Idaho Fish and Game

Posted on 3 September, 2017 by SolimarGarcia

More work outside of BLM has been pretty fun lately. Aside from our new projects relating to GIS and GPS, we also get the opportunity to work on other projects throughout the week with Idaho Fish and Game.

Last week I was able to go out on a bat project. I honestly know very little about bat calls and bat biology etc. but it seemed like something I would enjoy and I’m glad to report I did!

I had previously gotten the chance to work with Ross Winton working on an entomology project, so he was a familiar face. It was fun getting to see his work with insects and bats, alongside Senior Conservation Officer Meghan Roos. The second day of data collection we went out with GeoCorps interns as well.

2 CBG CLM & 2 GeoCorps. After dinner, waiting for the sun to set, waiting for the bats to emerge!

We started our day at 3pm, set up microphones at designated spots, had dinner, drove a transect to capture 25 miles of bat calls and ended around midnight. We had a small hike to some of the points but were able to see a young queen bee, a beautiful sunset, a moose and her calf and hear coyote’s (wolves??) and investigate some pretty neat unknown plants. Overall, a very entertaining couple of days.

Queen. Captured by the talented Ross

I love the spatulate leaves on this plant. No idea what it is though, anyone have any idea?

In other news, the eclipse is coming up and Idaho is expected to have almost a quarter million people travel in the path of totality, if that’s you, be safe!

Cheers!

Dead Stick Botany

Posted on 18 July, 2017 by ElynaGrapstein

As my coworker so eloquently put it, we are officially entering “dead stick botany season” here in northern Wyoming. As if learning how to identify grasses for the first time wasn’t difficult enough, learning to identify dead or dry grasses has proven to be quite the challenge for me. But, flowering plants are still abound and much easier to find in a key than grasses are. Even this late in the season, there are some angiosperms here still doing their flowering thang. Check it:

Rush skeletonweed (Chondrilla juncea)

Not an angiosperm, but that’s fine. Horned lizards are the state reptile of Wyoming.

Now that we are in the full swing of the field season, our crew has officially gotten a groove going. Each day, we arrive at the field office early to beat the heat, load our truck and head out to one of our ninety-something randomized field sites to collect species richness, canopy gap and soil data. Once we’ve finished with data collection, we return to the Buffalo BLM Field Office and complete entering the data into DIMA (an online database specific to the type of monitoring we do).

Amiah (CLM intern) looking at canopy gaps along a transect we established.

Dominic (BLM hydrologist) working the spud bar as we try to get a 30″ soil pit dug. Camille and Amiah (CLM interns) in the background carry out the Line Point Intercept method along a transect to collect species inventory of the site. I like my job.

Soon enough, most plants will no longer have obviously identifiable features and our ID season will come to an end. After speaking with my supervisor, I learned once it becomes too difficult to identify plants in the field, all us interns have the option to work with the rest of the office departments and explore other interests we may have such as wildlife biology, hydrology, mineral rights, GIS, etc. I’m not entirely sure what interest I’ll end up exploring, but I’m absolutely looking forward to new experiences.

Catching endemic beetles

Posted on 11 July, 2017 by SolimarGarcia

Just before the holiday weekend, my field crew finished our main field project and had the opportunity to join Idaho Fish & Game for a day field-trip. Many Burley and Shoshone Field Offices’ CBG Interns were able to join Ross Winton with Idaho Fish & Game on a hunt for a beetles on different species of Eriogonum, commonly known as Buckwheat.

Unfortunately, I know pretty much nothing about buts/insects/arachnids whatsoever, but I got into contact with Ross again and he filled me in on a few things about what we were looking for that day.

Our goal was to find any Chrysobothris beetle on Eriogonum or Crepis species, however the jackpot was Chrysobothris idahoensis, a wood-boring jewel beetle. This species is an Idaho endemic and a species of greatest conservation need. Ross let me know that, “they live as juveniles (larvae and pupae) in the roots of Eriogonum and emerge and often visit flowers as adults in June and July.” So, in addition to sweeping above Eriogonum flowers, we also dug up some roots of that same genus to perhaps find beetles emerging later.

