Tyson Research Center is Washington University’s field station and home to several large-scale environmental biology research projects. At Tyson we do BIG science and need a lot of helping hands. Through the Tyson Environmental Research Fellowships (TERF) program, St. Louis area teens can work as paid members of research teams alongside university scientists, postdoctoral researchers, graduate students, and undergraduate students. Twelve TERFers will be working at Tyson during summer 2018.
Our first group of six TERFers have arrived! Welcome aboard to Daniel, Anna, Sabreena, Kayla, Vlada, and Farhan!
TERF selfie at the highest point at Tyson Research Center
After a morning of orientation activities, the TERFers joined up with their Tyson teams and got busy with research support.
Anna (center) is sifting roots and rocks from prairie soil samples alongside WashU undergraduate students Rebecca (left) and Jacob (right). They are members of the Natural Enemies team working under the direction of Dr. Scott Mangan and Dr. Claudia Stein.
Sabreena is a member of Team Tick-quito and will be studying mosquitoes in urban, suburban, and rural environments around St. Louis. She will be working closely with Dr. Katie Westby and Tyson Director Dr. Kim Medley to better understand the impacts of the invading Asian tiger mosquito.
Daniel (right) is helping WashU undergraduate Ivan (left) repair the axle of a wheelbarrow so they can transport sterilized soil to the research garden. The Natural Enemies team is setting up a new experiment for WashU PhD candidate Rachel Becknell.
Kayla is a member of the Tick & Wildlife Ecology Team and will be investigating the relationship between ticks and birds in the Tyson forest. She will be going out to capture birds early tomorrow morning with Dr. Solny Adalsteinsson and the rest of her team.
Vlada (left) and Farhan (right) survived a very hot afternoon in the woods learning how to measure and map trees with the Forest Biodiversity Team. This is the largest research team at Tyson with 2 TERFers, 8 undergrads, 3 technicians, 1 postdoctoral researcher, and principal investigator Dr. Jonathan Myers.
by Susan Flowers, Education and Outreach Coordinator, Tyson Research Center