Tapping into Science

Dr. Robert Long of Montana State University's Western Transportation Institute provides an overview of the carnivore connectivity project in the North Cascades.

 

Good Food, Brews, and Conversations on Park Science

North Cascades National Park and Chuckanut Brewery & Kitchen in Bellingham have created “Tapping into Science” – a new monthly forum for science conversations. This is just one of many “science cafes" established across the United States, Canada, and Europe to engage the public in scientific activities.

The preservation of our national parks requires good science. Further, it requires that this science is shared with both scientists and non-scientists. Thus, the goal of Tapping into Science is to help people learn more about their national parks and encourage further scientific inquiry. This series explores, in an informal way, a sampling of the vast array of current science that takes place in our national parks – which, as protected areas, are natural laboratories for study.

 

Conversations are held at the Chuckanut Brewery & Kitchen on the last Wednesday of each month at 7:30 p.m.

January 27 Snagging Hair and Sniffing Scat How to Know what’s in a Bear's Genes. North Cascades National Park wildlife biologist Roger Christophersen and Montana State University, Western Transportation Institute wildlife biologists Dr. Robert Long and Paula MacKay discuss their research on carnivore habitat connectivity in the North Cascades Ecosystem and the influence of highways on population structure of black bears and martens.

February 24 Thirsty Mountaintops: Decline of Frost-Brewed Glaciers Did you know that two-thirds of the glaciers in the contiguous 48 states are in the North Cascades? Join North Cascades National Park geologist Jon Riedel for a conversation about glacier monitoring and learn what this program can tell us about their and our future.

March 31 Mountain Goats of the North Cascades Explore the life history and population dynamics of mountain goats in the North Cascades with Don Gay, Wildlife Biologist, Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest.

April 28 Lucinda Davis: An Extraordinary Common Pioneer Woman of the North Cascades Dr. Jesse Kennedy, Chief of Cultural Resources at North Cascades National Park will profile pioneer life as captured in the diary of Lucinda Davis.

May 26 Origin of Fishes - why fishes are found where they are in North Cascades National Park. North Cascades National Park aquatic ecologist Ashley Rawhouser and Western Washington University professor Dr. Leo Bodensteiner will discuss the natural history of aquatic ecosystems in North Cascades National Park.

June 30 Adaptive Management of Invasive Species In the Face of Global Climate Change. Learn about strategies to manage invasive plant species from National Park Service Exotic Plant Management Team Coordinator Todd Neel.