Category: Shared

These Crazy Cute Turtles Want their Lake Back

- Wendy St. John 2 Comments

Hey, these are MY turtles! (Well, not just mine, but these are Geist Lab turtles. So I guess I could call them OUR turtles).

“Boxed in by a freeway, a golf course and a neighborhood, it’s a miracle that San Francisco’s Mountain Lake even exists. But not only is the tiny lake—located on the south end of the city’s Presidio park—still there, it now provides one of the few places in San Francisco where visitors can watch California’s only native aquatic turtle bask in the sun.”

Read the rest of the article here: http://ww2.kqed.org/science/2016/01/26/these-crazy-cute-baby-turtles-want-their-lake-back/

2015 Science Symposium

- Wendy St. John Leave a comment

(As published in the Fall, 2015, Science and Technology’s Newsletter”)

“This past May, the School of Science & Technology in partnership with the WATERS Collaborative hosted its third annual Science Symposium. As in past years, the event was kicked off with the 2014-15 Science 120 cohort presenting talks on the research project they conducted over the past year. This year many of the students also presented posters. We had a record number of 81 posters presented from departments across campus highlighting the work of 193 students.”

I was especially pleased to see this photo in the newsletter, as I worked with this cohort of Science 120 students, as a consultant to help them with field techniques related to their individual research projects. What a great group of students!

science symposium 2015.jpg

At Mountain Lake, One Last Chance to See the Turtles Off

- Wendy St. John 2 Comments

 

Another Bay Nature article featuring turtles from our lab. I’m quoted in this one! 

A Western pond turtle, ready for release into Mountain Lake. (Photo by Charity Vargas Photography, courtesy Presidio Trust)
A Western pond turtle, ready for release into Mountain Lake. (Photo by Charity Vargas Photography, courtesy Presidio Trust)

by on October 14, 2015

 

“This turtle release is symbolic of so much transformation,” said Michael Boland, chief of planning, projects, and programs at the Presidio Trust. Mountain Lake, he said, is not just about Mountain Lake, it’s about how the environment is managed: “Nature survives in cities because of people.”

Which, said Sonoma State lecturer Wendy St. John, is one reason the project has succeeded. People around the lake have rallied to its restoration. “This is their neighborhood, not just a touristy area,” St. John said. “It’s been a community effort.”

Read the rest of the article here: https://baynature.org/article/at-mountain-lake-one-last-chance-to-see-the-turtles-off/

Native Turtles Return to Mountain Lake

- Wendy St. John 1 Comment

Originally posted on the San Francisco Bay Area National Parks Science and Learning Blog

Although no one knows exactly when western pond turtles vanished from Mountain Lake in the Presidio of San Francisco, they are known to have been abundant historically. Now, as part of the ongoing restoration of Mountain Lake, this long-extirpated species is back. On July 18th, 28 western pond turtles reared by the San Francisco Zoo were released into the lake before an audience of more than 70 people. The release follows similar releases of other native species including Pacific chorus frogs and three-spined sticklebacks earlier in the year.

The western pond turtle release is also part of a research effort to determine which of two different release methods is better for the turtles in terms of their stress hormone levels. Half of turtles were brought to Mountain Lake and kept in a protected enclosure for three weeks to acclimate ahead of their release, while the rest were released without an acclimation period. All had their stress hormone levels measured upon their release and are equipped with radio transmitters so they can be relocated and have their hormone levels re-measured in the coming weeks and years. The preliminary results will inform another round of western pond turtle releases at Mountain Lake on September 12th and contribute to knowledge about native species reestablishment efforts in general. Future reestablishment projects at Mountain Lake may include the Pacific newt and the California red-legged frog.

Check out the SF Gate article or the Bay Nature article for additional coverage of the recent western pond turtle release.

Ready, Set, Reintroduce!

- Wendy St. John 1 Comment

Originally posted on the San Francisco Bay Area National Parks Science and Learning Blog

The Presidio’s Mountain Lake restoration is moving forward this year with several native species reintroductions. The Sierran chorus frog (Pseudacris sierra), is slated to be the first species reintroduced. This species was extirpated from the Presidio sometime in the 20th century and, although common throughout its range, has become very rare in the city of San Francisco. The first phase of the reintroduction will take place in February, when chorus frog egg masses will be placed in protective enclosures to keep them safe from predators as they acclimate to Mountain Lake. The tadpoles that hatch in those enclosures will then be released into Mountain Lake in March. Later in the year, threespine stickleback and the Western Pond turtles will also be reintroduced to the lake.

Reintroduction projects offer a wide range of opportunities for scientific exploration and citizen science engagement, so the Presidio Trust has been partnering with several organizations and institutions to broaden impact and expand knowledge in the fields of reintroduction biology and urban ecology. For instance, partners at Stanford University just published research on the potential to achieve improved water quality from the reintroduction of freshwater mussels, and the California Academy of Sciences produced an excellent video on the Mountain Lake restoration, including upcoming species reintroductions. Keep an eye on the Presidio Trust website and social media for more reintroduction-related news and events throughout 2015. It’s an exciting time in the history of Mountain Lake!

Student Artwork

- Wendy St. John Leave a comment

In the labs I teach, we give weekly quizzes, and I encourage my students to do artwork for me (and I give a tiny bit of extra credit to any student who draws something for me on his or her quiz). I’m not picky about drawings; stick figures count the same as something more realistically drawn. Sometimes, however, I find that students have drawn tiny little masterpieces for me. This semester, one student in particular, whom I shall call Ms. B, drew the most amazing turtles for me, almost every week. Here are a few of them. AREN’T THESE THE MOST ADORABLE THINGS YOU HAVE EVER SEEN????? Oh yes. Encouraging my students to draw things for me was a very, very good idea.

Bay Area Zoos & Sonoma State University to Release Western Pond Turtles

- Wendy St. John 2 Comments

So … this is what I did today. 😀 (I’m one of the SSU herpetologists). The link goes to a National Geographic article about the project we’re doing in collaboration with the Oakland and San Francisco zoos.

By Jordan Carlton Schaul of University of Alaska; Grizzly People on August 17, 2012

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National Geographic Archives

Read the entire article here: http://voices.nationalgeographic.com/2012/08/17/bay-area-zoos-sonoma-state-university-to-release-western-pond-turtles/