Blog Post 9: Service Learning

 Service Learning: Wildlife & Salmon Monitoring/Animal Tracking

with Grace Coale

Grace.Coal@edcc.edu 

The first trip I did was wildlife monitoring/animal tracking at Japanese Gulch up in Mukilteo. It is a research program funded through Edmonds Community College and the City of Mukilteo. We walked through the brush and Grace showed us some animal tracks and invasive plant species in the area. She then showed us 3 different animal monitoring cameras that are funded through Edmonds Community College. We reset the cameras with new batteries, then came back to school and looked through the footage. This trip was about 2 hours.

              

 From this service learning trip, I can see how beneficial the research is to the city of Mukilteo. They hired Edmonds Community College to monitor wildlife so they can see what is moving through the area stay aware of problems we might be facing. Grace told us that the previous week she had found bear dropping in Japanese Gulch, this is an example of information that the city of Mukilteo would need to know. Learning how to use wildlife monitoring cameras and how to set them up is a great tool for me, as I plan on continuing my education in Environmental Science. I will definitely be using similar technology in the future, so I found this trip very helpful. This service learning project shows that humans are working to be conscious of wildlife and nature surrounding it, and making the region a safer and healthier place by studying the ecology of the area.


1. If bears were found on cameras in the area, would they be relocated by the city of Mukilteo?
2. What sort of wildlife problems could be affecting Mukilteo?

                                                  

                                                
On a second trip, this time to Big Gulch in Mukilteo, Grace took me salmon monitoring. This is also a research project funded by EDCC and the city of Mukilteo. We put on waders and walked down to the beach, then made our way up the salmon stream about a quarter mile up, looking for carcasses or spawning salmon. We saw a finner at the mouth of the stream, but no salmon the rest of the way up. Part way up the river we stopped and Grace pointed out some animal tracks. This trip was about 3 hours.

Meadow Vole Tracks                                    Land Otter Tracks

 

 Salmon Monitoring is a very important part of research for the State of Washington. Salmon are a keystone species and monitoring their population return is a very good way to see how successful our attempts at rehabilitation are going. We also marked on GPS systems, where we found salmon activity, giving researchers information of where exactly salmon will hang out in the river. It was an amazing trip and was a very good learning experience for me, as I am going to be doing salmon monitoring when I begin my Environmental Technology program next fall.                                                                      
3. Why is the salmon return so late in Big Gulch? (late November)
4. Is the city of Mukilteo making changes to reduce harmful run off from businesses?