The Lincoln National Forest is home to an amazing array of endemic species, and we have had the opportunity to see many of them in their natural habitat. In fact, Penstemon neomexicanus is our top priority species as it serves as the main nectar source for the endemic/endangered Sacramento Mountain Checkerspot Butterfly. Other endemic species we have encountered include the Sacramento Mountain Thistle (Cirsium vinaceum) which I have lovingly dubbed “The Goth Thistle” due to its dark colors and nodding heads, as well as a recently discovered species of geranium which was thought to have possibly disappeared but one of our crew members spotted it on one of the craziest hikes I’ve ever been on. We also participated in prickly poppy surveys, another plant endemic to the area (just picture a thistle with the flowers of a poppy).

Being in an area so full of rare species and getting to learn about and support them feels very special, and I am excited for each new opportunity. But at the same time, it is often a sad reality that the majority of these rare, endemic species are on the brink of extinction. Every time we conduct a survey we hear that there are lower numbers each year despite increasing efforts to protect and foster their growth. The only thing we can do is try our best now to support what we have, but it can sometimes be disheartening. I try to appreciate the fact that I get to experience these species on a regular basis, and see individuals as happy and heathy in environments we are trying so hard to protect and restore. Experiencing the conditions that these species have already lived through innumerable times myself, such as fire and extreme flooding for the area, and then happening upon vigorous populations (even if small) gives me hope that these amazing species can live on.

Selfishly, more than anything, being part of these restoration efforts makes me feel better about my own place in the world. It’s easy to get knocked down by all the bad news we hear every day and sometimes buying the eco-friendly option or recycling doesn’t feel like enough. But knowing that even if it is small, the work  I get to do with my time in Lincoln is in fact, making a difference. Having a chance to be part of the conservation efforts I love to hear about and support has dramatically changed my outlook on the future.

After the hiccups, we’ve finally been able to dedicate the majority of our time to botany! I am very familiar with many species and know most of my plant friends by their common names, but we always want to be sure (and we need practice) so we key most species of interest. This has been a challenge. Luckily, the botanist in our forest gave us a handy dandy illustrated botany glossary, so our current method is for one person to read the key as the other rapidly looks up every other word. I don’t think my vocabulary has grown this fast since my wee years of learning how to speak from scratch. To make matters more childlike, I have only read the majority of the words I have to now say out loud…to other people. This has been an extremely entertaining and embarrassing trend. I have to revert back to sounding out each syllable -mostly of the scientific names- and am promptly corrected upon getting the word out. But we’re learning. 

I wasn’t aware botany meant learning a whole new language but I am glad it is such a entertaining one. So far my favorite (and least favorite) word that has in fact entered my daily vocabulary is “peduncle”. It sounds nearly Dr. Suessian and it made me laugh out loud the first time I encountered it, but now I am to the point I can use it with a straight face (though it is the butt of many jokes amidst the wildlife crew that hears us using it). The reason it is simultaneously my favorite and least favorite is the definition. The peduncle is the stem/stalk of a single flower, fruit or inflorescence, and that’s fine. But here’s the thing: there is like ten other words for that same thing. That might be my main hurdle with learning the botanist babble, there are so many words that to my relatively untrained eye, mean the exact same thing. I will note though, that the more we key and the more we look, I am starting to be able to understand the differences that appear between the same “parts” of plants across varying species, as well as just how many parts make up a single plant, hence why in one case a stem is referred to as a pedicel and in another it is a peduncle.

Everything that has followed the training in Chicago has been a wild ride with some big ups and downs, it wasn’t all bad but it was definitely not how I pictured my first month of fieldwork (which I suppose is fitting for the job).
My first week in the Lincoln NF was amazing! The whole team consists of silly gooses and sweethearts which made acclimating to the new area much easier than I had anticipated. We spent most of the week tagging along with the wildlife crew on Mexican Spotted Owl and various Hawk surveys to get a better feel for the region and the types of terrain we’d be facing this season. We apparently got to experience a New Mexico Birder’s fantasy when we spotted a mating pair of Zone Tail Hawks and a Black Hawk within just a few hours of each other, and I had seen many pictures of the Mexican Spotted Owl, but it is not the same and getting stared at by one in real life.

I felt ready for the second week of work, we had found a good handful of plants we wanted to assess for collection and were ready to do some more in-depth scouting, but Monday didn’t quite turn out that way. We started the day like normal, and were invited to join on a night owl survey (which involved hiking with mice and getting a much closer look at the owls) so of course we were interested. This meant we took a good break after lunch to catch up on rest and were to return to the office at 4pm to commence the evening survey. We had heard of a small 5-acre fire starting that morning but didn’t think much of it as we heard no updates. I went to take a nap and rest up for the night’s adventures, but as soon as I lay down, a strong gust of wind blew my curtains open. This wind was immediately followed by sirens and helicopters.
I left my room to find the rest of my housemates already gathered in the living room, I asked if the sirens were for the fire and all they said was “look outside”.

It looked apocalyptic. We had a clear view from our front yard, and it appeared as if it were only miles from the house. We were on “SET” status, and soon we were on “GO”. We packed up all our belongings in less than an hour and we left. We were one of the first areas to be evacuated. I didn’t know what was going to happen but seeing the the mushroom cloud from 100 miles away was not the greatest comfort. We spent the rest of the week working from home and checking the wildfire apps every 30 minutes to see it reach closer and closer to town. It was devastating. Nearly all the areas we had just visited in our first week were within the red lines, and within the week, over 1000 structures in the area were lost. I honestly wasn’t sure if I was going to have a job after this, or if I would be moved to an entirely new place. But Ruidoso and the Lincoln team are a tough bunch.
By the next week, we were sent to the Guadalupe Ranger District which is about an hour from Carlsbad NM. We ended up here for a week and a half surrounded by rocks, rattlers and ocotillos that happened to be green and in bloom (which I’d never thought I’d see). This was a whole new adventure, we learned about new desert plants and had the opportunity to explore a cave not open to the public, as well as experience an oasis in the middle of the Chihuahuan desert that I would have thought was folklore if I hadn’t seen it myself. It was an amazing opportunity granted by the most unfortunate of circumstances.
We get to return to the Smokey Bear office this coming week, and this whole experience has made me unbelievably grateful for what I have and those around me. I am part of an amazing team and could not have asked for a better group to work with. I am more aware than ever of the importance of the work we are here to do and am ready to help the community I am so newly a part of in any way I can.