Introduction
This past summer of 2024, I had the wonderful opportunity to be a Siegele Conservation Intern with the Colorado Natural Heritage Program. Each week of this internship provided its own unique adventure and provided me with the opportunity to develop my own unique suite of field skills. Therefore, I would like to recount my experience week by week and reflect on the different skills and knowledge that I took away from each week of field work this past summer as a Siegele Conservation Intern.
Week 1: Training
The very first week of this internship was focused on training interns about how to be prepared when encountering certain situations in the field and preparing interns with how their summer was going to be structured. Students spent this week on CSU’s main campus, mostly working in classrooms. This first week was split into two sections, with one section focusing on introducing interns to the projects and procedures involved in the Siegele Conservation Internship and the other section focusing on Wilderness First Aid training.
While learning about the projects and procedures involved in this internship, representatives from the different organizations and projects that hosted interns over the course of the summer came and gave brief presentations about their organizations and projects. I really appreciate hearing from speakers from different projects and organizations, even if I wasn’t directly involved with those specific projects, because it gave me great exposure to a wide array of professionals, companies, and projects in the world of natural resources and conservation.
Additionally, for the remaining portion of the training week, interns participated in a Wilderness First Aid training. At the end of the week, all interns received their Wilderness First Aid certification. This knowledge was not only extremely important to know for this internship while working out in the field, but Wilderness First Aid training is also an extremely marketable skill set to have while applying for future field jobs.
Week 2: Rifle Ranch
In order to introduce Siegele Conservation Interns to field work, we started the summer with a week up at Rifle Ranch. At Rifle Ranch, interns were exposed to a variety of field techniques that we were expected to use throughout the summer. Interns learned plant identification skills using a dichotomous key, point-line transect survey techniques, acoustic monitoring for bats, and herping procedures. All of these skills were applicable to many of the projects that interns were assigned to over the summer. I know personally I used a lot of these skills while out in the field and I will be able to use these skills in future field jobs as these skills are widely applicable in the field of conservation and natural resources.
This week at Rifle Ranch also provided wonderful opportunities to network with professionals in the field. The opportunity to interact with professionals and casually practice networking skills was extremely appreciated, as learning how to network is just as important as learning the hard field skills. Finally, during this week at Rifle Ranch, interns also learned about a variety of conservation issues pertinent to Colorado. As interns, we learned about conservation easements and stakeholders involved in conservation decisions. Interns were exposed to specific examples of conservation/restoration efforts, making these issues discussed feel more relevant as opposed to just abstract concepts. I think it is important to educate the people entering Colorado’s natural resources job market about the conservation issues that are relevant to Colorado. This allows interns to be more knowledgeable about the cultural and social context within which conservation takes place, allowing the future job sources to be more intentional and well-rounded in how they approach conservation and management issues in Colorado.
Week 3: Prairie Dog Mapping with the U.S. Forest Service
During my first week in the field, I joined the U.S. Forest Service for prairie dog mapping. For prairie dog mapping, we went out to Pawnee National Grassland and walked around the perimeter of a variety of different prairie dog colonies. We then used mapping technology to drop waypoints at each active prairie dog burrow we observed with a goal of making an outline of the boundaries of each prairie dog burrow. We were able to identify if a burrow was active by observing the level of disturbance of the dirt near the mouth of the burrow, the presence of fresh scat, or a sighting of a prairie dog at a given burrow.
This week with the U.S. Forest Service was a great introduction to field work. It was extremely interesting to learn how biologists can identify which prairie dog burrows are active as opposed to inactive and I really appreciated having the opportunity to practice identifying prairie dog burrows of interest. This week was also one of my first times being exposed to using mapping software to drop waypoints where there was an active prairie dog colony, which is an applicable and useful skill that I ended up using many times throughout the summer and that I will be able to market when applying for future jobs.
As someone who is extremely interested in small mammals, the opportunity to map prairie dog colonies was very engaging. In fact, this week of prairie dog mapping has inspired me to focus one of my large research projects and essays for a scientific writing class that I am taking this fall semester to be about how prairie dogs impact the heterogeneity of the prairie landscape and how lethal poisoning of prairie dogs can have resounding impacts on overall prairie health.
Week 4: ERO Resources
For Week 4, I was sent down to Chatfield Reservoir to work with ERO Resources. ERO Resources is a private environmental consulting agency that is frequently hired out by other companies and agencies to collect data and conduct environmental impact assessments. One of ERO Resource’s largest projects is managing and collecting data about the restoration and management of Chatfield Reservoir and the surrounding wetlands.
In addition to their work at Chatfield Reservoir, RO Resources is also responsible for other vegetative surveys, wetland delineations, and wildlife monitoring throughout Colorado.
