RS News:SANTA FE ― Four students at three Northern New Mexico schools won cash awards for excellence in researching and writing a report on wildlife species that are threatened or endangered, and are listed as Species of Greatest Conservation Need in New Mexico.
Students at Peñasco High School, El Dorado Community School, and Santa Fe Indian School did field research and extended environmental monitoring on the Galisteo, Pecos, Santa Barbara, and Santa Fe Rivers, using wildlife cameras and aerial drones among other riparian assessment methods. The winners, Natasha Sanchez, Charlotte Carter, Jolene Archuleta, and David Lucero, researched and wrote about, respectively, the Mexican Grey Wolf, Jemez Mountain Salamander, Mexican Spotted Owl, and the Gila Trout.
River Source, a Santa Fe-based environmental education and watershed restoration organization, led the program with volunteer and financial support from the Truchas Chapter of Trout Unlimited and the Share with Wildlife program of the New Mexico Department of Game and Fish. River Source awarded a total of $350 to the four student winners.
Rich Schrader, River Source’s director, stated: “We’re proud of the students who wrote up reports and connected to the wildlife habitat in their local watersheds.
When more students find the links between the health of our rivers and the health of the living things supported by them, new generations of riparian stewards are created.”
River Source supports people living as good stewards of their watersheds by providing watershed science and policy education, planning, monitoring, ecological restoration and strategies for adapting to climate change.
Find out more about our projects and initiatives at www.riversource.net.
