Tuesday Field Trips Organized by the San Joaquin Valley Chapter of TWS
We hope you can arrive a little early for the conference, and explore the best of the Central Valley. The San Joaquin Valley Chapter of TWS has organized some great field trips that highlight the local area!
Central Valley California Tiger Salamander Preserve Tour
- Tuesday, February 4th: 10am to 4pm
- One hour drive from Visalia – Self carpool from Marriott Lobby, meet at 8:45am.
- Cost $30 per person, Limit 15 people. Must be registered for the Annual Meeting to attend field trips!
Patrick Walker of CalTrans; Ryan Lopez M.S., and Abby Dziegiel M.S. of Natural Resources Group, Inc. (NRG) will host this field trip highlighting the biology and conservation of the California tiger salamander (CTS) at the CalTrans and NRG CTS Preserves in the Southern San Joaquin Valley Recovery Unit. This field trip will include a site tour with demonstrations on habitat assessment, survey techniques, and habitat management. Depending on weather and approvals, participants may observe handling and/or pond sampling of CTS and other aquatic invertebrates, including other T&E species. The workshop fee includes field visits to two CTS Preserves.
Field Trip objectives: Increase participant understanding of CTS Biology, with an emphasis on the southern San Joaquin Valley populations and their unique life history, and conservation opportunities and constraints; Habitat management for this species; CTS identification, sampling, and cooccurring species; Aquatic habitat sampling techniques; and Upland and aquatic site assessment.
Participants will be responsible for their own travel, and carpooling is recommended. It is a 55-minute drive to the site from Visalia. Wear warm layers, water resistant footwear, waterproofing recommended. Bring binoculars or other optics. Questions? Ryan Lopez, rlopez@natural-resoures-group.com:
Field Trip to Fresno Chaffee Zoo with Guided Tour
- Tuesday, February 4th: Afternoon walking tour from 1-4pm
- Link to Google Maps; Self Carpool from Marriott Lobby – 45-minute drive from Visalia, meet in lobby at 12Noon.
- Cost $40 per person, Limit 60 people (four groups of 15). Must be registered for the Annual Meeting to attend field trips!
Field trip includes a 3-hour walking tour of the zoo in the afternoon guided by a member of the FCZ Conservation Science team and featuring the Conservation Action Center which houses the captive Blunt-nosed Leopard Lizard* Assurance Colony as well as 1-hour of behind-the-scenes experiences showcasing Fresno Chaffee Zoo’s world-class facilities, animal husbandry, and veterinary care. Also included are general entry to the Fresno Chaffee Zoo for the entire day (the zoo is open 9am-4pm), 1 entry to Stingray Bay** to touch the stingrays, 1 giraffe feeding, and a 10% discount at all gift-shops and eateries.
*Blunt-nosed Leopard Lizards are typically dormant in February and may not be visible. If any are naturally active, they will be featured but we cannot guarantee this.
**Stingray feedings are not included with entry to Stingray Bay. Feedings are a limited experience each day and are sold at Stingray Bay on a first-come, first-serve basis. Parking within Roeding Park has an additional $5 fee to the City of Fresno.
The City of Fresno has added pay stations throughout Roeding Park to pay for parking. There are 11 kiosks throughout the park. These kiosks accept exact cash (parking is $5) or card (with a $0.40 convenience fee). You can also pay via the ParkMobile App which is available on the App Store and Google Play. Roeding Park annual parking pass holders have been grandfathered into the City’s updated parking system.
Wear general comfortable outdoor clothing, nothing specific necessary. Can bring food and water into zoo. Questions? Brian Fagundes, b.fagundes04@gmail.com
Give Back Volunteer Restoration Event at Kaweah Oaks Preserve
- Tuesday, February 4th: 11:30am to 4pm
- 29979 Rd 182, Exeter, CA 93321; 10 minute drive from Visalia – Self carpool from Marriott Lobby – meet in lobby at 11:10am.
- Cost $30, limit 35 people. Must be registered for the Annual Meeting to attend field trips!
