Louisiana State University LSU Digital Commons Research Matters & RNR Newsletters School of Renewable Natural Resources 2009 School of Renewable Natural Resources Newsletter, Fall 2009 Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College Follow this and additional works at: http://digitalcommons.lsu.edu/research_matters Recommended Citation Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College, "School of Renewable Natural Resources Newsletter, Fall 2009" (2009). Research Matters & RNR Newsletters. 13. http://digitalcommons.lsu.edu/research_matters/13 This Book is brought to you for free and open access by the School of Renewable Natural Resources at LSU Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Research Matters & RNR Newsletters by an authorized administrator of LSU Digital Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Fall 2009 Managing resources and protecting the environment . making a difference in the 21st century Outdoor Classrooms School of Renewable Natural Resources 1 ers and alumni in the near future. Once it is completed Director’s Comments we will post our entire strategic plan on our Web page (www.rnr.lsu.edu), which will include our mission and Another academic year has passed vision statements, identified programs of excellence, and the School continues to make goals we will strive to achieve and specific objectives improvements in our core mission on how to achieve these goals. This will be an ongo- areas of teaching, research and exten- ing process and we encourage each of you to provide sion. Our undergraduate and gradu- suggestions on how we can continue to improve the ate enrollment has shown increases, mission of the School. we continue to be leaders in the Recent restructuring of our graduate programs was AgCenter in publication numbers and extra-mural grant undertaken to allow more integration across historic funds, and our extension and service contacts continue degree boundaries, which should result in students to increase. Given our economic situation this is a trib- that are better prepared to deal with the complexities ute to the quality of our faculty, staff, research associ- of natural resources management issues. As a result we ates, and graduate and undergraduate students. Similar no longer have a M.S. degree in fisheries and a Ph.D. to universities across the country we suffered budget degree in wildlife and fisheries science. We have sus- cuts in operating funds, which has impacted all aspects pended these degrees, but have submitted paperwork to of our mission. In addition we have lost several fac- the Board of Regents creating a M.S. and Ph.D. degree ulty positions, which have forced us to accomplish our in renewable natural resources with areas of concentra- charge with diminished numbers and resources. tion in forestry and forest resources, forest products, Given the current economic circumstances and the wildlife, fisheries and aquaculture and watershed sci- likelihood that we will face continued budget down ence. These recent changes are just steps toward moving turns, we could be satisfied with letting the program from our five historic graduate degrees (M.S. degrees in remain static, but as a faculty we are committed to fisheries, wildlife and fisheries; Ph.D. degrees in forestry continued program improvements. To help guide us and wildlife and fisheries science) to one M.S. and one to become one of the country’s best natural resources Ph.D. degree with identified areas of concentration. programs we continue to revise our strategic plan. The This summer we successfully launched the first edi- School’s new strategic plan is currently in the draft tion of the School’s Research Matters, an AgCenter pub- phase and we will be soliciting input from stakehold- lication spotlighting research from our team of faculty, post doctoral, research associates and graduate students. We have received many accolades concerning this new publication and plan to continue with annual issues. This first edition can be viewed on the School Web site. Contents We are constantly trying to maintain contact with Outdoor Classrooms . 3 the School’s alumni, which is a daunting task in a mobile society. I would ask each of you to update your Extension News. 4 contact information by sending me an e-mail (druther- Louisiana Natural Resources Symposium. 6 [email protected]) or dropping me a note. If pos- sible, we would love to be able to contact you by e-mail, In the Spotlight - Dr. Charles L. Shilling . 7 so let us know where you are and what you are doing! Research Notes - Dr. Sabrina Taylor . 8 As you can see many exciting things are happening Who’s Who . 9 in the School. The quality of our core mission continues to improve giving RNR alumni and supporters many International Crossings . 10 reasons to be proud!! During this time our biggest Student News . 