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Section I Preparations to run a TAMP Route
1.
Preparing
to run a route that already has the stop locations selected:
a.
Volunteers should first contact the TAMP State Coordinator to obtain a
route map. Blank Site Description Forms, Site Coordinate forms and TAMP
Data Sheets can be downloaded from the TAMP Data Sheets and Other Forms
page.
b.
Volunteers should drive their route at least
once during the daylight hours to practice before the actual run at night.
It is much easier to find the stops during the day. The site description
form describes where the start point of the route is located. You will
zero your trip odometer when you arrive at the first stop. The form will
tell you how far to drive to each turn, and will give you the cumulative
odometer reading at each stop. The site description form also gives a
visual description of the area around each stop. Though the use of the
site coordinate form is not strictly necessary, it is sometimes helpful in
verifying you are in the right place for each stop. This naturally
requires the use of a GPS unit or other location-finding device. Some
cell phones include the lat/long in their image metadata.
c.
Its important to become very
familiar with each stop in the daytime. Make a mental note of landmarks
which might be seen at night that would let you know when you are getting
close to the stop.
d.
When looking at stops, keep in
mind that you should get completely off the road at or near the stop.
This is important for safety. When running the route at night, always
assume that oncoming drivers cannot see you, and stand well off the side
of the road when cars pass.
e.
Verify that the odometer
reading you get with your vehicle matches the cumulative odometer reading
shown on the site description form. If it differs slightly, make a note
of your odometer reading for future reference. f. Carefully review the TAMP data sheet. Note that the basic instructions for running a route are on the front of the data sheet. Data is entered on the back of the data sheet. Instructions for using the data sheet and running the route are below in Section II.
2.
Preparing to
run a route where no stops have been established. a. First review the suggested path of the route. In the daytime, drive the suggested path of the route to make sure that the route is viable. Are roads public and are they passable? Are they safe? Are there opportunities for pull offs? If not, contact the TAMP State Coordinator and an alternate route will be chosen.
b.
Once youve determined that
you have a viable path for the route, its time to place the listening
stops. Begin at the start point of the route, double-checking the
coordinates with a GPS unit.
c.
Begin driving the suggested
path of the route, and pick the first amphibian habitat that you see (this
can be a small pond, a wetland, a creek, or a flooded field) that has a
safe pull off. Be very mindful of safety when choosing a stop. Never
pick a stop location that is just over the crest of a hill, or just around
a bend in the road. The lack of sight distance can be a hazard. If there
are easily identifiable landmarks near the stop location this will help
you locate the stop at night. Note whatever driving directions you would
like future observers to have in getting to the first stop. Describe in
detail what the stop looks like. Zero your car odometer.
d.
On the Site Coordinate Form,
make a note of the GPS latitude, longitude and precision of the first
stop. Latitude and Longitude should be written in decimal degrees. This
can be set in the Units menu on your GPS unit. Precision is noted in
meters. Datum should be WGS84. Fill out the Site Description Form
for each selected stop.
e.
Begin driving your route, make
a note on the Site Description form how far it is in miles to each turn,
and the name of the roads that you travel.
f.
Stops must be at least a half
mile apart. This is a straight-line distance. The easy way to make sure
youve covered a half mile when the road winds back and forth is to set
your GPS to Go To the point that you are currently at. Then as you
drive away, the GPS unit will continuously read out the straight-line
distance back to the previous stop. After youve covered a half mile
distance, begin looking for the next good habitat that has a safe pull
off. When you find it, this becomes listening Stop 2. Make a note of the
cumulative odometer reading and describe how the stop looks in detail.
Note the latitude, longitude and precision at the stop as described above.
g.
Repeat this process for each
stop until all ten stops have been located.
h.
Scan your Site Description
Form and Site Coordinate Form and send them to your TAMP State
Coordinator. i. Route Safety Issues Construction, road conditions or even belligerent landowners are all legitimate safety issues that may require the rerouting of a TAMP route. If any of these issues are encountered, contact the TAMP state Coordinator.
