Graydon, MSc student

Who am I and what is my fieldwork project?

My name is Graydon, and I’m a 1st-year MSc student in the Eckert Lab. I study the population dynamics of Camissoniopsis cheiranthifolia, otherwise known as ‘beach evening primrose’, right at the species’ northern range edge. This species grows on the coastal dunes along the west coast of the USA and Mexico, from central Oregon down to Baja California. This past summer, my field season involved driving down the coast with my field assistant, Krista, and surveying over 7,000 georeferenced plots between Portland and San Francisco. We collected a large set of data describing these ‘patches’ of habitat, including population sizes, habitat suitability, and species diversity. I am currently using this dataset as part of a time series to understand how rates of colonization, extinction, and growth rates change towards the species' northern range limit.

What was the best part of fieldwork?

My favourite part of fieldwork was getting to see so many new places! I had the chance to work in some beautiful environments along the coast and got to explore some lovely towns in Oregon and California. It was pretty amazing to be able to do this for my job, and I’m very grateful for the experiences I had discovering new places and meeting so many different people.

What was the most challenging part of fieldwork?

My field season was a huge test of endurance. Many days, Krista and I hiked large distances to reach more remote survey locations, often walking upwards of 10-15 km (my record was 22km of hiking in a single day!) We usually worked 9-10 days in a row with a single day off, and this got pretty tiring after a couple of months. By the end, though, I was really glad I was able to push myself and take on new challenges that I wouldn’t have imagined myself doing just a few years ago.