Hot Springs National Park is unique in the National Park system, with its thermal springs and long history, and HSV Audubon is pleased to welcome Dr. Chace Holzheuser, natural resource program manager at the park, for his talk, “Dinosaurs, Dragons, and Jacuzzis: a Natural History of Hot Springs National Park.”

Holzheuser will discuss the basic natural processes of the park, with special emphasis on what makes Hot Springs National Park unique – namely, the thermal waters and how they function, as well as potential threats to the springs, and the nature of an “urban” park.

He will also discuss current and upcoming programs, including the annual Christmas Bird Count, and outline some of the ideas for potential projects and how volunteers will make them possible.

Coronado Center auditorium on October 12 at 10 a.m.

THE SPEAKER

Dr. Chace Holzheuser is the Natural Resource Program Manager at Hot Springs National Park. Chace received his Ph.D. in ecology and evolutionary biology from Florida State University in 2021, a B.S. in wildlife and fisheries sciences from Texas A&M University in 2015, and an A.A. in Spanish language and Latin American culture from the Defense Language Institute, Monterey, California, in 2014.

After serving 10 years in the United States Army as a civil affairs specialist, his interest in conservation drove him to pursue a career with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, and later with the National Park Service.

He also conducts independent research in his free time, typically concerning herpetofauna declines and endangered species recovery. He has conducted research in Texas, Panama, Costa Rica, Ecuador, and Florida, ranging from natural history investigations on high-altitude frogs to amphibian pathogens and population genomics in the coastal plains of Florida.