One of the best and worst parts to starting a new project is just that, it’s new. You really never know what to expect, which the creative and adventurous part of me loves but the overly organized part of me cringes at. I’ve now been with the Fish and Wildlife Services office in Klamath Falls, Oregon for three weeks. I’m working on a propagation project for the threatened shortnose sucker, Chasmistes brevirostris. Which would be great, except we can’t seem to find any! We’ve been spending quite a bit of time out in the field just trying to track down individuals who are ready to spawn. I’ve also been working on building floating docks and putting together other equipment which are going to be used to keep the fish alive once we catch them and put them in pens. These steps haven’t come without their own issues of course. The docks don’t seem to be able to handle the depth of water which we want to use them in, and some of the power tools I have at my disposal haven’t been used in a few years, and don’t seem to have any intention of coming out of their retirement! So improvisation and creative problem solving has been coming in handy, along with a few trips to the hardware stores.
Future site of propagation pens.
Despite this, or more likely because of it, I’m having a great time and learning a lot. Not only am I putting my field work and research skills to use, but it’s also great to see that people who have been working in this field for decades don’t have all the answers and have to spend quite a bit of time trouble-shooting. Plus, I am learning how to collect fish using seine nets and cast nets, tag fish and use a tag reader to keep track of them, water quality monitoring equipment, and various other tools of the trade. I’m also learning a lot about the history of the area as well as the native (and invasive) species of fish, birds, plants, and wildlife.
Learning to throw a cast net.
Finally, I’ve started working on a project involving morphogeometrics. In short, we’re trying to look at the shape and structure of different species of lake suckers and, using a computer image analysis program, determine if there are defining shape and structure features which can be used to identify different species.
Overall, it has been a great first few weeks. I am really enjoying all this job has to offer; challenges and victories included, and I’m really looking forward to what else is in store this season!
Klamath Falls, Fish and Wildlife