Quad and Block Totals: In the month of July, a total of 29 blocks and 7 quads were closed.
PARS project data is collected based on a grid system with the goals of documenting 10 species per block and 25 species per quad.
Member Highlight: We’re proud to announce that the volunteers with the most records blocks surveyed over the course of the month.
User
Record Totals
Block Totals
Kyle Loucks
35
17
David Kramer
33
4
Jim Kempher
33
10
Scott Rando
23
11
Jarren Uplinger
23
14
Stephen Bugaj
21
12
Rich Soltesz
14
8
Ed Patterson
13
7
Dave Hughes
10
5
Nikolaus Simione
9
2
Total Records for the Month: In the month of July, we recorded a total of 305 records. We’re grateful to everyone who took the time to identify and document these species.
Exciting Milestone Achieved: Over 200,000 Records in the PARS Database! We’re thrilled to announce that in the month of June, we reached a significant milestone in our PARS database. We want to give a special shoutout to Brandon Hunsberger, who entered the 200,000th record into the database. Your dedication and contribution have played an integral role in our success.
This achievement reflects the hard work, passion, and collaboration of our entire community. Each record represents a valuable piece of data that contributes to our understanding of biodiversity and aids in conservation efforts. As we celebrate this significant milestone, we extend our sincerest gratitude to all our volunteers and contributors who have played a part in this accomplishment.
Quad and Block Totals: In the month of June, a total of 33 blocks and 8 quads were closed.
PARS project data is collected based on a grid system with the goals of documenting 10 species per block and 25 species per quad.
Member Highlight: We’re proud to announce that the volunteers with the most records blocks surveyed over the course of the month.
User
Record Totals
Block Totals
Nate Nazdrowicz
73
31
Jim Kempher
55
6
Kyle Loucks
38
9
Ed Patterson
31
17
Tom Pluto
31
14
Scott Rando
26
10
Stephen Bugaj
20
8
David Kramer
19
4
Tyler Hake
18
9
Rich Soltesz
18
6
Total Records for the Month: In the month of June, we recorded a total of 526 records. We’re grateful to everyone who took the time to identify and document these species.
Site Updates: Sortable list and grid view options for the Search, Latest Observed, and Latest Entered pages.
Quad and Block Totals: In the month of May, a total of 18 blocks and 2 quad were closed.
PARS project data is collected based on a grid system with the goals of documenting 10 species per block and 25 species per quad.
Member Highlight: We’re proud to announce that the volunteers with the most records blocks surveyed over the course of the month.
User
Record Totals
Block Totals
Kyle Loucks
72
17
Ed Patterson
62
17
Jarren Uplinger
31
12
Tyler Hake
20
9
Scott Rauch
18
3
Jim Kempner
17
4
Scott Rando
16
9
Duane Stafford
15
3
Amanda Bronneck
13
6
Tyler Streets
12
4
Total Records for the Month: In the month of May, we recorded a total of 423 records. We sincerely appreciate everyone who invested their time in identifying and documenting these species. Your dedication is invaluable.
These highlights serve as a source of inspiration and motivation as we continue our essential work together. Thank you for your ongoing contributions. We eagerly anticipate collaborating with you in the upcoming months.
We’re thrilled to share some highlights from our project over the past month. With spring finally here we are starting to see the amount of activity pickup, and we want to recognize and thank everyone who has contributed to our efforts. Here are some of the achievements from the past month:
Site Updates: We’re excited to announce some updates to our homepage that will make it easier than ever to stay up-to-date with our project.
Firstly, we’ve added a new interactive map that shows the percentage of block closures per county. This map will allow volunteers to quickly and easily see which areas are most in need of attention and prioritize their efforts accordingly. We hope that this new feature will help to increase the effectiveness and efficiency of our project.
Secondly, we’ve released a new blockbusting document that provides detailed information on how to effectively work with quad and blocks to focus survey efforts in areas where they are needed.
Finally, we’ve updated our getting started guide to include even more helpful tips and advice for new volunteers. This guide provides step-by-step instructions on how to get involved in our project, to recording data, and submitting it to our database.
Quad and Block Totals: In the month of April, a total of 10 blocks and 1 quad were closed.
PARS project data is collected based on a grid system with the goals of documenting 10 species per block and 25 species per quad.
Member Highlight: We’re proud to announce that the volunteers with the most records blocks surveyed over the course of the month.