Give back and volunteer your time by contributing to the stewardship needs of the Kaweah Oaks Preserve! Activities may include plant installation and invasive weed control. Lunch provided by Sequoia Riverlands Trust from 11:30-12:30. Give back event participants can also register separately for the morning Lower Kaweah River watershed tour as it finishes at the Kaweah Oaks Preserve where they can transition to the volunteer event.
Heavy rain cancels, we will update this website and email attendees if we need to cancel. Wear clothes you don’t mind getting dirty, and waterproof shoes or boots. Bring a water bottle and gloves if desired. Questions? Brian Fagundes, b.fagundes04@gmail.com
Lower Kaweah River Watershed Tour with Sequoia Riverlands Trust
- Tuesday, February 4th: 8am to 12:30pm
- Meet at Marriott Visalia lobby at 8am to self carpool
- Cost $30, Limit 20 people. Must be registered for the Annual Meeting to attend field trips!
Join Sequoia Riverlands Trust staff on a tour of several trust-owned preserves within the lower Kaweah River watershed encompassing a variety of habitat types: valley oak woodland, alkali grassland, wetlands, and sycamore alluvial woodland. Hiking difficulty is easy to moderate. Lunch provided by Sequoia Riverlands Trust at the Kaweah Oaks Preserve from 11:30-12:30. Watershed tour participants can also register separately for the afternoon give back volunteer event as this tour finishes at the Kaweah Oaks Preserve where they can transition to the volunteer event.
Wear general comfortable outdoor clothing, nothing specific necessary. Questions? Brian Fagundes at b.fagundes04@gmail.com
Pixley National Wildlife Reserve Tour and Gives Back - Sandhill Cranes!
- Tuesday, February 4th: 6:15am to 11am
- Link to meeting location – It is a 50 minute drive to the meet location from Visalia. Self carpool from Marriott Visalia lobby – meet at 5:10am.
- Cost $30, Limit 30 people. Must be registered for the Annual Meeting to attend field trips!
Every winter, sandhill cranes overwinter at Pixley National Wildlife Refuge’s seasonal wetlands. Situated as an island of restored and managed wetlands, the Refuge provides cranes migrating as far afield as Homer, Alaska (or even Siberia!) a safe place for night roosting in the shallow waters with easy access to agricultural fields for daytime foraging.
This field trip will meet before sunrise at the Pixley National Wildlife Refuge parking lot. We will then walk out to the viewing area to watch (and hear!) thousands of cranes leave the safety of their nighttime roosts to make their daily treks to nearby feeding grounds. After our crane watch, we will split into two teams: one team will collect cottonwood and willow cuttings for revegetation, another will conduct a bio-blitz to identify as many species as possible.
Carpooling to parking lot encouraged. Contact Alex Welch awelch@mcbioinc.com for assistance with transportation.
Event is rain or shine. Wear warm layers, waterproofing recommended (rain is possible). Bring binoculars or other optics. Multispecies identification aides (guides) recommended. Also bring gardening gloves, snacks and water.
Project Survival's Cat Haven Guided Tour
- Tuesday, February 4th: 10am to 2pm
- One hour drive from Visalia; Carpooling strongly suggested due to limited parking availability. Meet at Marriott Visalia lobby at 9am to self carpool.
- 38257 E. Kings Canyon Road Dunlap, CA 93621 https://maps.app.goo.gl/SoWdFbdqtghdcQe77
- Cost $55, includes snacks and drinks. Limit 125 people. Must be registered for the Annual Meeting to attend field trips!