Ross with mouth‑operated aspirator to aid in capturing samples to easily transfer them into vials (not pictured, his beetle-head belt buckle)

During the first hour or so we split up over the landscape switching off duties between sweeping and digging for roots. My first time sweeping, I found it, I had found the jewel beetle! I swept over strictly Eriogonum species for about 20-30 minutes and my beetle made it quickly into a sample vial full of acetone and ethanol. The little beetle was somewhat shiny and green, had a square head and a pointy butt, easily distinguishable from other insects in the same vial. My name went on the specimen and we all were excited to find more that day. Unfortunately, no more were found on the site, possibly too late in the season to see their emergence.

Chrysobothris idahoensis, species of greatest conservation need

A quick glimpse of other neat creatures we caught.

Again, sorry I know nothing about entomology

A giant, gross/cool wasp?

Other beetley things

Pollinator on a mariposa lily

I’m glad I was able to get in touch with Ross again and we all got the chance to work a day with an entomologist. So neat! 10/10 would recommend to a friend

-SG

Southern Idaho at First Glance

Image

Hello there from Shoshone, ID!

Wyethia field in Sawtooth Mountains

My name is Patricia, and I am working primarily on SOS with Danelle Nance for the BLM. I came out here late May from Phoenix, AZ and life in Southern Idaho (so far) has been treating me very well. (A pleasant surprise! — Sorry, I have to be honest and admit that I was definitely a skeptic about Idaho before I arrived here, but I couldn’t be happier that I just went for it with this one.)

With Danelle and my SOS partner Jenny, and Harpo (another CBG intern) in the Bennett Hills scouting out potential SOS populations of our target species (field of Yarrow on right)

Dierkes lake at sunset – great rec site located in Twin!

One of my favorites so far this summer – spiny hopsage *Grayia spinosa*

SOS partner and new friend (Jenny) killing it on a climb at City of Rocks – definitely recommend going if you’re into climbing!

Similar to a lot of the other interns in my office, I am living in Twin Falls, which is approximately 30 minutes south of the Shoshone Field Office. Compared to Shoshone, Twin has a little bit more going on in regards to groceries, people, and not feeling too isolated. It is in a great location — Sawtooth National Forest, Yellowstone, City of Rocks, Sun Valley, etc. are only a short drive away! Plus, there is also a ton of great local climbing, biking, and hiking spots too. Dierkes Lake near Shoshone Falls, in particular, has been a great place to boulder, sport climb, run, and swim with both work and new friends. I think that this effort to explore my new surrounding area extensively after work and during the weekends has helped me immensely in adjusting to this new environment.

In regards to work, I cannot express how awesome Danelle has been as a mentor. She truly has been an approachable and helpful guide these first few months: helping me feel comfortable in the office and pushing me to take advantage of the ample learning opportunities here in our field office. With that said, my knowledge in botany for the area, plant identification, and field skills have all been strengthened immensely, and my interests have become much more apparent to me.

Perrine Bridge in Twin Falls – great spot to watch and meet crazy base jumpers who come from all over the world!

Until next time.

CLM round two

Posted on 5 July, 2017 by bgarrow

Wrapping up my 5th week at my internship in Shoshone, Idaho, it’s hard for me to decide what to write my blog post about! There has been so many exciting moments that it’s hard to choose! This is my second gig with the CLM program, but my experiences have been vastly different. Last summer I worked at the Mid-Atlantic Regional Seed Bank, doing Seeds of Success work. I was stationed at Staten Island, NYC and I lived in Brooklyn. Now I am here in Idaho working for the the BLM and it has definitely been a change in pace. Although I really loved New York City and having such a unique CLM experience, I can really appreciate the quietness of Idaho.

