Welcome to the new blog of the Bruce Museum’s Science Department. Here we will offer visitors an inside glimpse behind the scenes of exhibits, projects, and individual interests. We hope you enjoy the stories and look forward to creating a dialog with our followers.

I suppose I should introduce myself, my name is Tim Walsh, and my position is Citizen Science Coordinator. I have a Master’s degree in Museum Studies, an Associate of Science degree in Zoo Animal Technology, and have worked in zoos, public aquaria, and museums for twenty-two years. I have worn a number of ‘hats’ during this time; but I mostly identify myself as a conservation biologist. My specialty is turtles and I am a member of the IUCN/SSC Tortoise and Freshwater Turtle Specialist Group. I also have great interest in reconnecting children and adults alike with nature. In my spare time, I am avid outdoorsman, accomplished photographer, and book collector.

Having a bit of fun at the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum, Tucson, AZ. Can you hear me now?

Being the Citizen Science Coordinator, it is my job in creating and managing research projects which enable the general public to become involved. The Bruce Museum’s first such project is Cat Tracker. This project is in partnership with the North Carolina Museum of Natural Science and the North Carolina State University. Researchers from these two institutions created the project and we are their northern-most outpost. This project revolves around monitoring outdoor, domestic cats’ movements via GPS tracking. Our project allows anyone with an outdoor cat in Fairfield, CT and Westchester, NY counties to borrow a harness and GPS unit and assist in tracking their cat for a ten day period. After the harness and GPS unit is returned, I will provide the owner with a map showing where your cat roamed. Many people are quite surprised at where and how far their feline friends travel. Our research partners will be comparing our data collected with that of Long Island data. Long Island is one of the largest areas of the United States that is coyote-free. Researchers will be looking at whether cat ranges are constricted in the absence of coyotes, which are known predators of feral and domestic cats. You can read about the project in a recent news article from the Greenwich Time newspaper.

If you wish to participate in this project please contact me either by phone, 203.413.6767 or email, twalsh@brucemuseum.org.

Thank you for stopping by our little space on the web and check back frequently to learn more about our exciting projects.

Tim