Science Moab

Taming Tamarisk by Kristina Young

Monsoons in the desert southwest rely on a seasonal wind shift to occur. They don’t always materialize. When they come, though, the drastic change in weather and rainfall amounts can often lead to flash floods in a sun-parched desert. We talk with Megan Stackhouse from the National Weather Service in Grand Junction, CO. We talk about the difficulty in predicting rainfall and flooding in arid environments with so much topographic variation.

As the number of climbers grows across the country, so does the number of climbing visitors to Indian Creek (San Juan County, UT). Concern is rising for the conservation of the climbing resource and the fragile desert ecosystem it sits in. This is the second of two podcasts dedicated to the recent attention in this climbing area. We talk with Ty Tyler, Stewardship Director for the Access Fund - a national non-profit organization dedicated to leading and inspiring the climbing community in keeping climbing areas open and conserving the climbing environment. We talk about the upcoming stewardship program in Indian Creek that begins this fall (2021).

The number of climbers coming to Indian Creek (San Juan County, UT)has increased like so many outdoor recreation areas. The resource, though, is limited at Indian Creek. This is the first of two podcasts dedicated to this climbing area and the attempts being made to preserve the resource. We talk with David Carter, assistant professor of public policy and administration at the University of Utah’s Department of Political Science. An avid climber himself, David is responsible for distributing a survey to Indian Creek climbers in 2021.

The invasive quagga mussel found its way into Lake Powell in 2012. This rapidly spreading nuisance species is affecting the lake’s ecology, namely its fish population. We talked with biologist Nathan St. Andre about his work with the stable isotopes in the fish of Lake Powell and how they are changing with the presence of the quagga mussel. The results echo a broader geographical division in the Lake itself.

The unique ecosystem of Southwestern Utah includes bits of the Mojave Desert, the Colorado Plateau, and the Great Basin. Here you can find 18 of the 23 species of lizards in the state of Utah. Some species are found nowhere else. Dr. Geoffrey Smith, professor of physiology at Dixie State University, lives in this part of the world for this reason. We talk with him about his work with lizards, in particular the Side-blotched Lizard, which he describes as the most beautiful lizard you’ve ever seen.

The sheer number of recreationists in southern Utah has brought the subject of human waste in the backcountry to a head. The Southeast Utah Health Department is spearheading a campaign to educate visitors and tourists about having a bathroom plan when recreating. We talk with Ginger Allen, the Environmental Stewardship Coordinator at the SEUHD, about the interagency message and a public health campaign that hopes to result in an overall increase in the public’s awareness of human waste issues and disposal techniques for the backcountry.

There are lots of different forms of knowledge, from place-based, community knowledge to science in laboratories. When this wide diversity of understanding isn't listened to or valued, we all lose out. Here, Science Moab speaks with Dr. Sabah Ul-Hasan, who grew up near the Great Salt Lake, about their experience as a scientist studying bioinformatics and how bringing inclusive understandings into science is essential to understanding the world and making it a better place.

Soil mapping involves interpreting landscapes, how soil changes across it, and a bit of art to represent repeatable patterns in a map. The mapping of soils began in the U.S. in the 1930’s as a result of the Dust Bowl, but many remote areas in the West are just getting mapped for the first time. Soil scientist Kristi Mingus talks to Science Moab about her work mapping soils in remote areas of Emery County, Utah. We discuss how the data is collected, how the maps are made, and how the information is available to the public.

When dinosaurs roamed the earth, Southeast Utah was a coastal paradise. Dinosaurs flourished in this utopia in numbers and variety of species unlike any other place. This coupled with the effective preservation of the bones in the rock, make Southeast Utah mecca for paleontologists young and old. Science Moab speaks with John Hankla from the Denver Museum of Nature & Science and a few of his recent students, Jake Percival and Megan Sims. We talk about life in the field and the work they are doing in the Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument.

Mike and Jenny Fiebig traveled for 183 days over 1800 miles from the source of the Green River in the Wind River Range to where the Colorado River enters the Sea of Cortez. Using canoe, packraft, and a dory, the couple traversed the length of the river system with all its rapids, dams, and reservoirs. Science Moab talks with Jenny and Mike about the Colorado River Basin health, stewardship, and connectivity that they experienced along their journey.

