July 5, 2004
News release sent to wildlifer newsletters and listservs.

Sandpiper Technology announces 2004 Equipment Grants 

Thirteen university students and one nonprofit researcher received Sandpiper
Technology Equipment Grants for the 2004 field season to conduct wildlife
research. A range of video systems is available in the STI rental/grant
fleet to explore burrows, cavity nests and underwater habitat as well as
conduct time-lapse surveys. The program has been in place since 1997 and
primarily serves students in the U.S. and Canada. 

The STI equipment grants deadline is November 1 for the following
Spring/Summer field season. Review the proposal requirements at
http://sandpipertech.com.


PEEPER VIDEO GOOSENECK PROBES
Two gooseneck probe diameters are available-the Peeper (2.3 inch) and the
Roo (1.0 inch).

Justin S. Barrett, M.S. candidate at Boise State University, "Demographic
study of Southern Idaho ground squirrels and how a 'Peep-A-Roo' video probe
can help."

Thomas Gorman, M.S. candidate at Minnesota State University, "Female
behavior, neonate survival, and natal den site characteristics of river
otter in southeast Minnesota."

Elizabeth Joyce, M.S. candidate at Utah State University, "The role of
parental attendance and habitat heterogeneity in the reproductive success
of swift fox (Vulpes velox) in southeastern Colorado."

Joel N. Strong, M.S. candidate at SUNY, Syracuse, "Seed dispersal and the
ecological implications of harvesting red-footed and yellow-footed
tortoises in Northwestern Brazil."

Guillaume Szor, M.S. candidate at the University of Quebec, "Den site
selection by the arctic fox (Alopex lagopus) in the Canadian arctic."


AQUAPEEP VIDEO PROBE
This underwater color camera is mounted on a 16-foot pole and uses the
head mounted video display.

Meagan Jones, Ph.D. candidate at the Antioch New England Graduate School,
"Sexual selection and the role of female reproductive strategies in the
mating system of the endangered humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae)."


SENTINEL SURVEILLANCE SYSTEMS
The time-lapse VCR records monochrome and color images from the auto-color
camera.

William H. Keeley of the Raptor Research Center used the Sentinel System to
study "The effects of human encroachment on the foraging ecology of the
Ferruginous Hawk (Buteo regalis)."

Sonya LeClair, M.S. candidate at the University of Southern Florida,
"Comparison of hatching failure in a wildland and suburban population of
the Florida scrub-jay (Aphelocoma coerulescens)."

Rebecca McGuire, Ph.D. candidate at the University of Alaska, "Breeding
biology and habitat use by King Eiders at Techekpuk Lake and Kuparuk
Oilfield on the North Slope of Alaska."

Sunny K. Scobell, Ph.D. candidate at the University of Oklahoma,
"Hormonal mediation of female aggression in the sex-role reversed Gulf
pipefish during long-term competitive interactions."

Suann Yang, Ph.D. candidate at Washington State University, "Variation
in plant-frugivore mutualism across a successional mosaic of Mount St.
Helens and consequences for seed dispersal."


TREETOP PEEPERS 
These pole-mounted video systems explore habitat as high as 50 feet.

Hilary A. Cooke, Ph.D. candidate at the University of Alberta, "Cavity
nest webs and keystone excavators of Alberta's boreal forests."

Henry Streby, Ph.D. candidate at Ohio University, "Thinning, burning and
the response of nesting migrants in oak-hickory forests."

Maena C. Voigt, M.S. candidate at the University of Florida, "Post-release
survival of Brazilian free-tail bats (Tadarida brasiliensis)."

Further details on equipment availability and proposal requirements for
the Sandpiper Technologies Equipment Grant Program at:
http://sandpipertech.com

Ann Christensen
Sandpiper Technologies, Inc.
535 W. Yosemite Ave.
Manteca CA  95337

(209) 239-7460
http://sandpipertech.com
Specializing in wildlife research equipment and video surveillance systems.