For Immediate Release

Contact:  John Heusinkveld, Assistant Director
Treehaven - UW Stevens Point, College of Natural Resources
Phone:  (715) 346-2473
Email:  jheusink@uwsp.edu

November 18, 2013

As winter begins to settle into the Northwoods, Treehaven is offering December programs that will assist trackers in understanding animal behavior and ecology.

Dr. James Halfpenny PH.D. is president of A Naturalist's World, an educational adventure company, and a former research associate at the Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research at the University of Colorado.   Dr. Halfpenny has served as director of the Mountain Research Station, and has taught tracking since 1967.  In addition to numerous popular and scientific articles, he is also the author of A Field Guide to Mammal Tracking in North America and Winter: An Ecological Handbook.

Jim specializes in finding signs of cougars, lynx, bears, wolves, wolverine and other carnivores.  He trains professionals on a world-wide basis, and will share his personal experience and valuable tracking skills at Treehaven on December 14th and December 15th.

Wildlife Tracking with Dr. James Halfpenny will be held at Treehaven on December 14th and December 15th.  This two-day workshop will cover track and sign identification, understanding footprints, and interpreting gait with an emphasis on reading trails to understand animal behavior and ecology.

On Sunday, December 15th, Dave MacFarland of the Wisconsin DNR will teach all volunteer tracking protocols in the Wisconsin Tracking Certification Workshop in alternating sessions with Dr. Halfpenny's workshop.  This workshop serves as one of the two required training classes for anyone interested in becoming a Certified DNR Volunteer Tracker.  The second training class will be offered at Treehaven in 2014.

For those already certified, Dave MacFarland's workshop will be offered as a "brush up" certification.  Volunteers already certified are welcome.

The registration deadline for the Wildlife Tracking with Dr. James Halfpenny is Friday, December 6th.  For more information, or to register, visit Treehaven's website at www.uwsp.edu/treehaven, or call (715) 453-4106.