When puffy white clouds appear in the sky above a hot arid landscape, one may wonder “where is that moisture coming from?”. The desert southwest is unique in many ways and the weather patterns are no exception. We talk about weather with Tony Merriman, meteorologist and outreach coordinator from the National Weather Service office in Flagstaff, AZ. We discuss the large and small scale factors that contribute to the aridity and the (hopefully) moisture we have here on the Colorado Plateau.

The humpback chub have been swimming in the wild and turbulent waters of the Colorado River Basin for 3 million years. They have been endangered since 1967 following the building of dams along the Colorado River and its tributaries and the introduction of non-native predatory fish. We talk with Brian Healy, the Native Fish Ecology and Conservation Program manager at Grand Canyon National Park, and a PhD candidate in Ecology at Utah State University. In addition to studying the ecology of the humpback chub and other native fish in the Grand Canyon, Brian works to restore habitat and populations of these native fish.

To understand geologic time, you have to stretch your mind across knowledge sets and time scales. That’s exactly what geologist and paleontologist Kevin Madalena has done as he’s worked to understand and defend the fossil record and cultural sites on Ancestral lands. Here, we speak with him about how he has crossed scientific disciples and knowledges to understand the deep past and help safeguard the future. We cover the recent defacement of cultural sites in the Moab region and how those acts are an extension of looting, ecological destruction, and missing and murdered Indigenous women.

The Willow Flycatcher’s song is innate... it is not a learned song but something ingrained in its DNA. Because of this and the fact that the songs are unique among subspecies, the Southwestern Willow Flycatcher is protected under the Endangered Species Act. We talk with Dr. Sean Mahoney who studies the ecology of plants, birds, and insects. His work with the Willow Flycatcher and its song is important for protecting the birds and the riparian habitats they live in.

Educating visitors about the Colorado Plateau landscape is necessary to keeping it intact. It's something that storyteller and guidebook author Morgan Sjogren has been trying to do as she's told stories and written books about the region. Here, we speak with Morgan about what she sees as the role of storytellers on Plateau and the need for diverse voices when educating about and conserving this place. photo courtsey Morgan Sjogren

Behind the management and policies of the Colorado River System is a computer model...The Colorado River Simulation System (CRSS) is a continuously evolving model that has been revised and modified over a 40-year period. We talk with Dr. Kevin Wheeler who is an important interpreter and translator of the model for stakeholders. We discuss how using the model to explore alternative management strategies for the Colorado River will benefit water supply users and river ecosystems and empower more stakeholders to participate in planning the future of the river system.

Potholes on the Colorado Plateau are depressions primarily in the sandstone, unassociated with any drainage, that are home to ephemeral pools of water. These potholes provide shelter for life in a hostile environment and many species have survived to the modern day only because these rain filled pools are available. We speak with biologist/ecologist Tim Graham about the types of organisms that have adapted to live in these ephemeral pools and why humans should try to avoid these fragile ecosystems.

Science and conservation in the United States is made up of primarily white scientists and Western ways of thinking. This is something that Sergio Avila saw clearly when he first came to the US from Mexico to study mountain lions and jaguars along the border. Here, we speak with Sergio about his experiences in conservation and the need to incorporate diverse ways of thinking into science that includes, respects, and learns from Indigenous communities and people of color. Sergio challenges conservationists to expand their role models away from authors like Ed Abbey and John Muir and look towards the written, spoken, and on the ground knowledge that is held within Indigenous communities and within communities of color.

The Bears Ears region is a place held sacred to Native people across the Colorado Plateau. It’s also a place that has a complicated history with Western archaeologists, who at times harmed cultural sites that hold tremendous significance to Native communities. Here, we speak with Ralph Burrillo, whose pen name is R.E. Burrillo, about the scientific and natural history of the Bears Ears region and what he sees as the role of Western scientists today in supporting Indigenous-led efforts in Bears Ears.