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Welcome to the San Francisco Bay Area Chapter of The Wildlife Society.

The Wildlife Society (TWS), founded in 1937, is an international non-profit scientific and educational association dedicated to excellence in wildlife stewardship through science and education. The Society’s mission is to enhance the ability of wildlife professionals to conserve diversity, sustain productivity, and ensure responsible use of wildlife resources for the benefit of society.

The Chapter’s area of organization includes the counties of Marin, Sonoma, Mendocino, Lake, Napa, Solano, Contra Costa, Alameda, Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, San Mateo, and San Francisco.

President’s Message 2010

Christine Gaber 

I could not write this President’s message without first extending a big thank you to our amazing Chapter Board. All of us should offer Doug Bell heartfelt thanks for accepting our nomination and doing such a stellar job as Chapter President this past year. He’s a very busy guy, and we all appreciate the time he spent organizing Chapter events. Dana Ostfeld has done an excellent job working behind the scenes for the past few years keeping Chapter finances and membership up to date. Having served as Chapter Secretary/Treasurer in the past, I can tell you that this is no small task! Newsletter Editor Brian Pittman has revived our Chapter publication and kept the Chapter Board on track with our quarterly submittals.  Hopefully you all have enjoyed reading about this year’s Chapter activities, the state of Chapter affairs, and updates from the Western Section.  Webmaster Luke Macaulay also deserves thanks for getting the Chapter website up and runningagain, especially while working remotely from the Internet cafes of Spain this past semester. Natasha,Ron Duke and others from the Chapter made significant contributions to the planning efforts forthe 2009 TWS National Conference in Monterey.

So what does the Chapter Board have in store foryou in 2010? I’d like to keep the October trip to Hawk Hill in the Golden Gate National Recreation Area and other Chapter favorites on the calendar, but it would be great to add some new events too.Shall we take a tour of Vasco Caves Regional Preserve to check out the petroglyphs and prairie falcons? Should we get together to discuss the solar energy boom and what it means for California’s desert wildlife? We have Chapter members who represent NGOs, universities, consulting firms, utilities, and resource agencies at all levels of government. If you have a meeting space to offer or a particular project you’d like to share with all of us in the field, let us know. What’s going on with axis and fallow deer management out at Point Reyes National Seashore? What is the status of Bay Area bats? Western pond turtle – from Clemmys to Emys to Actinemys – what’s next? I know many of us are working directly on these issues and we all would benefit from hearing about it. 

Since many of our past Chapter events have been located in the East Bay, we’ve been talking about hosting a Chapter meeting in the South Bay to give those members a break.

I hope that our informal student mentoring program spearheaded by Brian and Natasha can continue as well. We have made some great connections with students at Sonoma State University and we need tobring other universities into the fold. The Chapter Board is here to serve you, and we would love your input. Email us your ideas for Chapter events or professional development opportunities. We are looking for a President-elect for this year too – nominate yourself or someone else will! Just ask Doug. ☺ 

Thank you and I look forward to serving as your President in 2010!

Christine