July 18, 2021
Greetings!                
Last March, I began walking the same route in my neighborhood, around the same time each morning, and tried to learn a new bird every day. After about six months, I felt I was pretty good at identifying my avian neighbors by sight. I then began to challenge myself to learn their song. This required a different type of observation… listening. I eventually began to notice whether they were alarmed or looking for a mate. On my walks now, I feel much more connected to my feathered friends.
Listening is a simple and profound way to connect with both human and non-human communities we all share. The quail who calls “shee-CAH-go” when calm, the Swainson’s thrush who I never see but am drawn to their melodic song, and the chipping sparrow who wakes me at the crack of dawn with their incessant “chip…. chip…. chip”.

Today is World Listening Day and we invite you to join us in a community listening project at the Seashore. Each national park has a unique soundscape and we are very interested in exploring the sounds within our park’s multitude of habitats. Here is a recording from Yellowstone National Park by Jacob Jobs in 2017 that haunted me. Below you’ll also learn about how NPS biologists have deployed Audio Recording Units (ARUs) throughout the park to capture sounds of the spotted owl in their habitats. Read the story of how listening to these recordings is helping with monitoring and conservation. We would love to hear what you are hearing in Point Reyes National Seashore!
Here are instructions for how to participate in this month-long community listening project.
Celebrating Latino Conservation Week
This week we also celebrate Latino Conservation Week and I’m seeing the connection between World Listening Day and making space to really listen to and honor the voices of the Latinx community. In this week’s Voices at the Seashore we’ve highlighted four years of supporting the Latino Heritage Internship Program (LHIP) at our park. LHIP engages tomorrow’s conservation stewards by offering hands-on experiences at spectacular national parks nationwide and raising awareness of the need for the Latinx community’s involvement in their preservation.
Deepen Your Park Connection
Join us on one of our Field Institute classes to sharpen your observation and listening skills. Registration for our in-depth fall California Naturalist program is open and we are happy to offer scholarships again this season. Please also consider sponsoring our annual fundraiser, Picnic on the Pacific Plate on Saturday, October 9th.
Thanks for listening and I hope to see you in the
park soon!
Heather Clapp
Director of Development and Community Engagement
World Listening Day
Share Your Sounds of the Seashore
A Community Listening Project
Please join us in listening to the incredible sounds of Point Reyes and help us document the various soundscapes.

To hear more and take a fun quiz on PRNSA's Instagram Stories today (only available for 24 hours). Be sure to have your sound on!

To hear sounds from national parks across the country, please sit back,
close your eyes and visit this page.
Listening for Owls
National Park Service biologists have been monitoring federally threatened northern spotted owls for decades. Surveying for spotted owls is not simple. Biologists typically work at night, listening for owl calls and, if heard, follow up with early morning observations to determine whether the owls detected are nesting successfully. From Washington’s Olympic Peninsula to Marin County, California, national parks provide habitat for the northern spotted owl and NPS biologists contribute to monitoring efforts. In fact, monitoring shows that the northern spotted owls found in Point Reyes, Golden Gate, and Muir Woods appear to be doing better than anywhere else in their range. Listen to the spotted owl call.

This year, park biologists are trying something new and transitioning to remote acoustic monitoring (also known as passive monitoring). The new method will record owl calls, detect other rare species that vocalize at night, increase crew safety, and enhance long-term project efficiency by lowering costs. Read more here.
Created by the National Park Service (NPS) in partnership with Environment for the Americas, Latino Heritage Internship Program (LHIP) provides nationwide national park internship opportunities to Latinx-identifying young adults. The ultimate goal of LHIP is to not only heighten the involvement of the young Latinx community in conservation and outreach at national parks through internships, but to expand NPS outreach into Latinx communities nationally to carve a space for everyone in the park.

Read more about our park rangers' passion and commitment to this program over the past four years.
California Naturalist Training Program
Become a Certified California Naturalist immersed in the natural history and unparalleled beauty of the Point Reyes National Seashore.

Five Saturdays, September 25th - October 23rd

Scholarships are available for this program. Early career professionals, people of color, the LGBTQ+ community, or those working/interested in the outdoor education field are strongly encouraged to apply. Please complete the short online scholarship application form by 9:00am on August 9th for consideration.
SUMMER FIELD INSTITUTE CLASSES
JULY CLASSES
Saturday, July 31, 9:00am – 3:00pm

Saturday, July 31, 10:30am – 3:30pm
AUGUST CLASSES
Sunday, August 1, 9:00am – 3:00pm

Sunday, August 15, 10:30am – 1:30pm

Sunday, August 22, 10:00am – 3:00pm

Saturday, August 28, 10:00am – 4:00pm

Saturday, August 28, 10:00am – 12:00pm
PARK UPDATES

Bear Valley Updates:
  • Bear Valley Visitor Center and the PRNSA Park Store are now open daily from 10am - 5pm.
  • Bear Valley trail and several connecting trails are now open. See the current map of this area that details trails that are open and those that remain closed.

Park-Wide Updates:
Many areas of Point Reyes National Seashore are open. For current road and trail conditions, visit the park's website and social media. Here is a map of current closures.

Annual Closures for Nesting Snowy Plovers:
The annual beach closure for nesting snowy plovers between the North Beach parking lot and just south of the mouth of Abbotts Lagoon will be in effect every Saturday, Sunday, and holiday starting Saturday, May 29, through September 6 (Labor Day).

Lighthouse Stairs Open Again:
The lighthouse stairs from the observation deck down to the Lighthouse have reopened! Visitors can walk the stairs on weekends from 10 am to 2 pm as staffing allows. Please note that the stairs must close if wind speeds exceed 40 mph. While the Lighthouse itself remains closed, the observation deck can be accessed from 6 am to 10 pm.

Drakes Beach Parking Lot:
As part of the on-going road project in the park, Drakes Beach Road and Parking Lot will be closed between May 1, 2021, and August 31, 2021. The work consists of a reconfiguration of the parking lot and the restoration of historic wetlands.

Muddy Hollow Meander:
Hike with park ranger Fiona O'Kelly, on July 24, 10am-11:30am. This natural history walk is free and open to the public. For more information and to sign up, email: fiona_o'kelly@nps.gov.

Five Brooks Camp:
The NPS has announced the selection of Five Brooks Camp to operate overnight camping with horses at the Point Reyes Horse Camp. Five Brooks Camp currently operates the horse camp through a temporary concession contract awarded in 2019.
Your monthly donations help sustain our conservation and environmental education programs, and allow us to bring more faces out to the Seashore. Donate this month and sign up to join our rising tide! Become a High Tide Monthly Supporter today. It is the easiest, and greenest way to show your love for the park!
We partner with the National Park Service to create opportunities for all people to experience, enhance, and preserve Point Reyes National Seashore for present and future generations.
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