You can join the San Francisco Bay Bird Observatory (SFBBO) to help set up the first national tagging study for threatened western snowy plovers! Volunteers will help do precision work in wet and muddy areas, carrying rebar and other equipment to set up electronic grids across two ponds at the Eden Landing Ecological Reserve in Hayward.
SFBBO is excited to be conducting the first ever national western snowy plover Motus tagging study in 2025. Motus tags are a type of radio transmitter that send signals to nearby radio antennas. In order to get fine-scale movement data, we are going to establish a grid of “nodes,” which are essentially miniature receivers that will collect data from the tags and transmit it to the full-size antenna. The grid will cover the entire areas of two ponds in the California Department of Fish and Wildlife's ecological reserve, ponds E14 and E6B. This means that participants will need to cover 0.7 square miles, something that will be much easier with volunteer help!
The game plan is to divide into teams and set the grid. Each team will be led by an SFBBO staff member or experienced plover biologist, who will mark where each vertex of the grid needs to be placed. Then, volunteers will follow behind with lengths of rebar and conduit sheath and establish a post at each vertex.
Because this is a more technical activity that will require precision, we kindly ask that no children under 16 attend. In addition, you must have rubber boots. The pond is still very wet in areas, meaning we will have to walk through standing water.
Driving: Volunteers should be prepared for a carpool drive on a graded dirt road.
Physical Activity: This event will involve lots of walking (over a mile) through water and slippery mud. We will be sinking lengths of rebar into the pond bottom, which may involve hammering with mallets.
Facilities: There are no restrooms at the site. Please plan accordingly.
Health: If you feel sick, please stay home and inform us that you need to cancel. Get well soon!
What to bring:
- Protective Clothing - Clothes you don't mind getting dirty, sun protection, layers, and rubber boots.
- Measuring tape, mallet, level, if available - We will provide some measuring tapes and mallets, but if you have any that you don’t mind getting muddy, please bring them. We want to make sure each post is at the same height and is level.
- Snacks & water - we will provide some, but you are welcome to bring your own as well
SFBBO and the Restoration Project thank volunteers for helping us help snowy plovers. again for helping us help Snowy Plovers. We look forward to seeing you there!
Eden Landing - contact host for specific location
The California Department of Fish and Wildlife's Eden Landing Ecological Reserve is big, stretching along both Union City and southern Hayward. Google Maps locations for the Reserve are not always clear or correct. Please look to the host to provide directions to a specific gathering spot.