Remote Sensing

I am processing cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum) data at full force now!! Hundreds of aerial images have been processed, and I am at the point where I can calculate percent cover and canopy densities of cheatgrass in the Powder River Basin. I have clipped the soil layer of the Powder River Basin and overlaid the cheatgrass signature raster layer in order to start my next processing step. My goal was to see if certain soils contain larger cheatgrass densities than others. This information would be used for future cheatgrass treatment.  There were some errors with the computer script that needed to be fixed. When the statistics tool encountered an area with no cheatgrass signatures, the processing stopped completely and showed an error message. No worries, this issue should be resolved soon.  Another problem involved the Citrix server. Lately, the server was really slow, so instead of processing each tile at five minutes, it took around forty five minutes to process a tile. (UGH!!!) During the processing time, I have been studying all the plants in our district, learning about birds, and have been doing side missions for the BLM staff. I have been learning more about the remote sensing program known as ENVI. This very powerful program has been very interesting to work with. There have been some difficulties working with this software, but I am learning!!

Some of my favorite screenshots of the aerial photographs I am processing!

This is the final product of all the cheatgrass processing! The lime green represents 0-15% cheatgrass cover. Yellow represents 16-25% cheatgrass cover. Orange represents 26-50% cheatgrass cover. Red represents 51-100% cheatgrass cover. The dark green tiles have to be processed. There is still a lot of work to do, so what you see above is a work in progress.

This is my desk area in case you were wondering.

Sage Grouse and Sharp Tailed Grouse!!
Greater sage grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus) monitoring was in full swing at the Buffalo Field Office! I have been to a few more lek sites that have been extremely active! I went with a few Buffalo BLM Wildlife Biologists to some of the more active lek sites. (Before I went to some lek sites that have not been active or had at least fifteen males.) Recently, I went to a lek site that had around forty five displaying males!!! We pulled up right near them and I was able to zoom in and take pictures and video. These male grouse were really active and displayed their hearts out for the surrounding females! Some males were battling each other by doing a side dance and pushing against each other. Other males were on the sidelines and were resting. One male thought it was a good idea to display himself on a hill a quarter of a mile away from the rest of the males (No other males were in the area). The females were sitting around a few choice males. One single female was interested in a group of younger males. The younger males were trying so hard to impress her, but I thought she was just there to encourage them….or silently judge them.

((Please click the link below for a video!!!))
Sage grouse found to the east of Buffalo, Wyoming!

Sage grouse!!!!

Another grouse species we were monitoring were the sharp tailed grouse (Tympanuchus phasianellus) aka the Planes of the Sagebrush Community. You may be wondering why I called them planes? Well, when they were displaying themselves for the females, they looked like airplanes. I think it was hilarious how five males would get low to the ground, spread their wings and stomp their feet all at the same time….then they cease their dancing all at the same time. I think this was the funniest thing ever!! The sharp tailed lek we did visit had a Northern harrier (Circus cyaneus) standing in the middle of the lek! O_O She was sitting on sagebrush (A. tridentata subsp. Wyomingensis) as five sharp tailed grouse were displaying twenty feet away. I think the grouse were more interested in attracting the females than being eaten. When the harrier did fly, the grouse hid for cover until the harrier landed again in the same stop. The female sharp tailed grouse were smart and were watching the males from the cover of sagebrush.

