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6/8/2022 0 Comments

Louisiana Master Naturalist Interview on Conserving Earth, Red River Radio

https://www.redriverradio.org/show/conserving-earth/2022-05-17/conserving-earth-may-18-2022-master-naturalists

Check out this excellent radio interview with The Louisiana Master Naturalists. Join Red River Radio's Rebecca Triche in a superb Conserving Earth chat program with LMNA President Bette Kauffman, Katherine Gividen LMNA Vice President, and Janell Simpson, Greater New Orleans MN President. The discussion covers all aspects of becoming and being a Master Naturalist in Louisiana, why it is so worthwhile and the sort of activities that we do in a lively and informative dialogue!

​This is recommended listening for anyone interested in the Louisiana Master Naturalists!


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5/8/2022 0 Comments

The Promise of Earth Day

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Tom Pearson, Meteorologist and Director of The Louisiana Purchase Gardens and Zoo giving his presentation on weather and climate to the public, Louisiana Master Naturalists Northeast and Friends of Black Bayou, Saturday May 7th. K. Paxton photo.
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Earth Day means different things to different people. How did you celebrate it this year? What does Earth Day mean to you?

​Click here for some uplifting writing Earth Day’s Promise – Louisiana Master Naturalists – Northeast (louisianamasternaturalistsnortheast.com)

Yesterday Saturday May 7th, at a public Weather and Climate event in Monroe, Louisiana where Meteorologist Tom Pearson taught me much more about weather and climate than I thought I knew (Thanks, Tom), Dr. Anne Fazer, LMNA member, told me "Earth Day is every day now for me."

I had to agree, it really has to be, for us all, don't you think?

​My thanks to Anne for the following material and Kimmie Paxton for the photos.

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Anne Frazer conducting an experiment by adding Bicarbonate of Soda and vinegar to an air-tight bag with a cup of water to which she had added an acid reagent.
 What do you think happened in her experiment?

First the baking soda degassed CO2, and the bag bulged with the extra gas, then the water absorbed some of the gas, the bag deflated and the water turned purple and acidic.

This replicates the acidification of our lakes, rivers and seas. Acid conditions don't suit many marine organisms from corals to diatoms and thus the current marine food web is threatened.

​Regarding the distribution of CO2 released from the burning of fossil fuels, according to "The Thinking Person's Guide to Climate Change, 2nd edition" by Robert Henson. Over the period 2007-2016, land-based ecosystems took up about 30%, Oceans absorbed about 24%, leaving about 46% remaining in the atmosphere. [This book was published by the American Meteorological Society (AMS) in 2019.
earth-day-lte-ouachita-citizen-2022-04-21__1_.docx
File Size: 13 kb
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earth-day-lte-ouachita-citizen-2022-04-21__1_.pdf
File Size: 123 kb
File Type: pdf
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​Some links for follow-up! 

1. www.earthday.org ,


2. https://clcouncil.org/economists-statement/ . This links to the "Economists' Statement on Carbon Dividends"

3. www.congress.gov : Enter "h.r.2307" into the search box at the top of the page (it's possible you need to specify the 117th Congress), then click the link for the bill "H.R..2307 - 117th Congress (2021-2022)." This takes you to the 'Summary'. Summaries are authored by the CRS (Congressional Research Service of the Library of Congress). 


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5/5/2022 0 Comments

A FROG BLOG & LOG

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Earth Day was celebrated as a Herp day in Monroe, Louisiana, in 2022. The Louisiana Master Naturalists Northeast and Friends of Black Bayou organized a joint events schedule that focused on our cold-blooded friends, the reptiles and amphibians. With 1 in 5 reptiles now threatened with extinction according to a study published in Nature (Source BBC News) there has never been a greater need to focus on these creatures.

The day kicked off at 10:00 with a guided walk to look for frogs, turtles and crocodilians. It was blustery around the lake so the alligators kept their heads down as did the turtles. In the swamp by the boardwalks it was a different story. We saw some turtles, frogs many Broad-banded Watersnakes, a Rough Green Snake, and lizards.