Project Survival’s Cat Haven is an innovative park dedicated to the preservation and conservation of endangered cat species. They specialize in visitor education and take an active role in the conservation of cats within their native habitats. They are located on 93 acres just west of Kings Canyon National Park and provide guided tours of some of the rarest cats in the world. Join us for a guided tour of their facility to meet their cats via a 1/4-mile walking trail that circles through old growth manzanita, live oak and buckeye trees interspersed with their cat enclosures. You’ll get a chance to meet about 15 different species of cats, learn about each species and discover some of the conservation efforts Cat Haven supports. There will also be an opportunity to watch some of the cats participate in an enrichment/training activity. We will split our main group into smaller guided tour groups to ensure a pleasant and more personalized experience for everyone. Once you complete your tour you will be welcomed back to the gift shop where you can take home a reminder of your experience if you choose. Snacks and drinks will be provided at noon so you can make sure to keep your energy levels up for an enjoyable day with the cats. Due to federal regulations, no one will be allowed to touch the cats (of course) but you can take as many photos of the experience as you would like. If you have difficulty walking long distances or in steep terrain, please let us know in advance and we can have a golf cart available to help you navigate the trail (please note advanced notice is required, and you must be able to self-support yourself on the golf cart since the trail is steep and curved in places). We will meet at the Cat Haven to begin our tour at 10am.
Carpooling to the Cat Haven is strongly advised due to limited parking availability onsite. Wear general outdoor clothing that you would wear for a short day hike. There is a 1/4 mile decomposed granite trail which is sloped in places. Wear comfortable closed-toed shoes and dress in layers if it is chilly weather. Bring a waterproof jacket if it looks like rain. You can bring water and food with you. Bring a camera if you would like to take photos. Questions? Lori Bono, Lori.Bono@wildlife.ca.gov.
San Joaquin River Kayak Tour
- Tuesday, February 4th: 9:30am to 12:00pm
- 1 hour drive from Visalia; Self carpool from the Marriott Visalia lobby, meet in lobby at 8:15am
- Meet at 11605 Old Friant Rd, Fresno – link to map
- Cost $60, Limit 12 people. Must be registered for the Annual Meeting to attend field trips!
Enjoy an adventure just minutes north of Fresno on the San Joaquin River! On this 2 hour downriver trip, you will paddle from Sumner Peck Ranch in Friant to Owl Hollow, near the San Joaquin River Parkway & Conservation Trust’s headquarters. This portion of the river takes you along quiet, calm stretches, and through fun twists and turns. You will learn the basics of paddling, with time to practice in a calm area of the river before heading downstream. Along the way you will have a chance to observe Great Egrets, Great Blue Herons, Osprey, and perhaps a Bald Eagle or two. The trip begins at the location of one of the cold water refugia that are important for the survival of Chinook salmon, the target species for the San Joaquin River Restoration Program. Participants will meet their guide at Owl Hollow (near the River Center) to start the trip, then shuttle to the starting point at Sumner Peck. Please note that the timeframe includes shuttling at the beginning of the tour. Participants interested in the Chaffee Zoo afternoon walking tour would easily be able to drive from the river to the zoo in order to attend both tours.
Wear warm layers, shoes that can get wet; Bring a towel and second set of clothes to leave in car just in case! Questions? Sharon Weaver, sweaver@riverparkway.org.
Sequoia National Park - Giant Sequoia's Hike
- Tuesday, February 4th: 8am to 2:30pm
- Meet at Marriott Visalia lobby at 8am to self carpool
- Cost $30, Limit 25 people. Must be registered for the Annual Meeting to attend field trips!
Join us for a hike in Sequoia National Park! Depending on weather and road conditions, we will walk either the General Sherman Tree Trail or Grant Grove Loop with a possible extension for those interested in a longer hike. Trip leaders will discuss giant sequoia ecology, impacts from recent wildfires, current grove restoration efforts, and the wildlife living in those ecosystems. Carpooling will be arranged from Visalia, but anyone is welcome to meet at the trailhead instead. Bring your Interagency Annual Parks Pass if you have one! Contact Michelle Harris at at mharris@colibri-ecology.com for questions and additional information. Trip is weather dependent, as heavy snowfall often limits access for a day or more. Hope to see you amongst the giants!
Be prepared for snow. Warm layers, waterproof boots or snow boots, gloves, binoculars, notebook, food and water.
