Interested in helping save newts with the Chileno Valley Newt Brigade?
We think you’ll find the experience both rewarding and fun!
Signup Here to Join the Chileno Valley Newt Brigade
Here are a few things to know about how the group works:
Our patrols run during newt breeding season, November to mid-March.
We work in shifts that begin around dusk, when the newts start moving.
Shifts last for two hours and volunteers are asked to commit to one shift/week.
For safety on the road, we work in pairs. Shifts usually include 3-4 pairs, with each pair covering a different stretch of road, roughly half a mile or so.
Every shift has a captain, who coordinates the activity and turns in the final newt counts and other relevant information.
Before your first time out, we’ll set you up with a short training session to go over the basics, which includes accompanying an experienced volunteer on the road. We’ll also ask you to sign an liability waiver.
Documenting the newts’ activity is an important step towards finding a long-term solution to their plight. So along with getting the newts off the road, we photograph them with our smartphones and later load the photos into a user-friendly app called iNaturalist. It’s helpful if you can download the app before your training. Once you download the app, search under “Projects” for “ 2022-2023 Chileno Valley Newt Brigade Winter” and click Join.
New volunteer trainings are at 4 pm at Chileno Valley Ranch, 5105 Chileno Valley Road, Petaluma CA.
To sign up for the Newt Brigadier training, fill out and submit the form below.
After a successful evening saving newts!
Our fan club.