Please see Herp Success! – Louisiana Master Naturalists – Northeast (louisianamasternaturalistsnortheast.com)
and
Swamp Night – Louisiana Master Naturalists – Northeast (louisianamasternaturalistsnortheast.com)

The local TV station (KNOE) turned out to interview two of the organizers and film the walkers setting off front detailed account please see LMNE blog. In the evening there was a presentation on frogs and their calls before we set out and what's the boardwalks again. It was a very different place at night. We heard a riot of frog calls and everyone was excited to see a medium sized alligator near the boardwalk in the lake. For me probably the star of the show was a big old bullfrog that was just sitting on the bottom of the lake with huge eardrums, placid, immobile, solid, with ancient lineage.

A team of 8 people prepared for the events remotely using digital remote collaboration tools, Zoom and Mural.

Earth Day’s Promise – Louisiana Master Naturalists – Northeast (louisianamasternaturalistsnortheast.com)

Please find below the Ppt presentation on Frogs and their calls made by K.Paxton and J. Wright with media sourced from Loyola University New Orleans Dept. of Environmental Communications and The Frog Log that we used to mark species observations.
​
Click here to download the 121MB Ppt file.

the_frog_log_3.pdf
File Size: 364 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File

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4/17/2022 0 Comments

LMNA Photo Contest 2022

,Our thanks to all who submitted their fine images to our 2022 LMNA Photo Contest. As last year, there were five categories with a sub-division of professional and amateur class in each category. Rendezvous members could vote for their favorites on our Facebook page.

There were 27 entries altogether, 17 amateur and 10 professional. It was another fantastic offering for the Master Naturalists' image bank. Thank you!
​

Wildlife Category
Professional
Winner Bette J. Kauffman
Runner-up Charles Paxton
Amateur
Winner Katherine Gividen
​Runner-up David Hoover
Unflappable
(12/15/21 Livingston Parish)
A thoroughly unimpressed Great Horned Owl by Katherine Gividen.
Amateur
For 2022 Photo Contest Wildlife, Bette J. Kauffman, professional, Red-Shouldered Hawk (Buteo lineatus).
A Smooth Softshell turtle (Apalone mutica) surging ashore after its release into the Ouachita River, by volunteers with Professor John Carr of ULM. C.Paxton, Professional.
​
Nature in Close-up Category
Professional
Winner Bette J. Kauffman
Runner-up Charles Paxton
Amateur
Winner Angelle Arata
​​​Runner-up 
David Hoover
Runner-up Troy Sampere


Bette J. Kauffman, professional, Great Blue Skimmer (Libellula vibrans)
Prickles. Troy Sampere, Amateur
David Hoover
Squirrel!!! 8-25-2021
Amateur
Two map turtles face to face in the tender clasp of the herpetologist who hatched them in his ULM incubators, Professor John Carr. The Mississippi Map turtle on the left with crescent behind the eye and Ouachita Map turtle on the right with an oblique marking. C.Paxton photo. Professional class.
Habitat Category
Professional
Winner Bette J. Kauffman
Runner-up Charles Paxton
Amateur
Winner Katherine Gividen
​​Runner-up Troy Sampere

​Runner-up David Hoover
Runner-up Angelle Arata

Habitat, Bette J. Kauffman, professional, title: Boudoir for a Beast
Adaptation
(04/17/21 Jefferson Parish)
The beauty of nature vs the drabness of man's progress.
Amateur
Tickfaw Tree Line 11/14/21. "The individual is to make what is beautiful"--Oscar Wilde. Amateur class.
Troy Sampere, The naked canopy. 2022. Bogochitto State Park. Amateur
David Hoover. 2022. Wishing for a fish. Amateur.
The water margin at Black Bayou National Wildlife Refuge offers visitors wonderful access to a swamp from its new boardwalk. C.Paxton. Professional class.
Artistic Category
Professional
Winner Bette J. Kauffman
Runner-up Charles Paxton
Amateur
Winner Katherine Gividen
​​Runner-up Troy Sampere

