Casey's June Beetle Monitoring Project The selected vendor will conduct intensive surveys for Caseys June beetle (Dinacoma caseyi) (CJB) in potential habitat areas where occupancy is suspected or was formerly documented (potential sites occur in Palm Springs, Tahquitz Canyon, Cathedral
credit:
City, Palm Desert, and Indian Wells); survey site determination pending access approval.
Survey methods include appropriate light-trapping (for adult males), and visual surveys for adult females and burrow holes; surveys may require larval identification and collection.
Previous experience with CJB surveys is required.
The vendor must also have the ability to identify CJB adult males, documented experience differentiating CJB adults from co-occurring related species, and experience light-trapping for CJB males.
Surveyors must also have experience surveying for and identifying female CJB on the ground, female emergence holes, and larval life stages.
Required documentation:
agency notification of survey initiation, 24 hour positive survey reports, and a final report within 60 days of survey completion are required.
Methods that employ techniques to estimate female detection probability (e.g., distance sampling) should be incorporated to the extent that current knowledge of the species will allow.
Reports must evaluate survey techniques and recommend high-certainty presence/absence survey methods for endangered species permit terms and conditions.
Approximate survey effort would be two months (probably April and May depending on monitored site activity) and would include surveying at a minimum of 5 locations at least 3 times per week throughout the sampling period (includes reference site monitoring, report writing and study design).