I’m originally from Florida, so about 10 days before the start of my internship, my cat and I drove out to Idaho. It was a 48 hour drive and luckily I have a cat who weirdly loves the car! Driving across the country was definitely an experience. I had never spent any real time out west before and driving through Wyoming felt like I was being awoken to the amazing-ness of the west. As I drove into Twin Falls (the town I live in), I am taken by surprise as I cross over a bridge with a GIANT canyon (now I know it’s the Snake River Canyon)! This was just the beginning of the beauty I have discovered in Idaho so far. Seriously, my phone storage has been hating me ever since I moved here.

Snake River Canyon in Twin Falls, ID!

One thing I really love about my job so far is the diversity of things that we get to do. We started out doing a modified version of AIM (Assessment, Inventory, and Monitoring). Doing MAIM has been great so far and I really love learning new species of plants everyday. We get to visit beautiful spots and *maybe* one day I will be able to easily identify the different species of sagebrush! However, we are quickly wrapping up that part of the job and are moving on to other projects! We get to help out on various projects with Idaho Fish and Game, which really excites me because I have a degree in Wildlife Ecology and have a love of both plants and wildlife! Today we went out and did bat and invertebrate surveys in three different caves. This was such an awesome experience, even though we did not find any bats unfortunately. Tomorrow we will be helping out on pollinator research! Very exciting stuff!!

Bat and invertebrate surveying

The workshop at the Chicago Botanic Garden was also a great experience. They were lovely hosts and it was so nice getting to meet interns from all over the country! The “Butterflies & Blooms” exhibit at the garden was amazing and I highly recommend it to anyone who visits the garden.

Butterfly or leaf? Found at the Butterflies and Blooms exhibit at CBG

Hiking out to our field site!

Overall my experience has been wonderful and I am looking forward to more to come (and to eat more potatoes).

Signing off from Shoshone, Idaho!

Barbara Garrow

Never have I ever been out West

Posted on 28 June, 2017 by SolimarGarcia

My first week after graduation was filled with excitement and anxiety. I actually skipped walking across the stage during graduation because I was moving in to my new house that same weekend. I finished my last day as an undergraduate on a Thursday and started work in a new state the following Monday! Thankfully, I have very supportive parents that helped me trek my way with each passing minute farther and farther west than I had been before.

Our drive was only supposed to take 2.5 days, from Madison, WI to Twin Falls, ID. It turned into almost 4 because we got swamped with a snow storm in the middle of May!? Never would have thought to pack snow boots for May weather as I had already experienced 70 degree weather coming from Wisconsin. We ended up getting stuck in Cheyenne, WY for 9 hours. But here’s my dad as we happily continued to make our way as the roads cleared!

My dad with a smile as we finally are able to get onto I-90 from Cheyenne to Twin Falls, ID

The following first two weeks were flooded with new information and training. Besides all the online training, we also had some great hands on training in the field. I work directly with 4 other CBG interns, there are another 3 at my office. All 4 of the CBG CLM interns I work with come from different states and are familiar with different flora, so learning new plants in the arid environment of southern Idaho has been quite entertaining!

As a contractor working for the BLM, I am assessing habitat cover and preferred forbs for sage grouse.The methods we used to do this assessment was modified as soon as the interns arrived, so as we learned the ins-and-outs of the methods, so were the crew leads and supervisors, to some extent. This was quite a bumpy ride to start as we all were interpreting specific methods differently and encountered different scenarios than were provided in the new manuals. Each day we came up with new questions and each day we solve them with gusto and readiness to continue the following day, knowing we’d come back with still more questions.

Shoshone, ID modified AIM crew. Our first time out in the field together, 4 CBG interns, our crew leads, & our mentor

Out with my crew, my mentor and other range techs from my office

Throughout the next few weeks I learned to adjust to the lack of trees and the beautiful diversity that can (surprisingly) be found here! I started to learn common grasses and forbs and learn varieties of sagebrush.