​Runner-up David Hoover

Naturalist Category
Professional
Winner Bette J. Kauffman
Runner-up Charles Paxton
Amateur
Winner Katherine Gividen
​Runner-up David Hoover
​​Runner-up 
Kimmie Paxton
​​Runner-up Troy Sampere


Dance of the Butterfly. Bette J. Kauffman, professional.
Industry. Panned shot of a young coyote running.
(01/24/22 East Baton Rouge Parish)
diligence in an employment or pursuit
steady or habitual effort.
Amateur
Dec 2021 Erosion and drainage. Fountain Bleu State Park. Amateu
Life Abounds by David Hoover. Amateur.
Fungi on a log with methane bubbles rising behind. A tranquil scene from Restoration Park, West Monroe. C.Paxton, Professional class.
 Bette J. Kauffman, professional, title: Bat Tree, caption: Jess Wright, Northeast Chapter, checks out a hollow tupelo tree for roosting bats.
Patience
(06/13/21 Cameron Parish)
Waiting for that perfect photograph of a Clapper Rail.
Amateur
A young naturalist releasing a Smooth Softshell (Apalone mutica) at Lazarre Park in Monroe, LA. K.Paxton, Amateur.
On With The Day, Troy Sampere. Amateur.
Kimmie Paxton enjoying the wonderful Russell Sage WMA. C.Paxton. Professional Class.
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3/26/2022 0 Comments

Jim Delahoussaye Wins 2022 Caroline Dormon Award!

PictureImage from Riverlogue Blog, copyright Jim Delahoussaye.
  • Member and former board member of the Louisiana Folklore Society
  • Member of the Louisiana Archeological Society.
  • Board member of ‘Friends of Atchafalaya,’ Vice-President.

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Jim Delahoussaye with his book Riverlogue. Jim Delahoussaye image and copyright.
Media Alert: For Release March 28th, 2022

​Louisiana Master Naturalist Association Announces
2022 Caroline Dormon Award Winner

 
The Louisiana Master Naturalist Association recently selected Mr. A. James “Jim” Delahoussaye as the recipient of the 2022 Caroline Dormon Award. He will be formally presented with his award at a special plenary dinner in The Pineville Conference Center, April 2nd, where he will be keynote speaker. He was nominated for the award by Clifford J LeGrange and C. Ray Brassieur of Acadiana Master Naturalists chapter. The award is named after noted Louisiana naturalist Dr. Caroline Dormon and recognizes individuals who have made significant contributions to the understanding of Louisiana’s natural history over a lifetime of work.  Previous winners include Dr. Charles Allen, Vernon Brou, Jr., Kelby Ouchley, and Bill Fontenot.
 
Jim Delahoussaye has worked as an environmental scientist, teacher, folklorist, and commercial fisherman in the Atchafalaya Basin.  He has also worked as a zooarchaeologist, an adjunct researcher in the department of Sociology/Anthropology at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, where he analyzes animal bones from prehistoric Native American middens.
 
In addition to his scientific publications, numerous presentations to the public, and participation in videos documenting life on the Atchafalaya, Jim has chronicled the unique relationship between the people and the Atchafalaya River.  He has collected life stories from descendants of houseboat families who lived in the Atchafalaya Basin, preserving a unique culture for posterity.  His large collection of recordings and related materials from this project was recently gifted to the Library of Congress, where it is housed in the American Folklife Center.
 
Jim’s knowledge and expertise covers all aspects of the natural history of the Atchafalaya Basin, and the people who depend on it.  He not only has the formal education and background, but he also has the lived experience of working and earning a living in the Basin. His familiarity with this vast swampland enabled him to assess the height of the tallest Bald Cypress tree in the Atchafalaya by eye within a margin of accuracy of just over 2 feet!
 
