Hello,
I haven’t written here for a while, really sorry for the late post, but the more time you spend as a CLM Intern the more experience and original data you gather as a source for your stories. Hence, of course now I definitely have lots of information to share.
I can’t believe it’s already August here in Carson City. On one side there are lower temperatures, a little bit of rain, much more pleasant weather, however we realize that this amazing time is slowly moving towards its end. A few weeks ago I hit my midpoint with CLM when I tried to rethink and sum up a little what I’ve done/learned so far and what still needs to be improved and accomplished. I probably must say that this sort of thinking is very useful because it takes you outside your daily work and routine, reveals things which could be easily forgotten or not noticed at all, but are crucial at the same time.
Outside of that, even though we’ve familiarized ourselves with our duties and responsibilities pretty well, a nice thing is – weekend trips and new explorations never end. Thankfully to our “always hungry for adventures” team we always share with each other about our nature observations, but not only of course, from around places wherever we are. Last weekend we went for a delightful walk started on Carson Pass in the Sierras. Being in subalpine zone, where snow is still or already present, is very unusual and interesting for those who spend most of their time in sagebrush steppe. Of course botanists never tire especially being in such a beautiful place. We kept collecting unknown for Great Basin species of grasses and sedges till the very end of the trip. Just yesterday I checked out how well they have gotten preserved under a homemade plant press – not bad at all! And I think starting from the next week an identification process should be launched. Speaking about sedges, wetlands here in western Nevada are just amazing. Of course with a portion of weeds – no ways to get rid of them there so far, but those places are true oases within the typical arid vegetation. Moreover, collecting seeds at such places is a pure pleasure. Tons of seed everywhere, plus dedicated group of people bring a very good result in Seeds of Success program. We continue work here in a regular, pretty good pace having as a gift from the weather nice temperatures and way nicer work conditions. Will share with more experience as usual later…
Until next time,
Andrii
BLM, Carson City
ps: maybe someone knows the name of that guy on Epilobium flower?
