Final Community Science Day of the Season at Otter Rock

Athena Crichton (left) instructing during previous Community Science Day. Photo by Alex Derr.

Another CoastWatch Community Science Day is coming up at Otter Rock Marine Reserve.  Anyone who would like to learn about shoreline ecology and citizen science is invited to attend—families included!—but we are especially anxious to meet those who would be interested in volunteering for citizen science projects and for the Community Science Team.  (We would of course welcome participants from other regions of the coast who would like to employ citizen science skills in their areas rather than at Otter Rock.)

The event takes place Sunday, Sept. 18, on the north side of Devil’s Punchbowl and the community of Otter Rock (on CoastWatch Mile 225), from 8 a.m. until noon.  Fawn Custer, CoastWatch’s volunteer coordinator, along with volunteer Karen Driscoll, will offer guided tidepool exploration.  At 10 a.m., Fawn will demonstrate our marine debris survey, help volunteers sort and count litter, and discuss marine debris problems, including tsunami debris and the non-native organisms it can harbor. At 11 a.m, Karen Driscoll will lead a session demonstrating the beached bird survey. We will be offering coffee, other hot beverages and pastries, but at our usual exorbitant rates—they will cost you a piece of marine debris. 

The goal for Otter Rock is to coordinate all of our citizen science work as part of a larger effort to monitor the marine reserve shoreline and engage the community in citizen science.  We’re looking for more volunteers to participate in the various citizen science projects, but also for those interested in being part of the Community Science Team that will work with Fawn to coordinate these projects and organize educational events and reports back to the community.  The team will help with recruiting more local citizens to participate in the citizen science surveys and learn more about the marine reserve.

For this upcoming event, Fawn could use some help at the table handing out Otter Rock Marine Reserve information, donuts and coffee/juice, and assistance with the surveys. Help in set-up at 7:30 a.m. would also be a boon.

For information about the Community Science Day, or to learn more about citizen science and the Community Science Team if you can’t be there in person Sept. 18, contact Fawn Custer at (541) 270-0027, fawn@oregonshores.org.