Photo By Sarah Lazo | Dan Cockerham, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Baltimore District, ecologist, searches...... read more read more
Subscribe
Dan Cockerham doesn’t bring much with him when he ventures out into the field; often it’s just a notepad, GPS and bug spray.
His real tools are intangible — his impressive species recall and bird-calling abilities, which he has continued to sharpen since childhood.
It is through these instruments that Cockerham, an ecologist with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Baltimore District, helps determine essential strategies to manage plants and animals at military installations and other unique locations across the Chesapeake Bay region.
“I support our partners in defining multi-disciplined approaches that balance both military and natural resources missions,” said Cockerham.
Department of Defense agencies are required to have some form of an integrated natural resources management plan. Through Baltimore District’s Installation Support Branch, Cockerham performs tailored fieldwork surveys to assist with plan development in Maryland at Aberdeen Proving Ground, Adelphi Laboratory Center, Fort Meade, and Blossom Point Research Facility, as well as at U.S. Army Reserve sites.
“I canvass the area to determine what resources or species are using or living on the installations,” said Cockerham. “I provide a map of where certain species are located and make management recommendations, so installations can work with the native species and not harm them, while still reaching mission goals.”
Fieldwork entails separating the installation into plots, and then standing in one plot for a set amount of time and observing and documenting its sights and sounds before moving onto the next plot. Species like birds or frogs can be identified at a stationary point out of view just by their call and regional dialect, while animals and plants with a smaller radius of movement — or none at all — must be met on foot.
Based on the installation’s needs, Cockerham may help determine wetland boundary lines; and conduct vegetation, avian, bat, herp (reptiles and amphibians) and rare, threatened and endangered species surveys. This information feeds into the project’s wetland buffer designations and management plans for natural resources, invasive species, pests, forests and wildland fires.
“I would be unable to accomplish my tasks without the help of the Army Corps,” said Bridget Butcher, Adelphi conservation specialist. “Since our installations are small, we are only allotted one natural resources position; larger installations have a team of people working on natural resources management. Having the Corps as a key partner allows me to bring in a variety of expertise to help implement our integrated plan that drives our natural resources projects over the course of five years.”
In addition to serving military counterparts, Cockerham has supported other agencies at some pretty exceptional locations.
He spent roughly 20 weeks along the Appalachian Trail System gathering data on hawks, raptors and bats as part of an environmental impact statement to expand the easement for transmission lines at the U.S. National Park Service’s Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area. This mini Grand Canyon-esque site sits on the Delaware River along the border of northeastern Pennsylvania and northwestern New Jersey.
Cockerham and a team also completed survey work on James Island in preparation for an authorized Army Corps ecosystem restoration project that would use dredged material to restore eroding habitat on both James and Barren islands.
“We stayed on the island for a week, counting spawning horseshoe crabs in the early morning at high tide under a full moon, and counting nesting diamondback terrapins in the afternoon. To be able to camp in the middle of the Bay and do this work…it was amazing.”
This line of work, while seemingly idyllic, is not without its challenges.
“You have to deal with the elements,” said Cockerham. “There are ticks, mosquitos, security concerns, and, in some cases, we have to sweep the area for unexploded ordnance prior to conducting the fieldwork. It also seems to be either extremely hot or bitterly cold.”
For Cockerham, however, it’s all worth it.
“I’m helping to ensure these resources can continue to thrive in their natural habitats and not be negatively impacted by development or change. As a little kid, I would run in the woods and fearlessly pick up snakes and go birding with my grandmother. Now, I’m making a difference, and I get paid for it.”
| Date Taken: | 09.12.2018 |
| Date Posted: | 12.13.2018 10:02 |
| Story ID: | 303377 |
| Location: | MD, US |
| Web Views: | 96 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Army ecologist helps agencies strike balance between missions, environment, by Sarah Lazo, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
No keywords found.
LEAVE A COMMENT