11 challenge is to maintain program excellence in the face of dwindling resources, thus any contributions you can Student Meetings Attended . 13 make to support the program would be very helpful. If Club News . 16 you need more information on specific ways of giving Southern Forestry Conclave . 18 or priority area of need, do not hesitate to contact me ([email protected]; 225-578-4187). Alumni News . 20 Thank you for your continued support. ON THE COVER: This summer Dr. Sammy King led a group of 13 students on a 10 day Allen Rutherford field course in the Intermountain West region. 2 School of Renewable Natural Resources Outdoor Classrooms Wetland Studies in the Intermountain West by Dr. Sammy King growing season and cold climate. seeing it, getting dirty and talking This summer I had the oppor- Reflecting on the course, Vanessa to the managers than I ever would tunity to teach 13 students a 10- Tobias (Ph.D. student in wildlife) have in a lecture class.” (Rachel Vil- day field course entitled “Wetlands emphasized the importance of un- lani) “I think the best way for me to of the Intermountain West”. The derstanding water rights issues; “…I learn is out in the middle of what I course focused on conservation and thought I understood how they am studying. When there are struc- management challenges associated worked pretty well before the class, tures, I can take notes and sketches with selected wetland ecosystems but every refuge had a different set on how they are built and what their of Utah, Montana, Wyoming and of issues that the water rights laws function is in the landscape. I can Idaho. The students had varied brought on.” Rachel Villani (M.S. begin to understand the purpose backgrounds and included landscape student in wildlife) concurred, stat- of the functions of the landscape as architects, invertebrate specialists, ing that she “…was amazed at the a whole: the hydrology, geology, a hydrologist and several avian and water rights, and water law, and how history, geomorphology and tec- wetland ecologists. Although two of it was different between states, and tonics.” (Brooke Donahue, M.S., the students were from Louisiana, how it could be such a challenge for landscape architecture). others were from Ohio, Maryland, management.” The interaction with managers Pennsylvania, Georgia, California, What is the value in field- and biologists in the region are also Texas and Alabama, as well as Cana- based courses? Field-based courses extremely valuable. Classroom dis- da, South Korea and South Africa. are often expensive, they require cussions are important, but largely Students arrived in Salt Lake time to organize and they require a academic and lack the full range City, Utah on July 19, and we began fair amount of the instructor’s time of bio-political issues that dictate the class with a visit to Bear River during the course. Plus, you may be conservation and management deci- National Wildlife Refuge and the sleeping on floors, camping and you sions. Furthermore, students get Great Salt Lake near Brigham City, have no down time. So why would a feel for the types of information Utah. In subsequent days we visited we try to offer these courses? Well, needed to make land management Cokeville Meadows, Seedskadee, most of us had at least one field decisions and the role of science in Bear Lake, Grays Lake, Camas, Red course that had a significant effect solving these problems. “Going out Rocks Lake and Lee Metcalf Na- on our career. For me, it was a 20- and being in a place, talking to the tional Wildlife Refuges, as well as day field ecology course in Florida managers and biologists, and see- wetlands on the Targhee National that opened my eyes to wetlands. ing the issues first hand is the best Forest. In all, we traveled over 2000 Most managers that visited with us way to understand what is going on. miles and were fortunate to meet on the trip also recalled a particu- There is no way I would have gotten with over a dozen biologists who lar field-based course that inspired (Continued on page 4) shared their insights on wetland and them to pursue their current voca- wildlife ecology, restoration and tion. I also believe that students management. learn so much more from field- Obviously, the scenery was based courses, or at stunning but what did the stu- least courses with a dents learn? Water rights are significant field com- complex, they vary by state, and ponent, than strictly they affect refuges in a myriad of classroom courses. ways. Some refuges have too much This idea is confirmed water or water at the wrong time of by comments from the year, whereas others have too students. little water to support their func- “In the past, the tions. Wetland acquisitions are often classes that I’ve had necessary to secure or protect water, that were at least par- because the water is often more tially field based are valuable than the land that comes the ones I’ve learned with them.