Registration for The Wildlife Society’s 25th Annual Conference in Cleveland, Ohio, is now open! Visit twsconference.org for details, or register now by logging in to Your Membership and clicking on the Conference tab.
Cleveland has undergone an incredible revival since the Cuyahoga River caught fire and fueled a national environmental movement. Industrial areas now share space with beaver, peregrine falcons and urban habitat restoration projects.
The 25th Annual Conference will include a workshop entirely in the field. In the daylong workshop “Wildlife Conservation in Cleveland: Stories of Urban Restoration and Cooperative Management,” participants will visit the Cleveland Lakefront and portions of the award-winning Cleveland Metroparks.
At Acacia Reservation, a former golf course being transformed into a model urban ecological preserve, participants will view forest, meadow and stream restoration projects and discuss conservation partnerships and the challenges of transforming a golf course into high-quality habitat.
From there, participants will explore Tinkers’ Creek Scenic Gorge, a National Natural Landmark. White-tailed deer research and management, a long-term plant community monitoring program and the challenges of forest management will be discussed during a hike between the scenic overlook and the beautiful Bridal Veil Falls.
At Cleveland Lakefront Nature Preserve, one of the top 10 birding spots in Northeast Ohio, workshop participants will hike, enjoy wildlife and experience prime views of Lake Erie and the Cleveland skyline on a former dredge disposal site.
Just over two miles away are the runways of Burke Lakefront Airport, which offers an interesting contrast in use of dredge disposal and wildlife management. Its location and green space on the south shores of Lake Erie offer challenges to keep wildlife and aviation separated.
At the airport, wildlife research, management and cooperative partnerships to prevent wildlife collisions with aircraft will be discussed, as well as management techniques specific to airports.
This workshop is designed to learn firsthand about conservation in an urban environment and provide opportunities to compare notes about urban wildlife management.
Organizers: Jon Cepek, Cleveland Metroparks, Cleveland; David Drake, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin; Chris Moorman, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina
Supported by: TWS Urban Wildlife Working Group, Cleveland Metroparks, University of Wisconsin-Madison, North Carolina State University, USDA Wildlife Services, Ohio Division of Wildlife