When monitoring grouse, I made note of all the other species of birds I have seen out in the sagebrush community. I really wanted to see a mountain plover (Charadrius montanus), but the muddy roads and wet weather made the plover species elusive. The western meadowlark (Sturnella neglecta), golden eagles (Aquila chrysaetos), northern harrier and short eared owls (Asio flammeus) have been actively flying around. The meadowlarks were all over the place!!  I am still waiting for the sparrows to come into the area. I really want to see a sagebrush sparrow (Artemisiospiza nevadensis) in our district. Vesper (Pooecetes gramineus), grasshopper (Ammodramus savannarum), Brewer’s (Spizella breweri), and savannah sparrow (Passerculus sandwichensis) species were on my “To See” list this year.  There were a variety of duck and wetland species in our area. I loved to watch the common goldeneyes (Bucephala clangula), northern shoveler (Anas clypeata), gadwalls (Anas strepera), green winged teals (Anas crecca), mallards (Anas platyrhynchos), American coots (Fulica americana), and Canada Geese (Branta canadensis). I was fortunate to watch a Common Loon (Gavia immer) for awhile!!  I am waiting for the oriole (Icteridae) and warbler (Parulidae) species to come into the area in May. I will be traveling to Devil’s Tower to look for rare bird species such as red crossbills (Loxia curvirostra), Townsend’s solitaire (Myadestes townsendi), and some flycatchers (Tyrannidae) soon. Hopefully, I will get the chance to travel to the Grand Tetons, Jackson Hole, and Yellowstone to look for Trumpeter Swans (Cygnus buccinators), Pine Grosbeaks (Pinicola enucleator), rosy finches (Leucosticte), Barrow’s goldeneye (Bucephala islandica), and other rare birds.

Interesting birds in the Buffalo, Wyoming area. Barrow’s goldeneye migrating through or the bird took a wrong turn? Western meadlowlark are everywhere! Sandhill cranes (Grus canadensis) are active in the fields. The secretive sora rail (Porzana carolina) is walking among the wetland grasses.

Fantastic Voyage: Mosier Gulch and Thermopolis
Beyond bird counts and the remote sensing projects I was working on these past few weeks, I was able to go with the recreation planner for our office to a place called Mosier Gulch! This area was considered a BLM recreation picnic area located at the edge of the Bighorn Mountains. The day was pretty hazy due to the smoke coming from the fires in Canada, but we had fun! There were ponderosa pines (Pinus ponderosa) everywhere and a large stream to go fishing in! I helped with cleanup of the site and made sure every cigarette butt was collected. (Those things never seem to decompose!) Also, we had to get rid of man-made fire places. Even though there was a large sign that said, “NO FIREPLACES”, there were still fires being built. We went to this area at the right time! Many spring flowers were blooming!!! Star lilies (Leucocrinum montanum), western spring beauties (Claytonia lanceolata), cutleaf pasqueflowers (Pulsatilla patens), shooting stars (Dodecatheon pulchellum), biscuitroot (Cymopterus spp.), and buttercup (Ranunculus spp.) species were prevalent! In the tree canopy, there were many black capped chickadees (Poecile atricapillus) and ruby crowned kinglets (Regulus calendula) chirping and feeding in insects. Common magpies (Pica pica), ravens (Corvus corax), crows (Corvus brachyrhynchos), and yellow-rumped warblers (Setophaga coronata) were very active in the area as well!

Wildflowers of Mosier Gulch!! Pasqueflower, star lilies, buttercup spp., and western spring beauties!!

After helping the recreation planner clean up all of the sites in Mosier Gulch, I decided to take a half day and travel with my parents to Thermopolis for a small break! My parents were in town and we wanted to look at various sites around central Wyoming! We traveled to different dinosaur museums in Worland and Thermopolis and viewed a variety of many unique and bizarre fossils from the Cambrian to the Pleistocene. We also celebrated my birthday as well. <_<;; On Friday in Thermopolis,  I was able to go fishing and caught a rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) named Jasper! (I released the fish back into the wild!) Thermopolis was one of my favorite towns to visit, because they had many hot springs and very good rock hounding sites! You could find a variety of dinosaur and leaf fossils all over the Bighorn Basin! I enjoyed this very small vacation! ^_^

I visited museums in Thermopolis and Worland to look at various dinosaur displays and statues.

A rainbow trout named Jasper!!

Moment of Zen

Hot Springs in Thermopolis!

The last month has brought with it a wide variety of projects, all sharing the common goal of raising short-nose and lost river suckers, two species of fish native to the Klamath basin and listed as endangered. Here’s the overview of our main projects:

A Crisafulli pump being used to drain the pond.

As the water level lowered we used seine nets to catch fish. We caught suckers, which we put in buckets with bubblers to relocate, and also sacramento perch and fat head minnows, which we released. Once the water levels got low enough we waded through the muck to catch the remaining suckers with small dip nets.

