We are looking for volunteers to help record plant growth and survival at our Beaverhood planting along a stretch of private property in La Pine, Oregon. I anticipate monitoring all 4 enclosures will take 4 people half a day, leaving us time to do some fall seeding. We revisit these sites twice per year, so whether you are interested in volunteering for one day or for many years, this opportunity may be a good fit for you. Plant community monitoring is directly useful for informing Beaver Works’ future riparian restoration methods so we can improve efficacy over time. We share these lessons with other practitioners in the nascent field of beaver-focused habitat restoration. Volunteering in hands-on surveys, inventory, and monitoring will demonstrate competency in species identification, quality assurance, and working independently — skills applicable to many natural resource and ecology roles. The work involves hiking less than a 1/4 mile to each project site, but once there, it involves stooping and paying close attention to detail in a confined space.

About the Location: We’ll meet at Think Wild at 8 a.m. to carpool down to the site (45 minutes). This is a gorgeous stretch of the Little Deschutes River within a Conservation Opportunity Area with significant wildlife viewing opportunities. River otters, eagles, porcupines, elk, and beavers all call this property home. Volunteers are an essential part of this project. While working, we will discuss beaver natural history, their outsized impact on wildlife habitat, and riparian restoration.