As my roommate and I got a feel for the area, we began most of our weekends traveling to some touristy sites. These areas were nice to visit while we’re learning about the area because they were so chock full of historical information and just fun random facts that are super useful for newcomers like us!

Bitterroot at Craters of the Moon National Park

Back out in the field the following week, I started slowly discovering I had some favorite plants and animals we continue to run into. I had studied trees for my undergrad but I’m finding myself drawn to some of these little forbs in southern ID.

Little horned lizard that I kind of love

Lupine! I’m slowly falling in love with this plant for some unknown reason

At the start of the next week I traveled to CBG for the Workshop, which was an incredible opportunity and I am super grateful I was able to attend. I had the chance to meet other interns in the neighboring field offices for the BLM. I was happy to be back in the Midwest and actually had the chance to see my parents again after a month in Idaho.

Back in Idaho, our big group split into 2 groups of three people, we were officially on our own! Driving to any one of our plot points may take anywhere from 1.5-2.5 hours one-way. The drive can be a little daunting, but each location is so unique and the views there are so absolutely incredible, it’s always so gratifying once we arrive.

Upper Davis Mountain view about 4 miles away from our plot point

Coming from Wisconsin and having spent a lot of time up north where there are unpaved roads, I knew how to drive a pick-up truck on gravel roads, but some of the “roads” out here barely warrant the name. Thankfully, I have stellar crew lead that has extensive experience driving on these same roads last summer! Also, I will admit, I have a really poor sense of direction, so I am thankful for her navigation skills too.

I’m also learning how to use USDA plant codes for these common plants. I’ve worked with plant codes previously doing monitoring but since the locations of these plots may have upwards of 45 species, keeping up with all plant codes and numbers following each code has been a struggle of mine. I tend to learn the common name first, then the scientific name, then the code. But sometimes the same code can be used for 2-10 different plants so you also have to remember which number corresponds to which plant! Ex. ERNA6 & ERNA10, one is a forb and one is a shrub, and you could possibly have both on the same site!

Penstemon with a little visitor wasp

To help me with learning plant codes and scientific names I’ve made a little “key” of all the ones we’ve come across and keep the booklet with me out in the field. So far, it’s been pretty useful and have only used it 2 days but have to update it already!

Quick lunch break before finishing modified AIM transects. This location actually had upwards of 35 species, 12 of which were unknown to us! (We’re still working on keying them out)

I’ve been in Idaho exactly a month and I really cannot wait to continue exploring this state. I’ve been trying to convince all my family and friends from home to come visit me, because there’s so much here to see! One month down, four more to go. So far, this has been one of my favorite summers, yet.

Welcome to Carlsbad, NM

Posted on 8 February, 2017 by ksandbom

My introduction to local conservation policies and practices began where the Black River first surfaces—at Rattlesnake Spings. Here, the texture of my new landscape expressed itself as a collaborative group of dignitaries with interest in the thrival of Popenaias popeii, or the Texas hornshell mussel—the last remaining native mussel in New Mexico and an ESA Candidate species.

Popenaias popeii, or Texas hornshell mussel.

I field-tripped with this lively group of dignitaries to critical anthropogenic influence loci along the Black River. As they discussed the technicalities of flow targets, stream gauge locations and dispersal barriers, they also expressed core values and beliefs about their relationship to this land. Prided on personal liberty and averse to government intervention, these folks articulated a legacy and ethic of individual agency in private stewardship. “They’re a hardy species, and they’ll come back if they have what they need. … [Providing what they need] is up to us. … It won’t be easy, but worthwhile undertakings rarely are,” said private landowner Jim Davis.

This legacy is eligible for institutional legitimacy and merit in the form of Candidate Conservation Agreements (CCAs), Candidate Conservation Agreements with Assurances (CCAAs) and conservation/mitigation credits. The policy concerning this program has recently (this January 18th!) been refined in USFWS’s Director’s Order No 218, which can be found at https://www.fws.gov/endangered/improving_ESA/pdf/Director’sOrder_with_Voluntary_Prelisting_conservation_policy_Directors_Order_Attachment-Final.pdf.

