Ray Mesa, near the La Sal mountains on the Colorado-Utah border is notable for its old-growth ponderosa pines (estimated to be several hundred years old) that are growing in cool drainages amongst pinyon-juniper woodlands. Recent ponderosa tree mortality raised concerns among land managers and Larissa Yocom, a fire ecologist at Utah State University, began exploring the potential causes of these deaths.
Recently, Science Moab spoke with Moria Robinson, assistant professor of Biology at Utah State University, about plant and insect food webs. Changes in these food webs can be indicative of broader changes in climate.
Science Moab talks to Dr. Michael Ort about how an ancient explosion may have helped Indigenous populations grow
The following is part of a series of stories from Science Moab’s School to Science program, which pairs students with scientist mentors in the field, the lab, and museums. School to Science launched in August 2021 and has now served almost 60 students from Grand County High School and the Grand County Student Career and Success Center.
Here on the Colorado Plateau, old-growth juniper and pinyon pine trees can live for 1,000 years. Can these ancient trees remember things that happened to them years ago? Science Moab explored this enchanting…
Science Moab talks to Erin Baxter about the archaeology of death
Phoebe works to investigate how the endangered fish can thrive.
Science Moab speaks with Kari Veblen, Utah State University professor of rangeland ecology. The Veblen lab at USU includes a diverse group of field-based ecologists who work on both public and private lands…
Humans are using more water out of the Colorado River than the river can support, both for human use as well as for other life forms that live along and within the river….
Sagebrush once stretched across almost 500,000 square miles from the Dakotas to California. Each year, a million acres are lost to invasive species, catastrophic wildfire, development, improper grazing and climate change. Matt Cahill…