While at Chatfield Reservoir, one of the main projects CNHP interns worked on was tree gridding. Chatfield Reservoir recently increased its water storage capacity and in combination with heavy rains the past two summers, large Populus deltoides and Populus angustifolia stands have been inundated with significant amounts of standing water. P. deltoides and P.
angustifolia species are not adapted to survive in severely inundated conditions for prolonged amounts of time. Therefore, a lot of the trees that are inundated at Chatfield Reservoir have started to decline and die.
Therefore, interns worked with ERO Resources employees to kayak through these inundated stands and trees, mark declining and dead trees with blue paint for eventual removal, and use Field Maps and Survey123 software to record data about the location and conditions of dead and declining trees in the area. Tree gridding with ERO Resources gave me a wonderful opportunity to practice using Field Maps and Survey123, which are skills that could be marketable on a resume when applying for other field jobs in the future.
I also learned how to be flexible while doing field work as I had never done field work from a kayak before. Overall, I really enjoyed the tree gridding and I found it to be one of the most unique experiences I had throughout this internship.
Additionally, during this week of working with ERO Resources, we went out to Bijou Basin to conduct vegetative quadrat surveys. ERO Resources was hired to conduct these vegetative surveys in order to see what native species are present in the area and collect data that could inform how involved efforts would need to be to restore the vegetative cover in Bijou Basin to be composed of native grassland species. To conduct these surveys we had squares that were 1 meter by 1 meter that we placed at predetermined locations across the Bijou Basin landscape. We then would record the species present and estimate the percent cover by a given species within these 1 meter by 1 meter plots. We used Field Maps to track our path and determine where the plots for these surveys were located. Through this project, I learned about how to conduct vegetative quadrat surveys, which I hadn’t had much experience with prior to this week with ERO Resources. I also learned how to use Field Maps to navigate to given locations for field work. Furthermore, I learned some important plant identification skills that I was able to apply while working on other projects as well.
Finally, on Friday of Week 4, I had the opportunity to work with Ron Beane to set up camera traps to survey for the presence (or absence) of Preble’s Meadow Jumping Mice at Chatfield Reservoir. Preble’s Meadow Jumping Mice are reliant on these riparian areas for habitat and are a good indicator that a riparian area is healthy as they are a threatened S1 species that need quality riparian habitat for survival. Therefore, we set up camera traps in the dense vegetation of some of the recently restored riparian areas surrounding Chatfield Reservoir with a camera trap strapped to a thick, plastic sheet.
The camera trap was then laid flat across the top opening of a bucket, pointing downwards so that the camera was capturing images of the bottom of the bucket. Hamster feed was then placed in the bottom of the bucket and there was a small opening cut into the side of the bucket at the bottom so small rodents could easily enter and leave the bucket. The bucket was then secured with stakes to prevent the bucket and camera trap set up from tipping over. I personally really enjoyed this experience because I had never known that you could use camera traps to study small mammals. I had previously only ever been exposed to using camera traps to monitor larger mammals and game species, such as deer or elk. Therefore, as someone who has a passion for small mammal research, it was really interesting and educational to see how you can set up a camera trap in a way that would make it possible to monitor for the presence and absence of certain small mammals.
Week 5: ERO Resources
For Week 5, I returned to Chatfield Reservoir to continue working with ERO Resources. During this week, I conducted vegetative quadrats at Chatfield Reservoir in areas that were recently being restored. For each quadrant, we collected data about the percent of vegetative cover, percent of bare ground, and vegetative characteristics indicative of wetland versus upland vegetative communities. While conducting these surveys, I also got to practice using Field Maps and Survey123.
In contrast to the many days of field work, we also had one day of office work. The interns went to ERO Resources office in Lakewood, Colorado and participated in data entry. We got to have extensive practice with Excel and Adobe Flash software. I personally really enjoyed having an office day with ERO Resources because while field work can be very exciting, the reality is that many natural resources jobs require a significant amount of office work and data entry. Therefore, I really appreciate having exposure to data entry work and in even just one day of office work, I was able to get a feel for what data entry is like and how to organize data in an effective and efficient manner.
For the final day of field work with ERO Resources, I had the opportunity to work with Ron Beane once again. While working with Ron, we collected track plates, recovered camera traps, and reviewed camera trap footage with the hope of finding signs that indicated the presence of Preble’s Meadow Jumping Mice. While we did not find any Preble’s Meadow Jumping Mice tracks on the track plates, we did find evidence of Preble’s Meadow Jumping Mice on the camera trap footage. We were able to identify the Preble’s Meadow Jumping Mice from the pictures captured by the camera traps because the Preble’s Meadow Jumping Mouse is characterized by large hind feet and a long tail relative to body size. I personally really enjoyed learning how to use track plates to survey for the presence or absence of Preble’s Meadow Jumping Mice as I have never had exposure to using track plates before. It was also extremely exciting to find evidence of Preble’s Meadow Jumping Mice on the camera trap and truly reaffirmed my passion for small mammal research. Hopefully I can use these camera trap and track plate methods in my future career while conducting small mammal research.
