This week we went back to our field site to check up on our data sampling methods. Liz too some emergent, submerged, and detritus vegetation samples for her project, and I collected some sediment plates that I had put out last week, along with my mock vegetation refrigerator brushes that I’m going to analyze for sediment trapping. We had a few fun surprises though! There’s a family of swans that live on the wetland on the far side, and we’ve seen the male swan out a few times. This week he flew straight over us!

While Liz and I were checking our sample sites we saw frogs, water turtles, wrens, and yes, leaches. The mosquitoes and the leaches were more frenemies than friends but all part of the ecosystem! I also found that some fish or frogs had laid eggs on the underside of one of my plates. I collected the sediment and swiftly put them back under to (hopefully) hatch in a few weeks.

In less fortunate news, I tripped and fell trying to get back into my kayak after taking some sediment cores!My waders flooded up to my knees, which made for one very soggy rest of the day. We’re waiting on DEA incubation right now, but looking forward to a great weekend and Fourth of July holiday!