5 CWMP 2013-2014 Winter Field Season Report
conditions. The project significantly updated its field data collection methods,
switching from handheld computers running on a windows platform using Cybertracker
Software (cybertracker.org) to an online form constructed through Google Drive and
accessed by volunteers using smart phones in the field.
The new transect, SnoPass, was introduced for several reasons. The Silver Fir/Hyak
transect was originally designed to act as an off-highway control as well as to monitor
wildlife activity in a patch of forest which the adjacent ski area planned to develop. The
SnoPass transect runs just outside the construction zone along I-90. With the addition
of this transect, the project is now monitoring a transect influenced by the highway as
well as a section of road that will receive no modifications. The north leg of this transect
is characterized by late successional forest (older forest maturing toward old-growth
conditions) and includes a trailhead which receives moderate use by backcountry skiers
and snowshoers during the winter. The south leg of the transect runs through a small
patch of forest completely surrounded by development bounded by the highway on-
ramp on one side and a large open lot on the other.
Observer reliability
To analyze observer reliability, three experts (Brian McConnell, David Moskowitz, and
Marcus Reynerson: each a certified Track and Sign Specialist through Cybertracker
Conservation, www.trackercertification.com) reviewed track photographs taken in the
field by team leaders. The first recorded field observation on each leg of a transect was
photographed and documented by the team leader and submitted to the project
manager via email. The field protocol was amended to add written field observations to
the photos submitted by team leaders in order to help reviewers analyze the sample
tracks submitted. This supplemental information reduced the number of tracks deemed
"unidentifiable" by reviewers. Reviewers documented a single verified error in the data
sample from this year, the first error found in three years of testing observer reliability
on the project.
Remote cameras
During the 2013-2014 winter monitoring season, twelve camera sites were installed and
maintained. All twelve sites were within the Cascade Mountains in Washington. Of
these sites, four were a continuation of locations monitored throughout the 2013
spring-fall camera monitoring season. Within the Cascades, we have further broken the
study area into three distinct regions:
1. Central Cascades: Between I-90 and US 2
2. I-90 Corridor: Between Hyak and Easton along I-90
