Cool Conservation Tools
Seven Gadgets Our Scientists Can't Live Without
By Madeline Breen and James Miller
From peeper scopes to duct tape — learn more about the cool tools Nature Conservancy scientists use to solve conservation issues. The list may surprise you!
1. Peeper Scopes
Peeper Scope at Piney Grove PreserveHome to the northernmost population of red-cockaded woodpeckers, Virginia’s Piney Grove Preserve is a popular place to find our first cool tool — the cleverly named “peeper scope.”
Equipped with a small camera and light source on the end, this 50-foot-tall telescopic fiberglass pole can “peep” into a red-cockaded woodpecker’s nesting cavity, while scientists watch the action via a monitor on solid ground.
The peeper scope can quickly assess the condition of a tree cavity and spot any uninvited guests — like the intrusive southern flying squirrel — that may try and take advantage of the woodpecker’s hard work.
Scientists at Piney Grove perform bird bandings to keep track of the population and to restore this rare bird. During the breeding season, frequent monitoring helps determine when eggs are laid and hatched. The scope also helps determine precisely when to band the little chick, which is critical due to the small 5-10 day window to perform bandings for this endangered species.
2. Wireless Wonders
SmartphoneFormerly known as “nature girl,” Director of Land Management Deborah Barber now embraces a new nickname: “gadget girl.” Armed with a smartphone and brand new iPad, Deborah can be seen standing knee-deep in Maryland’s marsh grasses, solving daily mysteries with the click of a few buttons.
From identifying invasive plants right on the spot, to determining if she’s actually standing on Conservancy land (boundary lines can be a little unclear!), Internet access in Maryland’s remote areas is changing the way Deborah does her field work.
“Having information at your fingertips is just priceless. Questions are answered more quickly and we’re spending more time in the field and less time in the office filling out paperwork,” says Deborah.
And these high-tech tools have also gotten Deborah and her field crew out of a few embarrassing situations. “Instead of sheepishly calling the office to have someone look up a combination code to a preserve’s gate, you can pull that up yourself! No one has to know!” Well, until now.
3. Underwater Writing Paper
Underwater writing paperWhile it seems like something dreamed up by a Romantic-era poet, underwater paper fits squarely into the realm of science. Without it, how would scientists collect data found only in the ocean’s recesses?
However wondrous it might seem to those of us who spend most of our time on land, underwater paper is a basic tool for Conservancy scientists who work with such imperiled marine habitats as coral reefs.
For example: accompanied by a No. 2 pencil, underwater paper is key for collecting crucial coral-bleaching data such as height, degree of bleaching and percent mortality, says Florida Keys-based Marine Science Coordinator Meaghan Johnson.
The information helps scientists develop strategies to improve coral reef health and resiliency to threats like climate change.
Meaghan is patient with landlubbers who are just getting the underwater-writing news. “I don’t even think about it, I guess,” she says. “It is pretty neat that we can write underwater.”
4. Amphibious Vehicles
Amphibious vehicleMorgan Swamp Preserve in northeastern Ohio is a unique wetland — part swamp, part forest, part bog. Preserve Manager Karen Adair used to face difficult logistical challenges when traveling around this 1,300-acre preserve.
“It’s very tricky to get to the middle of the swamp for invasive species removal — the ground changes from heavily forested terrain to soggy bog and then to swamp, so traveling by car or foot is nearly impossible,” says Karen.
After looking through the Yellow Pages for a solution, she landed on the ‘amphibious vehicles’ page and wondered, could there be a vehicle that drives over land and floats in water?
Karen now travels the preserve aboard a 6-wheel amphibious vehicle that adapts to both land and water — similar to an amphibian, like the frogs that live in Morgan Swamp.
Logs, rocks and bog are no match for this lightweight vehicle and with its soft footprint, the vehicle travels lightly over the wetlands and open water. One day, Karen hopes to take her amphibious vehicle for a dip in Lake Erie. We’d like to ride shotgun.
5. Very Pistols
Very pistolThe inventor of the flare gun often called a “Very pistol” probably didn’t imagine a version would be used decades later for conservation in such places as the pine barrens of Massachusetts.
In the hands of Conservancy fire managers like Bob Bale, though, that’s what’s happening. Instead of sending spark-spitting flares into the night sky to signal lost sailors, the Very pistol is helping keep rare habitats from becoming lost in the first place.
The Conservancy and numerous partners use controlled burns in fire-reliant habitats to help retain ecological diversity and to prevent wildfires by removing flammable understory.
When features like heavy plant growth and steep hills make it risky to use drip torches at close range, a pistol that shoots fire-starting flares 150 feet comes in handy.
“It helps us be safer in what we do,” says the Plymouth, Mass.-based Bob. And, yes, it can be fun to shoot, he admits.
6. Eel Deterrent Lights
Submerged eel deterrent lightStay away from the lights! That’s the message for some American eels in Connecticut.
In the Aspetuck and Saugatuck River watersheds, a serious challenge has awaited adult American eels making their once-in-a-lifetime journey to the Sargasso Sea to spawn, and the Conservancy and partners are using the eels’ aversion to light to help them.
Near Fairfield, eels have been getting drawn into a reservoir system where many have met their ends at a water treatment plant.
Looking to protect the eels — under federal endangered-species review — the Conservancy and the plant’s operator, Aquarion Water Company of Connecticut, have built an underwater lighting system to route them away from the treatment plant and down an alternate, safe path.
Because there’s no electricity at the plant, the lighting system relies on the sun and wind.
Sally Harold, Saugatuck River Watershed Partnership director, says the partners will monitor the success for a few years, hoping for good news about the fascinating migratory species.
7. Duct Tape
Duct tapeWhat list of cool science tools would be complete without the flat grey adhesive tape known as duct tape? Not ours!
Engineers and astronauts famously used duct tape to cobble together a fix that helped save Apollo 13 and its astronauts after an oxygen tank exploded in 1970.
It should come as no surprise that Conservancy staffers also use it. They’ve used duct tape to:
* Remove deer ticks,
* Tape pant-leg bottoms to keep out chiggers,
* Patch the ends of tree cores,
* Pad tool handles,
* Waterproof notebook covers,
* Act as makeshift pants belts, and
* Repair boots temporarily.
In his former life as a park ranger, one field staffer even used duct tape to make a ball of old twinkies, cheese, tuna, moldy bread and old hamburger to trap a black bear.
“Why stop at duct tape,” asks Maine Conservation Planner Josh Royte. “What about expanding foam insulation?”
We’ve run out of space; that’s all.
Madeline Breen is a web writer/editor based in Arlington, VA. James Miller is a media relations manager based in Altamonte Springs, FL. They both love geeky gadgets.
By :nature.org