The committee that selected Delahoussaye from a shortlist of six powerful contenders agreed that he met and exceeded all the criteria for the award. 
 
See Riverlogue Blog for Jim’s fascinating life, work and photographs,
"This Riverlogue blog originates on the banks of the Atchafalaya River, in Louisiana. It proposes to share the things that happen on and by the river as the seasons progress. As the river changes from quiet, warm, slow flow to rises of eighteen feet or more, there are changes in the lives of the birds, fish, amphibians and reptiles that use the river. And the mood of the river changes with the seasons. I propose to note and comment on these things." Jim Delhoussaye
SCIENTIFIC PUBLICATIONS
Delahoussaye's Scientific Publications include the following:
  • Fouquette, M.J. and Jim Delahoussaye. 1966. Noteworthy Herpetological Records from Louisiana ; March 1966, The Southwestern Naturalist 11(1):137.
  • Delahoussaye, A. James, Thieret, John W. 1967. Cyperus subgenus Kyllinga (Cyperaceae) in the continental United States. Sida 3: 128-136. (John Thieret was the authority on Sedges (Cyperceae) in Louisiana. Jim discovered a new subgenus of sedges while working with Dr. Thieret. The discovery was validated by specimens from Kew Gardens, London, England.)
  • Fouquette, M.J., Jr., and A.J. Delahoussaye. 1977. Sperm morphology in the Hyla rubra group (Amphibia, Anura, Hylidae), and it’s bearing on generic status. Journal of Herpetology, 11: 387-396. (This publication was based on Jim’s academic findings for his Master’s degree.)
  • Bauer, Raymond T. and James Delahoussaye. 2008. Life history migrations of the amphidromous river shrimp Macrobrachium ohione from a continental large river system. Journal of Crustacean Biology. 28(4), 622-632. (The breeding migration of river shrimp was previously unknown. Jim and Raymond discovered that river shrimp required a transition from fresh to salt water in order to reproduce.)​
  • Delahoussaye, A. James, Brad R. Moon, and Mark A. Rees. 2015. Zooarchaeology of the Portage Mounds site (16SMS in southern Louisiana). Louisiana Archaeology. 39: 5-31. Jim’s analysis of the archeological material at this location suggested that prehistoric Native Americans in south Louisiana were eating very large (5 pounds) bull frogs as part of their regular diet. These days large bull frogs weigh in at about 2 lbs) 

​JIM AS  ZOOARCHAEOLOGIST: EXPLORING, COLLECTING, ANALYZING 
​& DOCUMENTING

PictureJim Delahoussaye in the field, photograph and copyright Brad Moon.
 Jim volunteers his time as a research scientist (zooarchaeologist) in the Anthropology Program, Department of Sociology, Anthropology and Child and Family Services at the University of Louisiana, Lafayette.

​He identifies bone fragments excavated from prehistoric Native American midden sites. Jim analyses vertebrate faunal remains (from fish, amphibians, reptiles, mammals, and birds) that represent parts of the material record recovered during archeological excavation.


Particularly in Louisiana, invertebrate animal remains (like mollusks, crustaceans, and snails) also are associated with ancient human sites.

​Faunal analyses require knowledge of faunal anatomy and taxonomy, but careful study of environmental and archeological contexts is required. Bone and shell remains also may show how past humans fashioned tools and artifacts used for everyday tasks and ritual occasions.
 He first determines if the bone fragment belonged to a bird, fish, amphibian, reptile, or mammal.
​He next determines what bone the fragment came from. 

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A Snapping Turtle shell from an Atchafalaya Basin Shell Midden. Delahoussaye image.
He has been doing this as a volunteer since 2006. He has worked on bones from Poverty Point (World Heritage Site), Louisiana State University, University of Louisiana, Lafayette, the office of the Louisiana State Archeologist, and is currently identifying excavated material from a site on the Brazos River in Texas.

