With warmer weather, more outdoor events are becoming available for those that wish to be outside.

Iowa Department of Natural Resources Interpretive Naturalist and Educator Anne Riordan tells Raccoon Valley Radio that right now there are several opportunities for survey volunteers, including one looking for amphibians.

“For the frog and toad survey, what we do is we use sound to note the presence first of different types of frogs. So you have to learn and acquaint yourself with what different species of frogs from your area sound like and then you have to listen in terms of the relative abundance. So there are different levels of population, so we’re not counting exactly how many we hear, but it’s ranges of numbers that we can hear in certain areas.”

Riordan says that if there are any interested individuals for the frog and toad survey, they can team up with her and learn some of the basics before heading out on their own. She adds that besides the surveys, there is also a virtual spring birding webinar with the Iowa DNR’s Avian Ecologist Anna Buckardt on April 29th. Links for registration for surveys and the webinar can be found below, along with a link that has information for children interested in birding.

Virtual Spring Birding Webinar with DNR Avian Ecologist Anna Buckardt
Use this link to register: https://www.facebook.com/events/874791206967235
Iowa Young Birders website: https://www.iowayoungbirders.org/
DNR Volunteer Wildlife Monitoring Program: https://www.iowadnr.gov/Conservation/Iowas-Wildlife/Volunteer-Wildlife-Monitoring