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Western Gray Squirrel Project
Pacific Biodiversity Institute (PBI) started a research and education project in 2009 to study western gray squirrels, a state threatened species, in the Methow Valley. Now in its third year, this project demonstrates the value of citizen science volunteers in conducting important research. In 2010, 18 volunteers placed 174 sampling tubes and found 17 locations of western gray squirrels, five of them in new areas where gray squirrels have not been observed before.
Volunteers had an end of year get-together at the Pacific Biodiversity Institute on Thursday, December 1 to celebrate the 2011 western gray squirrel research season. Volunteers had a chance to talk about each other’s field experiences. View a gallery of the year's events here..
Click here to to read the latest news about the western gray squirrel project in the Methow.
Click here to go to the volunteer resource page.
A report describing our 2010 research results is online and can be downloaded from this website: Citizen Science Research Report on Western Gray Squirrel Distribution in the Upper Methow Valley, by Asako Yamamuro, Kim Romain-Bondi, and Peter Morrison.
This year, among other things, we are conducting some experiments to determine how the squirrels behave with various sizes of hair tubes. As part of this experiment we have some videos for you to watch where the squirrels explore and interact with the hair tubes. Watch the squirrel videos!
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June 4 Field Day and Workshop. On June 4, 2011, we again engaged our network of citizen science volunteers in conducting field surveys. Click here for workshop details and photos. Volunteers refreshed their skills at the PBI office and then traveled to the forests of the Chewuch Valley, to set up sampling tubes and see an active nest location. |
Last year, the western gray squirrel project was the subject of three articles in the Methow Valley News and one article in the Wenatchee World. The project was originally described in the December 2009 Methow Valley News. In 2010, volunteers participated in several events including a March 5 workshop to build sampling tubes and a March 20 field workshop.
How might you get involved? PBI is interested in engaging volunteers who will help deploy hundreds of non-invasive hair-tubes, which will be used to detect western gray squirrels and determine their distribution in the Methow Valley.
Learn more about volunteering as a citizen science volunteer on this project.
The goal of the western gray squirrel project is to help Washington Dept of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) gain a better understanding of the extent of western gray squirrel presence in the Methow Valley and to involve the public in conservation efforts to help insure the survival of western gray squirrels. PBI is working in partnership with WDFW, conducting non-invasive hair-tube distribution surveys.
Volunteers include local landowners with prime western gray squirrel habitat on their property. The more information people know about western gray squirrels and their habitat, the more likely they will be to take an interest in managing the landscape for this rare squirrel as well as other wildlife species dependent on ponderosa pine forests. The Methow Conservancy is especially interested in this aspect of the western gray squirrel project, informing landowners about stewardship of western gray squirrels throughout the Methow Valley.
The sampling technique attracts western gray squirrels into an open-ended PVC tube using their favorite food, walnuts. When the animal enters the tube, sticky tape attached to the inside of the tubing collects hair, which can be identified to species either with a trained eye or under a microscope. When a positive identification of western gray squirrel is found, we then conduct follow-up nest surveys to identify how robust the population may be in that area.
The western gray squirrel (Sciurus griseus) is listed as a state-threatened species in Washington State, as a species of concern by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and as a sensitive species and management indicator species by the US Forest Service. Read more about western gray squirrel conservation and research efforts here.
We encourage folks to call in reputable sightings and locations for these rare squirrels, particularly if the animals are hit on the road. We will follow-up on these sightings concurrently with our survey and educational outreach project.
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Winthrop, WA 98862 509-996-2490