Covered in mud after catching suckers.

By the end of the day we caught between 50 and 60 suckers ranging in size from around 3 to 14 inches. These fish were transported to another facility where they will be raised and kept as part of a refugial population.

The pond with only a little water left in the main channel.

Larval release:

A few weeks ago a biologist from the Coleman fish hatchery in California came to the Klamath basin and collected eggs and milt from lost river suckers. Around 1087 larva hatched from these eggs and were held for about a week at the fish hatchery before we picked them up and released them into a small pond on the Lower Klamath National Wildlife Refuge. We will raise these fish over the summer to add to the refugial population of lost river suckers.

Larval lost river suckers in a bag filled with water and oxygen for transport.

The small pond where we released the 1087 larval lost river suckers.

Dock in Upper Klamath Lake:

As another element of our fish rearing efforts we will be collecting larval suckers from a river that flows into Upper Klamath Lake and raising them in net pens in the lake. Over the past few weeks we have assembled plastic blocks into a large dock with four bays where we will hang nets and raise fish. Earlier this week we dragged the dock into the lake and anchored it in an area known to have good water quality. In the next few weeks we will collect larval fish and release them in these nets.

Dragging the dock out into Upper Klamath Lake.

The dock anchored in Upper Klamath Lake.

The Fairbanks BLM office is filled with excitement with people gearing up for projects in the field. For the past few months, I’ve been training to drive ATVs, ride in helicopters, participated in wilderness CPR, and will do a bear and wildlife safety all in great effort to appropriately prepare myself. Meanwhile outside the office spring has come!

Signs of spring in Fairbanks, AK.

Hi everybody!

I am interning at the BLM office out of Richfield, Utah. I am constantly amazed by the geological formations and the wildlife of this state, everyday I learn or see something new. Just in the past 4 weeks in the field I have seen so much wildlife in action: a golden eagle with a rabbit hanging from its feet, I have driven next to galloping pronghorn antelope, viewed elk from afar, caught horned lizards, avoided catching collared lizards and so much more. It is one adventure after another in this seemingly endless country.

I am pleased to say that the internship so far has consisted of a lot of field work. For the past few weeks we have been monitoring rare Sclerocactus and Pediocactus species in the hopes of understanding the effects of cattle grazing on their populations. One of the reasons why I enjoy getting out into the field is because I can simultaneously learn the local flora. It is very interesting to me, coming from the temperate rain forest of Northern California where everything is trying to compete for the sun, everything out here is trying to get protection from the sun. Plants in the Utah desert are hairier, dwarfed, and have at least some succulence. It’s fascinating what plants will do to thrive in harsh conditions.

There have been a lot of “firsts” for me in my personal life: first time living outside of California, first time moving to a new place by myself (without the help of family/friends), and first time living out of a tent. When I first arrived in Utah I decided to do a work trade (chores in return for free camping) at this funky little place called Mystic Hot Springs in Monroe, Utah. The good thing about camping here is that after work I got to soak in these beautiful hot springs but the down side was the weather; below freezing temperatures, rain and gusty winds. I lasted 3 weeks before I caved in and got an apartment but it was an experience I will never forget.

I am looking forward to all of the things I will see in the following weeks.

Until next time,

Rayna

Richfiled, Utah BLM

I have been working at the Shoshone Field Office with the Bureau of Land Management in Shoshone, Idaho for two weeks now and it has been a good time. A lot of my time so far has been spent completing trainings on various topics, and with a few more to go we will be ready to go into the field and get started on our project. I will be working on completing Habitat Assessment Frameworks for the suitability of sage grouse on two BLM allotments, Clover Creek and Davis Mountain. These allotments allow cattle and sheep to be grazed on them regularly, and our project will determine if the grazing has affected the allotments’ suitability for sage grouse habitat.