He works on these projects three to five days per week. The UL Lafayette anthropology program hosts active and well-respected archeological activities in prehistorical, historical, and public archeology. Jim’s contributions as a Zooarchaeologist add a specialized and highly regarded enhancement to this program. Expert Zooarchaeologist are rare in Louisiana, and Jim’s activities in this field have earned considerable attention. Major archeological collections of faunal materials from throughout Louisiana are sent to Jim for analysis. Jim’s work includes the systematic study of animal remains recovered from archeological sites.

Zooarchaeology is a "hybrid" discipline, combining the studies of archeology and zoology to better understand how past humans interacted with animals. The breadth of his work covers many topics including, but not limited to, environmental reconstruction, subsistence studies, and ritual use of animals in the past. At UL, Lafayette, Jim also provides occasional classroom lectures, and he works with individual graduate and undergraduate students and professional colleagues on projects generated from a wide range of disciplines across the campus. Jim’s work as a zooarchaeologist is supported by his remarkable collection of small bits and pieces of bone gathered in the Atchafalaya Basin.

Trained Zooarcheologists can tell what type of animal the bone came from, how old the animal was when it died, and how humans prepared the animal. Bones and shells provide useful information on past diets. Understanding what our ancestors ate means understanding their subsistence strategies and their relationship with the environment. Every observation can contribute to science. 


JIM'S WORK as FOLKLORIST

 Jim has published a large collection of Atchafalaya River Basin recordings now preserved in the Library of Congress. These include interviews with residents of the Atchafalaya River Basin, Louisiana, about their lives, traditions, and folkways, recorded from 1974-2010, as well as approximately 645 digital images documenting the same traditions. Interviews were conducted by Alphe James (Jim) Delahoussaye. Digital images were created by his colleague, Darlene Soulé, of many of the same subjects. Topics include fresh-water fishing and shrimping, other animals and animal husbandry, cooking, medicine, weather, logging, community gatherings, religion and churches, boat building, courtship, marriage, and education. These residents of the Atchafalaya River Basin, many of whom were elderly at the time of the interviews, recall traditions and events experienced from the 1880s and through the 20th century. Photographs are digital copies of original family photographs dating from the 1920s to the present. (Adapted from the US Library of Congress, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. LC The location of the catalog entry at LOC/AFC : https://lccn.loc.gov/2013655203
​Cite or bookmark this finding aid as: https://hdl.loc.gov/loc.afc/eadafc.af014002

Jim has collected life stories from descendants of houseboat families who lived in the Atchafalaya Basin. Currently, there are ninety-six recordings dating from 1972. Firsthand knowledge obtained by these interviews; supplements written research data for archives. Jim spent many years working on the ethnology of the Atchafalaya houseboat communities, many of whom he got to know while working and living in the area. His large collection of recordings and related materials from this project was recently gifted to the Library of Congress, where it is housed in the American Folklife Center. Delahoussaye described the events that led to his donation: “The material first came to the attention of Todd Harvey, Acquisitions Manager for American Folklife Center (AFC) in the spring of 2012. He asked if I could send some examples of the taped interviews to him, which I did. He also asked for a description of the location where the people who were on the tapes lived. It turns out that the AFC had nothing in its archives from the Atchafalaya Basin, not even music. After that we just worked out the language for the terms of the gift, copyright, rights retained, etc. and we packed the tapes and sent them. We digitized all the tapes prior to shipment and sent a digitized copy along with the original analog tapes. One feature of the agreement is that LSU and UL, Lafayette are entitled to a digitized copy of the complete set, if desired. My understanding is that processing of the collection at AFC is still ongoing. I have transcribed, in detail, about half of the tapes so far (48) and continue to work on that – several thousand pages of transcription. From the transcripts there are about twenty-five presentations varying in length from thirty minutes to two hours.” 
For expert help with questions about the Caroline Dormon Award For Outstanding Louisiana Naturalist please contact:
LARRY R. RAYMOND, Chair Dormon Award,  LMNA – ?lrraymond@aol.com   318-347-313

