From the Field is an EcoPress series where we highlight the field work our scientists and graduate students are doing in blog posts, feature stories and on social media. This is the second blog post of the ongoing series.
Anna Clare Monlezun is beginning her 3rd year as a PhD student in the Department of Ecosystem Science and Sustainability working with Dr. Stacy Lynn.
Her research spans several topics, including systems ecology, rangeland management, collaborative grazing management, conservation ranching, sustainable food production, and multi-use public lands. This summer, she spent time at her field sites on four multi-use working lands on the Colorado Front Range owned by the City of Fort Collins, Boulder County and the Colorado State Land Board. She worked extensively with Arielle Collier, her field technician and recent CSU graduate.
We asked Anna Clare to give us some highlights from her summer field work:
Q1: Describe your field work in a few sentences?
A: My field research this summer involved the ecological component of a holistic, 3-part (ecological, social, and economic) study of the sustainability of collaborative grazing management on multi-use government-owned lands. We collected data on plant species composition, forage quality, water infiltration, and soil organic carbon and nitrogen. We are comparing landscapes managed in-part by cattle grazing with parcels that have been historically excluded from livestock.
Q2: What is your favorite part about your field work?
A: My favorite part about my field work is having the opportunity to immerse myself in the tiniest details of grassland ecosystems, taking note of every flicker of life. It fills all my senses. When you see grasslands from a zoomed-out perspective, they look pretty uniform – just “grass” as far as the eye can see, right? But if you get in close, and stoop down, running your hands through the canopy, you will notice an entire universe full of diversity, where every organism is interacting with another and responding to environmental elements. It is simply beauty-full.
Q3: Any crazy/fun field work stories so far?
A: When we happen to work in close proximity to cattle, they usually just ignore us or walk away. However, one day a group of cows with their calves were super curious about all of our equipment, including my backpack lying about 50 m away. When I got back to my pack, it was covered in slimy, grassy, muddy cow licks. I assume they were attracted to the salt from my sweat, since it was a sweltering 94 degrees outside that day. I’m just glad they didn’t get into my snack pocket!
Q4: Fun summer plans outside of field work/work?
A: Between my two periods of field work this summer, we were able to squeeze in a 4-week trip to Italy, where my husband is from. We hadn’t seen all my in-laws since prior to the pandemic, so it was a special trip for family time and also a much needed vacay and change of pace for the two of us and our 4-year old son. Two words: beach & food.
Thank you for sharing your summer with us, Anna Clare!