User
Record Totals
Block Totals
Nate Nazdrowicz
66
39
Ed Patterson
50
19
Tyler Hake
43
20
Joseph Lutz
19
9
Jarren Uplinger
17
12
Kyle Loucks
15
5
Jim Kempher
14
3
Joseph Franckiewicz
14
2
Scott Rando
13
6
Stephen Bugaj
12
7
Total Records for the Month: In the month of April, we recorded a total of 434 records. We’re grateful to everyone who took the time to identify and document these species.
We hope that these highlights inspire and motivate you as we continue our important work together. Thank you for all that you do, and we look forward to working with you in the coming months.
We are always aiming to make PARS a better user experience, and are often making small changes behind the scenes to improve the website. Some of our recent changes may be more noticeable, and require a brief news post to highlight these changes.
Threatened and Endangered Species (T&E)
To better protect sensitive species we have implemented some changes to T&E species. T&E species are hidden on the front page recent records section, recent observed page, and recent submitted page. When Searching T&E species the date of observation is hidden. When viewing a T&E species, Date and Time of Observation and Date and Time Created are hidden.
Block and Quad Maps
A block or quad that previously had both a species and a subspecies of the same species will now only show and count the subspecies. A block or quad that does not have a subspecies and only a species-level identification will still be counted, until a subspecies for that block or quad is verified. Eastern Ribbonsnakes (comprised of Common and Northern subspecies) will now only count as Ribbonsnakes and no subspecies of Ribbonsnakes will show, but you can still enter the subspecies as an observation.
Short form and Voucher Upload
A new short form option for adding a record can be found on the add a record page. This option will eliminate many fields for a more simplistic form. You can still add more detailed data in the regular reporting form.
Also, a new modern file upload field has been implemented to make multiple file selections and drag and drop files uploads available.
Front Page Recent Records
The front page recent records section will now only include records that have an attached voucher. Records without a voucher are still recorded and show up throughout the database but will not be visible on the front page.
Due to the ongoing threat of the 2019 Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 Pandemic (SARS-CoV-2 or COVID-19), the 2020 PARS Annual Meeting scheduled for April 25th in Bellefonte has been canceled. As with many others around the world we are watching the situation closely with both concern and hope that these uncertain times pass quickly. We plan to reschedule the meeting for the fall of 2020 but this will, of course, depend on what transpires in the coming months. On behalf of our board, staff, and partners, we want to take the opportunity to tell all of you how greatly we appreciate your efforts and ongoing support. We look forward to seeing old friends and new at the annual meetings and it was with heavy hearts that we made this decision. But it was an obvious choice and likely not surprising to most. The last thing we want is to jeopardize the health of PARSers. We hope April 25th can be a day of individual field observations and block-busting around the state in lieu of meeting attendance. If you venture into the field, make sure it is consistent with suggested recommendations regarding shelter-in-place orders and social distancing. Do not risk your health and safety or that of loved ones. Please follow the guidance of the Pennsylvania Department of Health and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention at the following links:
Don’t forget to submit your amphibian and reptile observations to paherpsurvey.org. And remember, even common species like the Eastern Red-backed Salamander and Eastern Gartersnake are important for the PARS project. We look forward to seeing your collective observations from around Pennsylvania. If you can’t venture far afield, perhaps enjoy the daily record submissions vicariously.
As with all trials in life, find comfort in the Persian aphorism, this too shall pass. We look forward to the day when PARSers around Pennsylvania can once again join together en masse to share the passion and joy of field herpetology. Until that day, stay healthy and be safe. And happy herping!
The Mid-Atlantic Center for Herpetology and Conservation in partnership with the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resource’s Wild Resource Conservation Program and the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission, is conducting a Mudpuppy distribution study in Pennsylvania. The Common Mudpuppy is regularly found by anglers, often caught accidentally on fishing hooks or in minnow traps. Anglers and citizen-scientist have a great opportunity to help herpetologists figure out the distribution and status of these species by simply taking a picture of any specimens encountered and emailing a picture, date, time, and location of the observation to . To find out more visit: http://machac.org. You can also download our printable flyer at https://paherpsurvey.org/doc/PARS-Hellbender-and-Mudpuppy-Alert-Flyer.pdf
If you are using Mobile Mapper, please go to your “Services” settings tab, and update the “Configuration URL” to https://paherpsurvey.org/mobile from the original http://paherpsurvey.org/mobile
This will eleminate the Error 3 that some people have been experiencing while trying to Sync Records.
Greetings PARSers! We have rolled out a new and improved version of the Quad and Block Map Search that includes: Color-coded blocks and quads based on species count as well as multiple county search. The URL in the Search Dropdown has been updated to the new map, the old version will be deprecated. Be sure to update your bookmarks. We hope you have a great field season. Happy Herping!