For expert help with questions about this Outstanding Louisiana Naturalist, Delahoussaye, please contact:
CLIFFORD J LEGRANGE  – ?LeGrange@cox.net   225 776 2686
Author http://www.bayoupigeonbook.com/

Spam control: Please remove ? for the active email addresses

​
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3/22/2022 0 Comments

LOUISIANA MASTER NATURALISTS CONVENE IN PINEVILLE

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Louisiana Master Naturalists exploring the rich biodiversity at Camp Hardtner in 2018.
Public invited to opening session
 
March 22, 2022, Alexandria/Pineville – Louisiana Master Naturalist Association will convene its annual statewide meeting called “Rendezvous” Friday, April 1. The public is invited to their opening session 7 – 8:30 p.m. at the Pineville Convention Center.
 
Area residents interested in the natural world and how to conserve it are especially invited to learn about LMNA and how to activate a local chapter. LMNA president Bob Thomas will introduce the organization, talk about its mission and goals, and provide information about how to get involved. LMNA president-elect Bette Kauffman will present information about nearby Camp Hardtner, a rich natural area and resource that is enrolled in the Louisiana Natural Heritage Program.
 
Thomas is a professor of biology at Loyola University and a herpetologist. His research in Belize led to a newly described species of snake being named after him. He is the founder of LMNA and its first president. Kauffman is a professor emerita of communication at the University of Louisiana Monroe. The material she will present is based on her Master Naturalist certification project, which was conducted as part of the process of enrolling Camp Hardtner in the LNH Program.
 
Day two of Rendezvous will be devoted to workshops and field trips, culminating Saturday evening with announcement of the 2022 recipient of LMNA’s Caroline Dormon Outstanding Louisiana Naturalist award. A press release naming the recipient and providing additional information about the award will be provided a few days in advance.
 
Notes to editors:

  1. The Louisiana Master Naturalist Association (LMNA) is a 501(3)c umbrella organization that serves seven regional groups or chapters, throughout the state of Louisiana that are tasked with developing a corps of well-informed volunteers to provide education, outreach, and service dedicated to the beneficial management of natural resources and natural areas within our communities.
      These Chapters are: Northwest, Northeast, Central, Greater Baton Rouge, Southwest, Acadiana and Greater New Orleans.   
For more information about the organization, please see our website https://www.louisianamasternaturalist.org

​2. Every year the LMNA members convene annually for a rendezvous weekend of environmental education and fellowship activities. Please see https://www.louisianamasternaturalist.org/rendezvous-2022.html for this year’s itinerary.
 
For more information and related photos please contact:

Charles Paxton
Communications Officer
Louisiana Master Naturalist Association
1-318-3311531
https://www.louisianamasternaturalist.org
​
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12/12/2021 0 Comments

LMNA Asks You to Nominate the Outstanding Louisiana Naturalist of The Year 2022!

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Dr. Caroline Dormon in action! Copyright NSU Libraries, Cammie G. Henry Research Center, Caroline Dormon Collection
Is there someone in your community, or beyond, that you would like to nominate for the Louisiana Master Naturalists' most prestigious award?
Who Do You Feel Deserves the Caroline Dormon Outstanding Louisiana Naturalist Award 2022 ?
The Louisiana Master Naturalists formed to develop a corps of well-informed volunteers to provide education, outreach and service dedicated to the beneficial management of the natural resources within our communities in the state of  Louisiana, USA.