Later in the week, I was privileged to also attend the New Mexico Rare Plant Technical Council’s (NMRPTC) annual meeting in Albuquerque, NM. Here, statewide rare plant advocates met to update New Mexico’s rare plant list as well as to share updates on conservation actions and receive briefings on their new Draft Rare Plant Conservation Strategy and the Strategy’s Rare Plant Scorecard tool (both adapted from Colorado’s models). An Important Plant Areas map is also being developed with these latter tools under an ESA Section 6 grant, all with the purpose to provide proactive measures and guidelines in support of consistent and coordinated rare plant management throughout New Mexico.

Eriogonum gypsophilum, a USFWS Threatened and NM state Endangered species that grows alongside oil and gas development in Southeast New Mexico. Photograph by Ben R. Grady.

During the Scorecard presentation’s section on measuring/representing threats, the speaker displayed a map of potential oil and gas extraction threats to rare plants. It portrayed a giant blob of yellow, black and blue risks in the Southeast corner of New Mexico, encompassing the majority of the lands that my BLM office stewards.

The Permian Basin shown here corresponds with the map of of oil and gas extraction threats that was presented in the NMRPTC meeting.

Working to safeguard native plants and habitats against the threats this blob poses will be a major focus of my work here.

Tiny Animals

Posted on 20 January, 2017 by loxogramme

Now that our seed collection season here at the BLM state office in Santa Fe is done, I can look back on our field season as a whole. And it has been excellent! Aside from learning a new flora, becoming familiar with a new landscape and new people, and collecting a massive quantity of wild seeds — I have also enjoyed the many casual and surprising encounters that happen while being outside. While my first focus is definitely plants, I also love tiny animals (bugs, macroinvertebrates, insects, arthropods; whatever category they are all tiny animals to me!). I don’t know if I will ever study them seriously or in detail, but I do love to notice their variety.

Following is a selection of the most surprising and fantastic tiny animals I was privileged to encounter while collecting seeds this summer and fall.

An enormous grasshopper at El Malpais National Monument

Somebody very strange at Kasha-Katuwe Tent Rocks National Monument

A lady beetle with beautiful and interesting patterning at El Malpais National Monument

Lady beetles exhibiting some interesting behavior — packing themselves tightly into a Thermopsis montana pod! (in the Santa Fe mountains)

More interesting behavior by lady beetles — clustering themselves in very large groups (in the Sandia mountains)

A delicate, elegant stick bug at the Quivira Coalition’s Red Canyon Ranch

Mating monarchs at the Springs Preserve (Las Vegas, NV) butterfly habitat

An excellent black and yellow garden spider near Socorro, NM

Laura Holloway
Santa Fe (New Mexico State Office), BLM

Portland, Santa Fe, Chicago, and Santa Fe

Posted on 18 July, 2016 by loxogramme

The month of June has been full of variety for me. I left my Portland, OR home in the mossy, forested Pacific Northwest on the last day of May, and began a 1900 mile driving adventure to the desert southwest. After a refreshing soak at Summer Lake hot springs, a stunningly beautiful stay in the Ruby Mountains, crossing the Great Salt Lake desert, and a slow and reflective drive through the Four Corners area, the adobe town of Santa Fe and the southernmost Rockies greeted me with thunder and lightning.

Our first opportunistic seed collection was from a small mustard yet to be identified to species

I had only a week to adjust to a new climate, landscape, and people before flying to the midwestern city of Chicago for the CLM training. Between sessions, we had the opportunity to explore the Chicago Botanic Garden in its entirety. My favorite area was the arid greenhouse, letting me know that my tugging desire to live and work in the southwest was well-founded, and giving me the opportunity to meet dry-adapted carbon-fixers from all around the earth.

