San Francisco State University
AC-5: Immersive Experience

SF State's Sierra Nevada Field Campus immerses students in one of the most beautiful and wild regions of the northern Sierra Nevada as they study connections with the natural environment. Its expert and friendly instructors guide students' senses as they explore a dazzling array of plant and animal life. The campus allows students of the environmental sciences get hands on experience. It is also a place where personnel working in the environmental fields can upgrade their knowledge. Students live at the campus in tents during their enrollment, creating an immersive learning experience. Courses cover a range of disciplines and share a focus on conservation and the natural environment. Courses are open to the public. Courses range from a few days to a week and students may enroll in consecutive sessions.

Wildlife Sound Recording Workshop
This week-long workshop is designed for researchers, students, and individuals interested in applying bioacoustic methods to research or contributing to research in fields such as behavioral ecology, taxonomy, and conservation. Acoustic recording is increasingly used to investigate basic and applied questions about animal biology. Digital audio recording technology and computer-based software for analyzing sounds are relatively inexpensive and readily accessible, however few formal resources exist for biologists to learn how to use the equipment and software appropriately.
The workshop provides participants with essential technical skills for the capture of acoustic signals under variety of field conditions and appropriate use of acoustic analysis software relevant to basic research or conservation questions. In addition to covering best practices for recording, participants receive an introduction to the analysis of animal sounds. Through hands-on field instruction each morning participants will master field recording techniques and through afternoon lectures each acquire the conceptual background needed to support acoustic recording and research.

Additional classes and workshops at the campus include Practical Observational Astronomy in the Sierra Nevada, Butterflies and Moths of the Sierra Nevada, Ecology and Conservation of California Bats, Flora of the Northern Sierra Nevada, Fungi of the Sierra Nevada, Insect Biology and Identification, Feminism and Self-Care: Perspectives and Practices, Birds of the Sierra Nevada, Fire, Water, and Conservation in the Northern Sierra Nevada, Flora of the Northern Sierra Nevada, Fly Fishing in the North Yuba Watershed, Geology of the Haskell Peak - Sierra Buttes Area, Northern Sierra Nevada, High-Country Writing Retreat, Ice Age Glaciers of the Lakes Basin, Medicinal and Edible Wild Plants, Monoprinting – Exploring Nature Through Shape and Texture, Natural History of the Sierra Nevada, Night Photography, Pastels and Natural Light, Perfecting Your Presentation: Fly Fishing in the North Yuba Watershed, Play of Light and Shadows: Oil Painting in the Sierra, Reptiles and Amphibians of the Sierra Nevada, Rock, Wood, Water, Sky, Sketching History in the Northern Sierra, The Way of Water in Your Watercolor Nature Journal, Trees & Shrubs of Northern Sierra Nevada, Wildflowers Along the Trail in your Watercolor Nature Journal, Wildlife Sound Recording Workshop, Woodblocks: Design, Carve and Print in the Field.

https://sierra.sfsu.edu/natural-sound-recording-workshop