Our association serves seven distinct groups:
Greater New Orleans Chapter Web & Facebook
Acadiana Chapter (Lafayette area) Web & Facebook
Southwest Chapter (Lake Charles area) Web & Facebook
Greater Baton Rouge Chapter 
Web & Facebook
CenLa Chapter (Alexandria area) 
Facebook
Northeast Chapter (Monroe area) 
Web & Facebook
Northwest Chapter (Shreveport/Bossier area)  
 Web & Facebook
Acadiana Chapter (Lafayette area) Web & Facebook

Every year we honor an exemplary naturalist

​Our highest award for a Louisiana Naturalist is named after Dr. Caroline Dormon, eminent and accomplished Louisiana naturalist, environmental educator, horticulturist, ornithologist, historian, archaeologist, preservationist, conservationist, and author. Amongst other achievements she was the first female in the US Forestry Service and founded Louisiana’s wonderful Kisatchie National Forest, the Louisiana State Arboretum in Ville Platte, and the Briarwood Nature Retreat. 

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This Caroline Dormon Outstanding Louisiana Master Naturalist Award Trophy was presented to Kelby Ouchley in 2020. Image and copyright Dr. B. Kauffman 2020.
Who would you like to nominate for the Louisiana Master Naturalists' most prestigious award?

Please find below our award nomination form along with some explanatory text concerning the Caroline Dormon Award itself and guidance on what we think it takes to be considered an outstanding naturalist and our past winners as exemplars. 
2022_dormon_nomination_form_.pdf
File Size: 90 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File

See more information with photos at 
​

https://www.louisianamasternaturalist.org/the-dormon-award.html
Please note that even if a nominee doesn't win this year, their name and information will be carried forward and reconsidered in future years.

We appreciate your help.  All nominations must be received by February 28, 2022.

Please don't hesitate to contact Raymond or myself if you have any questions or concerns and we'll be happy to help.

Best wishes,

            Charles

Charles Paxton
Communications Officer
​318-331-1531

lmnacoms@gmail.com

Board Member in Charge of Caroline Dormon Awards Committee
 Larry Raymond 
lrraymond@aol.com 
 6675 North Park Circle, Shreveport, LA 71107.  
Questions can be directed to Larry at 318-347-3134.
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11/10/2021 0 Comments

Water Management, Ecological Health and Societal Impacts

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Click the above still frame or click here to view the video on LMNA Channel
Living With Water - A Solutions Focused Panel Discussion

This video could be of interest to anyone whose community environment includes this vital but mercurial element!
By Aimée K. Thomas, Ph.D. Director of Environment Program Department of Biological Sciences & Environment Program Loyola University New Orleans.
“Water Management and its Ecological Health and Societal Impacts” panel discussion was hosted on Wednesday, November 3, 2021 at Loyola New Orleans by the Loyola University New Orleans Environment Program and Department of Biological Sciences in conjunction with the Louisiana Master Naturalists of Greater New Orleans.
​
The panelists are successful and inspiring leaders from the Greater New Orleans community who were invited to discuss the role their organizations play in storm water management, utilizing innovative approaches to solve environmental water issues so that we can all learn how to reduce our impact and sustainably embrace living with water.  We recorded it and it is available on our YouTube channel. Please share to others through email, social media and your website.
​
The purpose of our research is to bring different communities together in the hopes of developing creative sustainable ways of dealing with excess water around the city.

​We are also studying the changes, if any, that people make after learning about the significance of water and empowering them to take control of their environment! 
Our video on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oLkX17iOtOE&t=0s​
Mirabeau Water Project
Resilience & Sustainability - Areas of Focus - Green Infrastructure - Hazard Mitigation - Stormwater Projects - Mirabeau Water Garden: Phase I - City of New Orleans (nola.gov)
Web. www.loyno.edu/environment

Visit our website. Tropicalnaturalhistory.org 

Facebook @loyola environment program

Twitter @ loyolaENVA

Instagram @loyolaenvironment
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A little background on this event:  New Orleans is a coastal city which is particularly vulnerable to flooding and faces increasing threats of hurricanes, sea level rise, and subsidence, which are all factors that increase the severity of flooding.

​Because on average the city gets 64 inches of rain each year, we have flooding issues that have been solved by pumping excess water from the streets to a canal system that feeds to Lake Pontchartrain using gray infrastructure.