Cactus flower at the Chicago Botanic Garden

Back in my new home of Santa Fe, I joined with a large and diverse group of people for our regional training. A fellow CLM intern, an ACE (American Conservation Experience) intern, and I will be working closely with interns and employees from the IAE’s (Institute for Applied Ecology) Southwest Program. To begin our summer together, we camped in the Valles Caldera, a dormant, enormous, and beautiful volcano in the Jemez Mountains. With the help of Steve Buckley (National Park Service botanist), we sharpened our botanical skills and began to learn New Mexico’s flora.

New Mexican beauty, Tsankawi ruins. A short hike break on our drive back from training at Valles Caldera.

After several weeks of travel and training, I am looking forward to a summer and fall spent exploring New Mexico, collecting seed from plants and places I have yet to meet, and honing my botanical skills!

Laura Holloway

Santa Fe (New Mexico State Office), BLM

We Go Together Like Milkweeds and…

Posted on 16 June, 2016 by samuje

Think of a milkweed.

This is desert milkweed (Asclepias erosa).

This is rush milkweed (Asclepias subulata).

Good. Now think of an insect that relies on milkweed.

Can you name an insect that relies on milkweed.

Can you name an insect that depends on milkweed plants?

What did you think of?

Monarch caterpillar (Danaus plexippus) on a desert milkweed (Asclepias erosa).

Monarch caterpillar (Danaus plexippus) on a rush milkweed (Asclepias subulata).

That’s what I thought. Don’t be ashamed, I think of monarchs and milkweeds, too. The thing is, though, many other insects also have close relationship with members of the asclepias family. Let’s take a look at some of them.

We’ll start with milkweed bugs. Milkweed bugs come in two flavors: large and small.

Small Milkweed Bug (Lygaeus sp) on a desert milkweed (Asclepias erosa).

The small milkweed bug (Lygaeus sp) is (you guessed it!) slightly smaller than the large one. It also displays a red X on its back as well as two small white dots.

Large Milkweed Bug (Oncopeltus sp)

From what I can tell, the large milkweed bugs (Oncopeltus sp) tend to be a littler more orange. Their markings also look like three large black horizontal bands rather than an X.

Both large and small milkweed bug larva eat milkweed seeds.

Milkweed bugs are in the order Hemiptera, meaning they are “true bugs”. I spotted another hemiptera chilling on a nearby milkweed, but that’s as far as I got in that identification game. Any ideas?

Hemiptera

There were also a ton of tarantula hawk wasps (Pepsis or Hemipepsis sp) buzzing around.

Tarantula Hawk Wasps are up to 2 inches long with blue-black bodies and bright rust-colored wings.

Tarantula hawk wasps are so named because when it is time to reproduce, the female will sting a tarantula (permanently paralyzing it) and drag in into a pre-made brooding nest. The female wasp will then lay it’s egg(s) on the tarantula, I won’t go into the gory details here. Only the females hunt tarantulas, though, and only for reproduction. The adults feed off the nectar and flowers of milkweeds.

The tarantula hawk wasps were totally loving all the milkweed plants!

The tarantula hawk wasps were totally loving all the desert milkweed (Asclepias erosa)!

I photographed another insect which I believe is a wasp, but I’m not 100% sure. Any thoughts?

I think this is some sort of parasitoid wasp, but I'm not sure!

I think this is some sort of parasitoid wasp, but I’m no expert entomologist.

Yet another insect I couldn’t identify could be a bee (Order Hymenoptera) or a syrphid fly (Order Diptera). I don’t feel so bad about this one, though, because syrphid flies utilize Batesian mimicry (aka they exhibit the same coloring patterns as bees and wasps as a form of protection against predators).

Bee or Syrphid Fly?
Who could tell?

So, moral of the blog post: milkweeds are important to lots of insects. Let it be known.

A plethora of arthropods depend on milkweeds for survival.

A plethora of insect species depend on milkweeds (Asclepias sp) for survival.

Jessica Samuelson

Needles Field Office

Bureau of Land Management

CLM Internship Program Blog

Adventures of a CLM Intern

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