Wrapping Up: Into the World

This is my last week at the Smithsonian-Mason School of Conservation before final exams. I have already presented the final report for my...

Protected Areas: Difficulties Conserving Species

In continuation of our discussion on reserve design, we had a few guest lecturers to testify some of the difficulties they have faced in...

Small Populations: Saving the Skidgets

This was a very short week so it’s going to be difficult to adequately blog about, but bear with me. In class this week we expanded upon...

Surveying for Wood Turtles: Science is Hard

This week we spent a day surveying wood turtle (Glyptemys insculpta) populations in the area with Virginia Working Landscapes (VWL). VWL...

The Edge: Observation is Key

Our class went to the Edge to work on teambuilding skills and to physically test our problem-solving abilities.Our class was broken up...

Acorns in the Shenandoah National Park: You Can't Always Finish

Instead of having class on Mondays, student here at the Smithsonian-Mason School of Conservation are required to take part in a...

Radio-telemetry: Nature Doesn't Always Cooperate

For class this week we practiced the use of radiotelemetry techniques for locating animals. Last week a graduate class tagged three grey...

Working with VWL: Be Adaptable

Virginia Working Landscapes (VWL) is an organization stationed here at the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute that promotes the...

Small Mammal Monitoring: Always Come Prepared

This week, we were introduced to the National Ecological Observatory Network (NEON). NEON is a federal government organization that...

Starting at SMSC: New Beginnings

This is the end of my second week as a student at the Smithsonian-Mason School of Conservation, and I have finally had enough time to...