Texas Nature Trackers Workshop 2016

This workshop at an east Austin location will introduce you to the iNaturalist platform and how Texas Parks and Wildlife is using it to support research and conservations efforts. The goal of the workshop is to teach participants how you can be more proficient at creating observations with photos and sound recordings. Use of the iNaturalist app will be demonstrated, along with tips to improve the quality of your observations. In addition, learn strategies to efficiently add GPS coordinates to your photos, and to create observations based on the metadata already attached to your photos.  Participants will have the opportunity to practice by making observations in the field, followed by a demonstration of tools for identifying your observations.

After the field portion, if you have a laptop, you can practice uploading and identifying your observations with more experienced iNatters on hand to answer questions.

Schedule:

8:30 a.m.               Introduction and presentation

10:00-11:30 a.m.  Make field observations (Bring a hat and wear suitable clothing/shoes)

11:30-2:00 p.m.    Practical demonstration: Post observations and validate observations. 

Registrants will be sent further information about downloading the app and setting up an iNaturalist account.

Cullen Hanks is a Texas Nature Tracker Biologist in the Wildlife Diversity Program at the Texas Parks and Wildlife Dept. and serves on the board of the Travis Audubon Society. He grew up in Texas with a love for natural history and outdoor adventure. Cullen earned a BA in biology from Cornell University, and a MA in Latin American Studies from the University of Texas at Austin. In his masters, he focused on issues relating to biodiversity conservation and conducted research on the economics of the wildlife trade. Cullen has extensive experience with the collection and management of data on rare and threatened species. He is very passionate about being a naturalist and the contribution of the naturalist community to conservation. Cullen lives in Austin, Texas with his wife.  To learn more about the Texas Nature Trackers Program go to www.tpwd.texas.gov/tracker