Storrs, CT – Join mammal expert Dr. Erin Kuprewicz, from the Connecticut State Museum of Natural History, on a guided educational hike and trail cleanup at UConn Storrs to celebrate Earth Day! The community is invited to learn about local Connecticut mammals and how camera traps are used to observe the secret lives of these elusive creatures, all while helping clean an active forest research site.

Dr. Kuprewicz will demonstrate how to set up a camera trap in the field and will also discuss her ongoing research in the massively collaborative camera-trapping project “Snapshot USA”. Snapshot USA was launched in 2019 to survey terrestrial wildlife populations across the United States and make the data collected freely available to everyone. This project involves over 115 collaborators from every state in the USA and has been running every fall for the past four years!

Camera “trapping” is an effective way to passively observe animals without disturbing their normal behavior patterns. Cameras, attached to trees in forested areas, neighborhoods, and rural settings, are triggered when the camera senses an animal’s heat or movement in front of the lens. These photographs document the diversity of animals that share the landscapes with humans. Though squirrels are most commonly seen by camera traps in Connecticut, other animals like deer, bobcats, coyotes, and even jumping mice, are captured as well.

Program participants will park and meet at UConn’s W-Lot off of Rte 195 across from the big red Jacobson Barn to sign in before we walk to the trailhead together. Parking is available in Commuter Lot W ONLY (please do not park in resident spots!) Sign-in begins at 9:45AM. Hike is partially off trail, going through some areas of dense vegetation. Cleanup supplies (bags, gloves, and sanitizer) will be provided, but appropriate clothing and protective gear (sun/rain/mud) is required! Event will be held rain or shine!

The cleanup portion of this event is being held in collaboration with the Office of Sustainability’s EcoCaptains as part of UConn’s Spring Weekend program. The goal of the Earth Day Cleanup is to clean as much of campus as possible, and the CSMNH team will be covering the area of campus around New Storrs Cemetery, Towers Dorms, and the Husky Village. We encourage any UConn student participants to head to Fairfield Way after the event to continue the cleanup at the campus center, which will continue until 2pm.

This campus cleanup is sponsored in part by The Last Green Valley’s Cleanup and Greenup Program. Results of the campus-wide cleanup will be shared to social media and the CSMNH website after the event.

*** This event is FREE and open to the public, but registration is requested! ***

Visit https://csmnh.uconn.edu/programs/ for additional details, parking information, and to register. 

If you require an accommodation to participate in this event, please contact the CSMNH at 860-486-4460 or [email protected] by April 17, 2023.

Recommended for participants aged 8 and up; those 16 and under must be accompanied by a chaperone.

The Connecticut State Museum of Natural History and the Office of Sustainability are units of the Institute of the Environment at the University of Connecticut.