Colorado student chapters reflect on spring semester

These updates originally appear in the Colorado Chapter of The Wildlife Society’s Summer 2019 newsletter. Photos highlighting the student chapter’s activities are also included in the chapter’s newsletter.

Colorado State University Pueblo Student Chapter of The Wildlife Society

During the spring semester, student chapter members went on two ice fishing trips at different areas in southeast Colorado. They also taught people how to fly fish and hosted a barbeque. A group of students attended the Monte Vista Crane Festival near Alamosa, Colorado and stayed overnight observing a variety of birds that some students had never seen before. As one of the newest TWS student chapters (approved in October 2018), the CSU Pueblo chapter also had their first big group of students graduate with their bachelor’s in wildlife and natural resource management.

Colorado State University Student Chapter of The Wildlife Society

The Wildlife Society at Colorado State University had a fun-filled semester. Students took advantage of many opportunities to get involved and get outdoors. To start, their bimonthly meetings were jam-packed with great speakers teaching students about the many avenues that wildlife research can take. A few examples include research done in the Arctic Circle, the effects of light pollution on birds and other wildlife, and the student chapter hosted TWS President-Elect Gary White, PhD, CWB©. White provided his perspective on the student chapter, and he gave students insight on the opportunities that present themselves through participation in the organization.

A few members were able to participate in viewing the red-tailed hawk migration in Morrison, Colorado. Unfortunately, the weather did not hold out, but the members were able to view a multitude of bird species before the fog rolled back in.

The student chapter had the opportunity to join forces with Back Country Hunters and Anglers and Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation student chapters at CSU and participate in a fencing project at the Arapaho National Wildlife Refuge. They had 26 participants that helped take down three quarters of a mile of barbed wire fence and added wildlife fencing clips to nearly 1.2 miles of fence. This provided an opportunity for members to interact with the professionals that work on the refuge and learn some important fencing skills that are often necessary in this line of work.

Overall, the student chapter had a great semester and can’t wait to see what the next one will hold!

Western Colorado University Student Chapter of The Wildlife Society

During the spring semester, the Western Colorado University Student Chapter of TWS hosted 12 meetings that incorporated many presentation topics including studying biology abroad, ecological photography, TWS certification, cutthroat trout genetics and many more.

The student chapter also had the chance to send nine members and a student chapter alumnus to the Colorado Chapter of The Wildlife Society’s annual meeting in Grand Junction. Some other events students attended included; a snow tracking workshop, a hunter’s safety certification training, sage grouse lekking and club fairs.