Reindeer traffic jam

Students have been busily working today on their independent research projects. They are working in teams of 2: one art major and one science major. The teams are designing their own research project about some aspect of this Arctic ecosystem. The topics of their projects range all over different topics: How different species of birds respond to human disturbance, how substrate availability impact lichen communities over elevation, how the lake plankton respond to warmer temperatures, how plants important to the herbivores in this ecosystem will change with future permafrost melt, and soil invertebrate communities living on Saana. They are also at the same time working on how they will communicate this science to the public. They are working with clay they collect from the soil, collages of natural materials, recording bird songs, among other things. We'll keep you posted on their progress.

Kylie and Gina are excited about starting their independent research! They are investigating the lake plankton.

On another note, we had a bit of a traffic jam on the way home from the market the other day: