The National Training Center (NTC) at Fort Irwin, CA, provides the Army with essential and unique training opportunities to improve military readiness. Fort Irwin as part of their land expansion is spreading into critical habitat for the federally and state listed Desert Tortoise (Gopherus agassizii). As part of this expansion process the Army is required to survey and translocate all desert tortoises from these areas, and to conduct detailed scientific studies on the effects of translocation to desert tortoises. Walde Research & Environmental Consulting has been involved in conducting the surveys, translocation, and research since 2006 with assistance from Kiva Biological and Conservation Science Research & Consulting. We have
coordinated as many as 75 individuals involved in the various aspects of this research project, which is the largest project of its kind undertaken on desert tortoise translocation. At one point we were monitoring more than 1,000 desert tortoises across a landscape of hundreds of square miles.

Walde Research & Environmental Consulting has conducted science based surveys at the Marine Corps Logistics Base (MCLB) in Barstow, California since 2006. Our initial work with the Department of the Navy consisted of base line surveys to get a better understanding of the distribution and status of the federally and state listed Desert Tortoise on their property. Leveraging off of  this knowledge, we conducted surveys to compare population densities, size distributions, and health between populations living in steep slopes and typical flat desert as the MCLB is an extremely steep and unusual habitat for Desert Tortoises in the Mojave Desert. More recently, we have been working with MCLB to better understand the effect of season on survey results, as well as providing them with inventory lists of other species present on the base.

The biologists at Walde Research& Environmental Consulting have worked with biologists and engineers from  USACERL/ERDC since 1999. Over the years we have been involved in many different
projects. In Georgia, over three years we assisted in experimentally testing the effects of  military training on the federally  endangered Red-cockaded Woodpecker. We conducted several projects in the California Mojave Desert on the federally vulnerable
Desert Tortoise to assess basic biological data. In addition, we field tested a newly designed automated activity and monitoring radio-telemetry unit,  trouble-shooting and fine  tuning the system. More recently, we participated on a project In Mississippi to assess activity patterns of the federally threatened  Gopher Tortoise. Our long relationship with the CERL lab is based on our expertise in the field and our commitment to hard work and getting the project
done on time and on budget.