Lindsi Seegmiller recently represented UHPSI at the 2014 ESRI User’s Conference in San Diego, California, from July 14-18. ESRI is the primary vendor of Geographic Information System software, which our research team uses on a daily basis. The conference draws between 10,000 and 15,00 people each year, and is a giant mixing pot of everything Read more about UHPSI Map Takes Third Place![…]
Hello friends and fans! UHPSI will be putting together an event on July 23rd titled “Pollinators: Learning the Value of their Protection and their Products” The session will include a hands-on mead-making workshop (an ancient beverage made from honey) in the earlier afternoon followed by a guided mead tasting and casual dinner that will accompany Read more about Join Us — Pollinators: Learning the Value of their Protection and their Products[…]
While we were out sampling for land cover around the ranch, Catherine and Lindsi happened upon this baby pronghorn! Young ungulates that are unable to escape predators are hidden by their mothers for safe keeping. During this stage they have very little scent and instinctively freeze if approached. This young guy or gal was not Read more about Baby pronghorn underfoot![…]
Our first round of work capturing the spectral signatures of leafy spurge is complete. During peak flowering period, leafy spurge is visible from far away, allowing dense patches to be identified relatively easily. Light signatures are often expressed in reflectance units, which vary from 0 to 1 (100% of light hitting the subject(s) is being Read more about Leafy Spurge from a Distance[…]
In tandem with the collection of spectral signatures (see previous post), we recently began an intensive burst of field data collection. Using a predictive model of where leafy spurge is likely to be located, we divided the Ucross ranch into five strata, each of which corresponds to a different (predicted) quantity of spurge. We then Read more about Invasive species assessment[…]
Catherine and Charlie ventured into the field last week with our portable spectrometer, courtesy of the Yale Center for Earth Observation. Our goal in these first few trips with the spectrometer was to capture spectral ‘signatures’ of leafy spurge – in other words, the unique ways in which spurge reflects light (both visible light and light Read more about First field work of the summer![…]
On Tuesday, May 13, UHPSI team members in New Haven—including Henry Glick, Lindsi Seegmiller, and Devin Routh—travelled to the University of Massachusetts at Amherst to attend the Northeast Arc Users Group Conference (NEARC). The NEARC Conference describes itself as being for “anyone who wants to see the value [that] GIS technology brings to their Read more about NEARC Conference Poster Award[…]
The UHPS team recently congregated for the last time before heading our separate ways for the summer field season. Over breakfast we worked on finalizing our research agenda, identifying last-minute logistical challenges, and sharing excitement for ongoing work on the High Plains. Over the course of the summer at least five team members will spend Read more about Let the summer begin![…]
April has seen the UHPSI team diving into detailed analysis of avian acoustics. In particular, the team has focused on a sub-sample of recordings from the Big Red acoustic monitoring station during January of 2014. These winter recordings offer remarkably ‘noise’ free recordings, with crisp winter air, frozen waterways, and relatively low wind speeds. Additionally, Read more about The Eagles are Coming![…]
As the 2014 spring semester comes to a close, the UHPSI team has begun preparing for the summer field season. One of the most important pieces of equipment that the team will be taking to Wyoming is the Yale Center for Earth Observation’s (YCEO) portable spectrometer. So, what’s a spectrometer? A spectrometer is a device that Read more about Field Equipment: Spectrometer[…]
In our recent stakeholder meeting, a few participants spent time discussing the application of season extension practices to enhance crop production in the region. These practices enable crops to be grown for a longer period of time each year, increasing overall yields and spreading out income-generating periods. In these regions, light is often blamed for Read more about Rethinking Greenhouse Construction[…]
Michelle Sullivan, John Heyneman, and UHPSI recently collaborated in bringing together a wide variety of regional residents invested in the land and its stewardship. We were fortunate to have 30 particpants, including farmers, ranchers, students, academics, and land stewardship professionals, under a single roof. We spent March 8th in the Raymond Plank Creative Center discussing Read more about Ucross Stakeholder Meeting[…]
UHPSI is concluding a short-term study looking at the changing demographics among farm and ranch operators across the state of Wyoming. Using agricultural records dating back to the 1920s, it has been possible to extract meaningful statistics on how these groups have changed over time. Here we show the change in the average age of Read more about Farmers and Ranchers are Getting Older[…]
We have decided to bring along two fantastic master’s students to work for UHPSI this Spring semester and into the summer. Catherine Kuhn will be working with Ambika Khadka on refining and enhancing the SWAT hydrologic model of the Ucross Ranch. She will also be working a project looking at changes in snowpack cover at Read more about New Yale F&ES Master’s Students Join UHPSI[…]
The Ucross High Plains Stewardship Initiative research team (UHPSI) has recently received a “Google Earth Engine Research Award”. The award has been granted in support of UHPSI’s ongoing land-cover studies and will provide the team the opportunity to make advanced methods for rapid land-cover detection and assessment available to the public through the use of Read more about The Ucross High Plains Stewardship Team wins a Google Research Award[…]