Technical talk aside, I’m excited to make the most out of living in Idaho. There are so many opportunities to get outside and explore that it’s almost overwhelming. I was able to go out and familiarize myself with the allotments I’ll be working in and it was amazing to see so much diversity in a compact space. The allotments span from low level pastures that extend up into high hills, with some pretty cool canyons in the middle. I learned that they are shaped this way because it is how ranchers would historically move their herds as the seasons progressed; following the green plants. I am excited to get to work and learn all about the landscape, especially the plants.

A view of the Bennett Hills

Lewisia sp. One of many new-to-me plants

Just a cow in front of some sagebrush

I came from Steamboat Springs, CO to Klamath Falls, OR to work with the USFWS and started in mid April. I came about 3 weeks later than the other two CLM interns I am working with, so when I got here things were in full swing and I did my best to understand everything that was going on. We are working with the Endangered Species crew and have been very involved in trying to capture the endangered Short-nose Sucker and Lost River Sucker adults in order to collect their eggs and sperm in order to spawn them. This has all been a very different and exiting experience for me being that I have done hardly any fisheries work, and I am gaining so much new knowledge in so many different ways.

My first week we worked the BOR in Lake Ewauna here in town.  We were using trammel nets to catch fish, and collected about 6 suckers, but were not able to make any of them become “ripe” using an experimental human growth hormone. This was exiting because it was my first experience on a boat here and I have only been on a boat about twice in my life! Later in the week I also got to experience using a dry suit and snorkeling in the river with my boss in order to see if we could see any suckers and catch them, however the turbidity levels of the water made seeing very difficult and we couldn’t get or see any fish.

Me and my boss following snorkeling

Another interesting experience the first week was meeting up with some fisheries biologists from the USGS who had collected Lost River suckers and were pit-tagging them. We were able to use 2 of their fish to collect eggs and sperm from to send down to a laboratory in Roswell, NM. It is very weird collecting these things from the fish, they are very big and you have to make sure you hold them tight, then you point their tail end downwards and squeeze their lower belly and everything just pours out! We sent them out that day and heard back the next week that 90% of the eggs we got had been fertilized, which is really good.

Lost River Sucker

My second week was interesting because we were focusing mainly on a project to get suckers out of a pond in the Lower Klamath Refuge where they had been raising them. This involved draining the pond and using Seine Nets to get all of the fish out of the major canal and outlying areas. This turned into a bit of a scramble because when the canal was getting low many fish began surfacing for air because the dissolved oxygen levels had become so low. We raced in the canal and used little nets to capture suckers as they were surfacing. The hardest thing about all of this was managing to walk in the mud where the pond had been. In some areas it was almost 3 feet deep and I got stuck at one point because the mud was acting like quicksand and the more I tried to get out the deeper I kept going, luckily we had a large crew with us and one of our guys helped me out- whew! It was a bit scary. In the end we got over 65 suckers out and they have a different home now.

SO MUCH MUD!

Yesterday we went to Redding, CA to pick up some baby suckers from a hatchery, they are going to be raised in a smaller pond which is next to the one we drained. I had never seen baby fish before and wow are they small!

Tiny baby suckers at the hatchery

This last week has mostly been focused on putting together net pens where we will be raising other larvae. This has been good, hard work.  The net pens are made out of these buoyant blocks you can make boat docks from, they just take a bit of effort to actually assemble.  But we finished and now just need to get it taken out to where it will be all summer.

That’s all I have for now, it has been good getting into everything these last few weeks and I am pretty exited for what will come next!

Klamath Falls Field Office- USFWS, Klamath Falls, OR.

Once upon a Central Oregon time,
In a district whose name starts with a Prine.
Two little botanists went out in the field,
Eager to see what the day might yet yield.

They came to a hill so steep and so high,
The top of it almost seemed to touch sky.
But they hoped there was something growing up there,
So they shouldered their gear with nary a care.

The climb it was hot, rocky and steep,
At times it seemed that the outlook was bleak.
But as they came over the line of the ridge,
The sight that they saw caused their jaws to unhinge.

Lupin!

Lupin!

Lupin for days,
Lupin fading into the spring haze.

Lupin and paintbrush,

Lupin and phlox,

Growing above all these honkin big rocks.

They collected their vouchers then headed down,
Lighthearted and gleeful they drove back to town.