Allergies are on the rise for many Californians as spring has sprung. But while our eyes may be itchy, the pollinators are loving it! Many species are closely tied to the sneeze-bringing flowers that you may have seen recently blooming. In today’s throwback to Rebecca Nelson’s Field Notes article from 2021, we take a dive…
Category: Field Notes
Field Notes: My Time with Titis
The worst part is all the sweat bees. The mosquitos can be repelled, but nothing stops the sweat bees. The ants don’t want to mess with you. They’ll defend themselves and their homes. They’ll attack if frightened and confused, but they have work to do and aren’t easily distracted. The sweat bees are at work…
Throwback Field Notes: Ryane’s first field season at Chicken Camp!
This time of year, many researchers are gearing up to embark on their spring field seasons. Today, we’re featuring a throwback to this fun Field Notes about Animal Behavior alumni Ryane’s first field season in 2015! I’ve recently returned from my first field season and as I’m settling back into Davis, I wanted to take…
Field Notes: From Predator to Plastics: Raising Awareness and Knowledge of Sharks in the Pacific Northwest
In the Field “There aren’t any sharks out there” is something I commonly hear from people in Oregon and Washington. Truth is—there are definitely sharks out there. We just don’t know anything about them, or the role that they play in the Pacific Northwest’s ecologically, economically, and culturally important ecosystems. That’s what the research in…
Field Notes: Termite Trials & Tribulations
Data collection can be one of the toughest, yet most rewarding and exciting parts of the PhD journey. But no one could prepare me for the tiresome and emotional rollercoaster I was about to step onto with my first termite experiment. My past research experiences were with ants and bees, both fairly manageable animal colonies…
Field Notes: Amped Amphibians
Growing up, I had a friend who was extremely outgoing, had boundless energy, and liked to take more risks than most other people I knew. I remember asking myself, “Where does all that energy come from? What gives this person such a confident personality?” Bold, confident personalities in people can make them seem like ‘go-getters,’…
Field Notes: The Winding Path to a PhD with Zoo Animals
I’m a first year PhD student in the Animal Behavior Graduate Group, but I’ve had many different titles over the last ten years: zookeeper, animal trainer, and most recently, veterinarian. When people discover I am a licensed veterinarian, most are justifiably confused. “Why are you still going to school? Haven’t you had enough?” they ask….
Field Notes: Calves, collars and cuteness
You’d think that looking at baby animals all day would be the perfect job, but it certainly comes with some unique challenges… ______________________________________________________________________ I study abnormal behaviors in dairy cattle (for more info on what it’s like to do research at the Dairy, check out my previous field notes piece here), which are performed across…
Field Notes: Chatting with Cetaceans
Throughout my scientific career, I have mainly studied our closest non-human primate relatives and their quirky behaviors (see my previous field notes here). However, when my graduate school advisor asked if I’d be interested in helping with a research project on humpback whales, I was excited at the prospect of starting something entirely new and…
Field Notes: The First of Many Lasts
As I pack up my car on a breezy August day, I take one last breath of the cool, ocean air filled with scents of sagebrush and eucalyptus, realizing that while this wouldn’t be my last trip to the Marin Headlands, this is the last time I will be collecting data for graduate school. —…
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