Section II Protocol for Running a TAMP Route 1. Sampling Run Dates - Volunteers run their routes four times each year: a. Run 1 For Middle and East Tennessee TAMP routes - January 10th - February 20th For West Tennessee TAMP routes - January 27th - March 9th b. Run 2 Statewide March 10th April 15th c. Run 3 Statewide May 10 June 15th
d.
Run 4 Statewide July 1st
August 9th 2. Minimum Temperatures for Each Run Degrees Fahrenheit a. Run 1 Statewide 42 Degrees F b. Run 2 Statewide 42 Degrees F c. Run 3 Statewide 50 Degrees F
d.
Run 4 Statewide 55 Degrees
F
3.
Time of Day to Conduct
Listening Runs Sampling runs must begin a minimum of 30 minutes after
local sundown and be completed by 1:00am the following morning. 4. Before beginning the run, the volunteer will note on the data form the Beauford Wind Code as follows (note that this information, and the Sky Codes, are on the front of the TAMP data sheet): a. 0 = Calm (<1 mph) Smoke rises vertically b. 1 = Light Air (1-3 mph) smoke drifts, weather vane inactive c. 2 = Light Breeze (4-7 mph) leaves rustle, can feel wind on face d. 3 = Gentle Breeze (8-12 mph) leaves and twigs move around, small flags extend e. 4* = Moderate Breeze (13-18 mph) moves thin branches, raises loose papers f. 5* = Fresh Breeze (19 mph or greater) small trees begin to sway
g.
* Do not conduct survey at
levels 4 & 5 5. Before beginning the run, also note the Sky Codes (Note 3 & 6 are not valid numbers) a. 0 = Few clouds b. 1 = Partly cloudy (scattered) or variable sky c. 2 = Cloudy or overcast d. 4 = Fog or smoke e. 5 = Drizzle or light rain (not affecting hearing ability) f. 7 = Snow
g.
8 = Showers (if affecting
hearing ability) Do not conduct survey 6. Before beginning sampling run, volunteer fills in the following information on the data sheet. a. Front of data sheet fill in your name, address, phone number and e-mail.
b.
Back of data sheet fill in
name, route number, route name, survey date, window number, wind and sky
codes, days since last rainfall, start time (the time that you begin your
5-minute listening period) and air temperature. 7. Note the following: a. Fill in time and temperature for each stop dont skip. b. Time is entered in military format 0-24 hours (2 minutes after midnight is 00:02) c. Stops must be completed in correct order. d. Fill in optional information if desired (time out, or noise a factor)
e.
Enter only species of which
you are absolutely certain; suspected species should be recorded and noted
in the comments section. 8. Amphibian Calling Indices At each stop, the volunteer listens for a timed 5 minute period and notes which species are calling on the data form. Each species is assigned a calling index, based on the level of calling activity. The indices are: a. 1 = Individuals can be distinguished; there is space between calls; calls do not overlap. b. 2 = Calls of individuals can be distinguished but there is some overlapping of calls
c.
3 = Full Chorus, calls are
constant, continuous and overlapping.
9.
After completing the run, the
volunteer will note the end time (must be 5 minutes past the start time at
stop 10) and note the wind codes and sky codes existing at the end of the
run.
10.
Additional notes are entered
at the bottom of the front of the data sheet. These notes often include
amphibians seen between stops, mammals or night birds seen or heard,
reptiles or other items of interest.
11.
At the bottom of the back of
the data sheet please enter whether moonlight was visible at each stop and
the number of cars that passed. Enter 0 if no cars pass a blank entry
means no data taken, not zero cars.
12.
If a species is noted that
would be a new county record, you must get either a recording or a good
image in order for the observation to be entered into the database, or to
be published as a new county record. Section III - The TAMP Quiz
1. The TAMP Quiz Volunteers must take
and pass the online (open book) TAMP quiz every other year in order for
their data to be qualified. The quiz must be taken and passed by October
31st of the applicable year.
Cope's Gray Treefrog on Black Willow and rising gibbous Moon montage © 2017 Bob English LEAPS www.leaps.ms
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