Acoustic Survey Course: AZ (Portal) - 2024

6-days / 5-nights (Monday - Saturday): 10-15 June 2024 

VENUE DETAILS

Customized Training is not available at this venue due to its remoteness and pricing structure. Students wishing to take only a portion of this course should select either the Elgin or Tucson venues.

NOTE: Students must make their own travel arrangements to the workshop location. Arizona does not participate in Daylight Savings and remains on Mountain Standard Time (MST) year round. (FYI, New Mexico will be on Mountain Daylight Time (MDT) for students traveling from the east.)

Location and Directions: Class begins at 1pm on Day 1 and will conclude by noon on Day6. The course is held at the American Museum of Natural History's Southwestern Research Station (SWRS) in Portal AZ. The tuition fee is "all-inclusive." Monday thru Friday night lodging, three meals a day, all classroom resources, and 24-hour access to field sites are all included.  "À la carte" pricing is not available at this location due to its remoteness and lack of nearby options to facilitate instruction. Pre-course lodging at SWRS is available at an extra charge, but availability is very limited. Other nearby lodging resources include the Portal Peak Lodge, Cave Creek Ranch, Four Bar Cottages, and Rusty's RV Ranch (in New Mexico).

All students should be fully-vaccinated against COVID to attend. Students wishing to handle bats must have received the rabies pre-exposure vaccine and/or provide proof of current (within 2-years) acceptable rabies antibody titre results.

Airport: The closest airport is Tucson International (TUS), which is about 100-miles (120 minutes) by vehicle. Other convenient airports include Phoenix Sky Harbor (PHX) about 3-1/2 hours from Portal, by vehicle. A map and driving directions to Cave Creek Canyon will be provided upon registering.

Lodging: Lodging at SWRS is dormitory style with 2-3 people sharing a room. Students may elect to tent camp on the property if they do not wish to share a room but no tuition discount is available for this option.

Meals: Three meals a day are provided on-site. Vegetarian or "no red meat" options are available with advance notice and must be reserved no less than 2-weeks prior to attendance.

Pre-course Preparation: This training is ideal for students needing specific, focused experience with non-contact survey methods for bats using full-spectrum bat detectors. Most instruction will be classroom-based with daytime field trips, early evening acoustic demonstrations. 

*There are optional "geek sessions" each night for students wishing to receive small-group instruction or 1-on-1 help with acoustic survey topics. Two optional mobile acoustic transects are also planned which will be conducted from 8pm to midnight. Click here to download a sample agenda.

Students should bring appropriate field gear, including both hot- and cool-weather clothing and sturdy hiking boots to take full advantage of the field components. All linens and towels are provided at the Station. We have access to all-day coffee in the lecture room. A "community" refrigerator is available for personal snack food and beverages. Consult the draft agenda for our daily activities.

No prior acoustic-survey work is necessary. There may be options to capture and hand-release bats during this course, but this activity will not be a part of the formal training curriculum. Any students wishing to handle bats must obtain the rabies pre-exposure vaccination. Those already vaccinated can provide acceptable titre results or proof of booster that has been completed within 2 years from the start of class. More information about the current CDC rabies pre-exposure vaccination process is available HERE. Approximately 10-20 days prior to the start of class, students will receive a complete list of what to bring and how to prepare for class. This will include an option to select a "vegetarian" or "no red meat" meal plan. Feel free to contact us at any time if you have specific questions about the class or how to prepare. No bats will be handled during this event. Rabies pre-exposure vaccination is not required.

How to Register: Please register by adding the appropriate course (or days) to your "cart." NOTE: To register multiple people, please checkout each person individually so that we can obtain the proper contact information for each participant. Use the Student Registration Details link to provide complete student information for our records.