Volunteer to survey the endangered Eureka Valley evening-primrose

[echow]

Fine tune your eye to spy the endangered Eureka Valley evening-primrose and help complete the fifth and last year of the evening-primrose survey. Volunteer for a weekend, a few days, or a week to survey the evening-primrose, the invasive Russian thistle and other vegetation at the sand dunes of Eureka Valley in Death Valley National Park. Learn the flora of the desert and improve your plant identification skills.

Our project goals are to understand patterns of population density and spatial distribution of the rare and endemic evening-primrose and non-native Russian thistle.

Volunteers will use a compass, binoculars, range finder, GPS units and quadrats to record plant observations. Volunteers must be physically able to hike 7 to 14 miles each day in the spring time weather conditions of the desert (e.g. lots of sun, high temperatures, and some windy days) and to hike up and down the sandy slopes of the dunes.

Food and water will be provided. Please bring your own sleeping bag and tent. We will be car camping at the main campground at the dunes.

Data sampling will be conducted between May 11-20th and possibly extended to between May 27-31st to complete sampling.

If interested, please contact Elaine at ekych(at)ucdavis.edu. Please write PRIMROSE VOLUNTEER in the subject heading. Thanks!