The participants are New Orleans citizens including local high school teachers and students, members of non-profits, industry figures, scientists, engineers, and academics. They have all learned about the formation of southeast Louisiana, the founding of New Orleans, gray and green infrastructure, and creating the best tools for educating the community about sustainably embracing water in our city.

Our Panelists include:


USACE: William Veatch, Hydrologist,
Mastodonte: Arien Hall & Luisa Abballe, Business Owners
Sewerage & Water Board New Orleans: Tyler Antwerp,
Director Thrive Nola: Willie Autman,
Green Works Manager Urban Conservancy: Sam Commagere, Program Manager 

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11/10/2021 0 Comments

Award-winning Film-maker Emma Reid Features on LMNGBR Nature Notes

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Click here or on the screenshot above to view the Zoom with Emma Reid on LMNA Channel
Hosted October 6th, 2021, by Louisiana Master Naturalists of Greater Baton Rouge, this episode of LMNGBR Nature Notes brings us a Zoom presentation by Emma Reid, award-winning film maker of "Finding Common Ground" (Telly Award) and "In The Blind"!

Emma studied Environmental Science at Loyola University, New Orleans, and trained as an intern at the Institute of Environmental Communication (IEC). Emma is the 2019 Louisiana Wildlife Federation Conservation Communicator of The Year and is a member of Louisiana Master Naturalists of Greater New Orleans. She is currently employed by Louisiana Public Broadcasting and serves as a swamp tour guide !

Emma talks about her video production / conservation education work and how she saw change coming through the film-making process. The discussion includes sediment diversion and the jetty break-waters, and of how Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) of indigenous Native Americans and the Shrimpers' local knowledge when coupled with technical quantifiable science resulted in great conservation synergy. Emma also talks about her film "In The Blind" and her learning about the duck hunting and waterfowl conservation connection. She went filming with Audubon ornithologists and Duck's Unlimited and hunters to bridge the understanding between non-hunters and hunters. While the song-birds populations seem to be sadly collapsing, there's better news about waterfowl. They have been doing better, thanks to the current conservation system. Emma also announces plans to be producing regular Naturalist podcasts called The Southern Naturalist! 
 
  • Loyola University New Orleans Institute for Environmental Communication (IEC) https://lucec.loyno.edu/institute-env...
  • Louisiana Wildlife Federation Conservation Awards https://lawildlifefed.org/what-we-do/...
  • LPB In The Blind press release https://www.lpb.org/press-releases/in...
  • In The Blind Trailer https://www.lpb.org/programs/in-the-b...
  • Finding Common Ground https://youtu.be/nFj2vhehgzk
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11/10/2021 0 Comments

Free! Free! We Set Them Free! ULM Launches Freshwater Turtle Hatchlings!

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Click here to view the video on LMNA Channel (Louisiana Master Naturalists Video Repository)

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Northeastern Louisiana is a Freshwater turtle biodiversity hotspot and West Monroe's Lazarre Park offers prime nesting conditions that are becoming exceedingly rare these days along The Ouachita River. Some of the Louisiana Master Naturalists, Park managers and interested members of the public joined Professor John Carr and his students from the ULM Biology Department at West Monroe's beautiful Lazarre Park on September 20th, 2021.

It was hazy and bright, perfect conditions for release of three freshwater turtle species back into their Ouachita river home. The Smooth Softshells (Apalone mutica) and the endemic Ouachita Map Turtles (Graptemys ouachitensis) are species of conservation concern. The Mississippi Map Turtles (Graptemys pseudogeographica kohni) are more widespread but nonetheless suffer from increasing predation and so their conservation is also important.

​Professor Carr raised these hatchlings from eggs that he and his students had formerly collected at Lazarre. Raising the hatchlings in incubators protects them from possible predation by foxes and raccoons. He is going to deliver a report of this project to the authorities and LDWF about this important habitat. For more information about Dr. Carr see 
https://webservices.ulm.edu/facultyac... and https://www.ulm.edu/~carr/

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