gauge for precipitation. Using smart phones or computers, they then post the readings on a national database. Once a week or so, many of those same residents measure native plant development and post those findings on a separate national database. The citizen scientists, as they are called, are participating in Oregon Season Tracker, an Oregon State University Extension program that is part of a national network of volunteers who are adding to scientific databases and gaining perspective of occurrences in their own backyards. Oregon Season Tracker started in Benton County in 2014 in partnership with researchers at the H.J. Andrews Experimental Forest, which is located near Blue River, Oregon. It has expanded until today 16 Oregon counties are represented and three more are coming on line this fall. In the program, directors recruit, train and support local
PHOTO BY JODY EINERSON
By Mitch Lies, GROWING Editor
Participants in Oregon Season Tracker document plant development. Their observations are reported through the National Phenology Network, Nature’s Notebook.
volunteers who contribute to a national phenology network called Nature’s Notebook, and the Community Collaborative Rain Hail and Snow Network, or CoCoRaHS. “Our goal is to get Oregon Season Tracker throughout Oregon,” said Jody Einerson, an educational program assistant for OSU Extension in Benton County, who serves as statewide coordinator of the Season Tracker program. Citizen science is nothing new, Einerson said, noting
that it dates back to the turn of the 20th Century when the Audubon Society used data collected by citizens in what is known as the first Christmas Bird Count. But it is growing in popularity. CoCoRaHS, the national precipitation database, dates to 1998 when a Colorado State University scientist formed a volunteer reporting network in response to his failure to notice the encroachment of what turned out to be a devastating storm.
“There were not enough rain stations out there to gather the data, so he took this out to citizens,” Einerson said. CoCoRaHS has become more refined over the years, until today volunteers in programs such as Oregon Season Tracker post data under a designed set of protocols that enable scientists in many organizations, such as the National Weather Service, to use the data.
Citizen Science Opportunities The online portion of Oregon Season Tracker fall training is now open. It includes approximately two to three hours of self-paced work, which participants can do on their own schedule. To register, go to the Oregon Season Tracker Website: http:// oregonseasontracker. forestry.oregonstate.edu/ become-ost-observer-itseasy Participants also must participate in an OST skills building session. The next and final skills building session for this fall is scheduled Wednesday, November 15, from 6-8 p.m. at the Linn County Extension Office, 33630 McFarland Road, Tangent. Cost is $40 per individual or family sharing materials. Cost includes a programapproved rain gauge. Linn County Extension Association scholarships of $10 are available to Linn County residents. More information on the fall training session and future trainings can be obtained by contacting Jody Einerson at jody.einerson@ oregonstate.edu or by calling 541-766-6311.
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INSIDE: We need you! Adult 4-H Volunteer Leaders sought in Linn and Benton Counties
http://extension.oregonstate.edu/linn
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