This summer started like any normal summer, with lush, green landscapes and a plethora of wildlife. The beginning of the season was serene and unusually cool. I took in the views of our field sites along with a whole load of knowledge regarding the experiment and data collection. The spring was rainy many days and the cloud cover was definitely welcome. Although I was sure my knees would give out from kneeling all day after just the first week, I somehow survived.

I have learned so much this past summer about grassland ecosystems and the organisms that call it home. Some could say, maybe even a little too much. I grew attached to my favorite forbs and grasses. Many times, I would dream about doing stem counts or aerial cover. I also made enemies with many small, biting insects. Every morning began with dousing myself in sunscreen and bug spray. By the end of the day though, I still went home with souvenirs on my skin. The days were long and often tiring (on hot days especially), but the work was equally rewarding. It was such an interesting experience to be a part of the data collection and processing, and start to glimpse the outcome of our work. Being outdoors all day also allowed me to get very familiar with the larger wildlife, like the Western Meadowlarks that perched fenceposts, the prairie dogs that littered the badlands, and the occasional rattlesnake in our plots.

The sheer amount of consistent rain this summer was an outlier compared to normal years. Our sites stayed green for much longer than usual, and bogs of collected water were present all summer. The mosquito season was far prolonged and the air remained humid even on some of the hottest days. Our plots directly reflected the abnormal weather patterns, regrowing in a few days after mowing.

The experiences I had and the connections I made this summer were priceless. On my second to last day on the job, I had the opportunity to join the Wildlife Biologist at RMRS on a herpetology survey of the Badlands Bombing Range in South Dakota. We spent all day looking for herps and talking about what being a biologist in the real world is like. Although I still have a couple more years in college, it was a very insightful experience which will guide me throughout my education.