Week 6: Rare Plant Surveys with Jessica Smith
For this week, I worked with Jessica Smith to survey for rare plant species in Jefferson County. In order to survey for rare plants, we focused our surveying efforts along drainages where there was a significant increase in plant diversity. We also would sometimes specifically focus on areas where Element Occurrences had previously been recorded. We spent a lot of time conducting field work and surveying for plants while off-trails in back-country areas. Additionally, Jessica took the time to spend one to two hours with me throughout the week practicing my plant idea skills of plants that are commonly found in Colorado.
I personally had never surveyed for rare plants before and I found the experience extremely educational. It was extremely inspiring to work with someone as passionate and knowledgeable as Jessica. She really took the time to answer every question I had and provided me with valuable insight into what it means to work for CNHP and in the world of natural resources.
Through this experience, I also strengthened many hard skills, like navigating backcountry areas using mapping software and plant identification. While I have learned some basic plant ID, this week with Jessica really allowed me to solidify and apply plant ID in a synthesis of my previous plant identification and survey skills. I also learned about a variety of different plant species that I can still confidently identify three months after this one week with Jessica, proving that what I learned during this week really stuck with me. Not only did I practice plant ID for common plants, but Jessica also taught me about how to identify a variety of rare plant species that I had previously never learned about or been exposed to.
Overall, this week with Jessica was one of the highlights of this internship for me as I was able to learn a lot about plant identification and how to survey for rare plants.
Week 7: Zoological Surveys with John Sovell
During this week of zoological surveys with John Sovell, we were surveying for rare zoological surveys up in Clear Creek County. The first day of the week we spent some time surveying riparian areas along I-70 for rare species of trout and Boreal Toads. To survey for trout, we used fly fishing techniques and identification from land. Later that night, we went and surveyed for Black Swifts using binoculars and a spotting scope. The next day, we went to Loveland Pass. At Loveland Pass, we surveyed Colorado Chipmunks, a variety of rare alpine butterfly species, Boreal Toads, and White-tailed Ptarmigan. Colorado Chipmunks were surveyed opportunistically. For butterfly surveys, we used butterfly nets to catch nearby butterflies that Sovell then was able to identify. We descended into a more riparian area with small pools of water and willows in order to survey for Boreal Toads and White-tailed Ptarmigans.
On the third day of this week, we hiked up to the summit of Gray’s Peak. During this hike, we continued to use butterfly nets to survey for rare alpine butterfly species. We also opportunistically surveyed for Colorado Chipmunks once again throughout the day. Finally, on the fourth day of the week, we went to a variety of riparian areas in the Georgetown area to survey for Boreal Toads once again. Prior to this week, I had never had the opportunity to conduct general zoological surveys. Normally, I have only ever focused on surveying for one single species, so it was interesting to learn how to conduct zoological surveys for a wide array of different species with no single focal species. I enjoyed being exposed to surveying techniques for a variety of different categories of animals, from lepidopterans to small mammals to birds and everything in between. It was also interesting to survey opportunistically. In previous experiences, I would normally hike to a specific survey location or GPS coordinate and survey for a specific species in that specific area. However, for this week, we hiked around a general area and would opportunistically survey for certain species. I think that it was incredibly important to learn how to discern when and where it is appropriate to survey for certain species in the Rocky Mountains.
Week 8: Zoological Surveys with John Sovell
I continued to work with John Sovell for the eighth week of the internship doing zoological surveys. We once again were surveying for rare alpine butterflies, spending two days at Mount Blue Sky, one day in the Mount Bierstadt and Georgetown area, and one day at the Golden Gate Canyon State Park area. We once again used butterfly nets to catch rare alpine butterflies while opportunistically surveying for Colorado Chipmunks, rare birds, and some monitored bee species.
At each location, we were exposed to a variety of different species. John also took the time to point out different wildlife signs that were typically considered strong indicators of the presence of a certain species. Overall, while working with John, I learned about how to conduct surveys opportunistically and how to survey for a variety of different species. I also learned about how to navigate backcountry survey sights and how to take detailed field notes with adequate data/information when conducting zoological surveys.
Conclusion
In conclusion, I am so incredibly grateful for the wonderful opportunities and experiences I got to have as a Siegele Conservation Intern. This internship gave me exposure to field work in a wide variety of ecosystems, from the prairie to the alpine tundra, with a wide variety of organisms, from grasses to butterflies. This internship has allowed me to solidify which types of field work and research I enjoy and which types of field work and research don’t specifically resonate with me. Additionally, this internship has provided me with the opportunity to accumulate a wide variety of different field skills and techniques that I know I will be using in my future career. I want to give the Colorado Natural Heritage Program and their donors my appreciation as I am extremely grateful to have had the opportunity to be a Siegele Conservation Intern this past summer.
