[mou] MN Frog & Toad Calling Survey

[Yvette Monstad]

Greetings!

Spring is upon us, and we are once again recruiting volunteers for the
Minnesota Frog & Toad Calling Survey (MFTCS).  I have already heard a
rumor that frogs have been heard calling in some parts of the state with
our recent warm weather! 

If you are interested in frogs and toads, please read on.  The survey
entails going out on 3 evenings, after dark, and driving your assigned
route of 10 stops.  At each stop, you listen for 5 minutes and write
down all of the species of frogs and toads that you hear calling, as
well as some environmental information (if the moon is visible, # of
cars that pass, distracting noise, and air temperature - it does require
having a thermometer).  We provide detailed instructions, route
description and map, and the CD of Minnesota frog and toad calls.  Once
the survey is completed in July, you send in your completed data sheet
to me.

You run your route 3 times to account for different species calling at
different times...you choose one evening between each of the following
time periods, depending on your schedule and weather conditions (you
don't run the survey if it's too cold or too windy/rainy to hear):
Run 1 - April 15 - 30
Run 2 - May 20 - June 5
Run 3 - June 25 - July 10

Our survey (MFTCS) is part of a larger, multiple-state amphibian
calling survey sponsored by USGS’s North American Amphibian Monitoring
Program (NAAMP).  As of 2006, NAAMP has required all of it’s
volunteers to take an annual online frog & toad call identification quiz
if they are running a route.  Therefore, all of our volunteers are
encouraged to take the quiz, so NAAMP can use their data in their
regional analyses.  The quiz is a useful tool for learning and/or
refreshing yourself on the frog and toad calls of the species found on
your route, and you can take it over and over until you achieve a
"passing" score of 65.  Since you log in with your route number, the
quiz includes only the species that may be present on your route (it
does not include species from elsewhere in the state).  The quiz does
require access to the internet (preferably high-speed).  

To view a map of available routes (which is updated at least once a
week), and to get more information on the survey, please visit our
website at:
http://www.dnr.state.mn.us/volunteering/frogtoad_survey/index.html 

Unfortunately, we no longer have any routes available in the Twin
Cities metro area, nor close to Duluth.  We are seeking volunteers for
rural Minnesota, as can be seen by our route availability map: 
http://www.dnr.state.mn.us/volunteering/frogtoad_survey/map.html 

Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions or are
interested in volunteering!

Thank you,

-Yvette



__________________________________________________

Yvette Monstad
Nongame Research Specialist
Minnesota Natural Heritage and Nongame Research Program
Division of Ecological Services
Minnesota Department of Natural Resources
500 Lafayette Rd., Box 25
St. Paul, MN  55155
Phone: (651) 259-5120
Fax: (651) 296-1811
yvette.monstad@dnr.state.mn.us

Volunteer for the Minnesota Frog & Toad Calling Survey!
http://www.dnr.state.mn.us/volunteering/frogtoad_survey/index.html